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Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Atlanta, GA, USA
Programs: Frontier Gold, DL estranged 1MMer, Spirit VIP, CO/NW/UA/AA once gold/plat/comped gold now dust.
Posts: 42,099
Compared to Thailand and certain other parts of SE Asia, MP and Cartagena are a walk in the park as far as foreigner presence goes.
One factor that can mess things up in some places is CRUISE SHIPS, as they can have a short-lived but severe effect. Thankfully Peru isn't user-friendly for them.
On one of my Peru trips I did the Iquitos sidetrip, which was interesting. The limited backpacker presence is split between the town (a few popular guesthouses) and the lodges (bring a stack of books to read).