DO NOT START IN CUSCO.
Start in Ollantaytambo.
Start in Ollantaytambo.
As you increase in altitude, the air loses oxygen and moisture. As you know, we need oxygen to get into our blood and nourish our organs, and we require it for our overall body to survive. So what do you imagine will happen when we get less and less oxygen and moisture .... we get more and more sick and dehydrated.
Well for some reason, some of us don't get as sick. According to scientific studies, it doesn't matter your age, your gender, your weight, your health or your race (unless you're from an ethnic group that has lived high in the mountains for generations like the Quechua people who have bigger lungs to take in more oxygen at once), no one is more susceptible (likely to get) altitude sickness.
However in speaking from experience, I believe the extent from which you wil suffer very much depends on your body. It seems if you are more overweight, your heart and body does have to work much harder to carry your body weight up and down and around.
What does altitude sickness feel like in Cusco? The extent of what you experience is different for everyone. But, you know when you're doing cardio and you've pushed yourself to your maximum heart rate and you feel out breath and your heart is pounding and you almost start to get a tightness in your chest? That's what a mild case feels like. It doesn't hurt badly, but it feels as if you've been walking uphill for a few minutes when you've only been walking down the street a few feet.
As I was taking a bus up to Cusco with Cruz Del Sur (who didn't offer coca tea for some reason), I started to feel a tightness in my chest about 8 hrs before arriving in Cusco (we were heading up the mountain). It was a light uncomfortable feeling that spread to my shoulders and jaw and to my back a little bit. I didn't experience any headaches or dizziness because I drank lots of water to counter dehydration, but I did take one altitude sickness tablet 8hrs before arriving. I think that even if you take the advice below, some of the symptoms like feeling out of breath and that you're at your max heart rate is inevitable and can last a few days. If your symptoms end up being worse than the basics I just mentioned, you may want to go down to Ollantaytambo which is a traditional residential town with a few ruins, only about a drve of 1 hour and 45 mins from Cusco.
I experienced extreme laziness, to the point that my mind was affected. I had no motivation to go to the Plaza De Armas in Cusco, to talk to anyone, to watch tv, to go eat or something. I didn't want to see anyone, I didn't want to do anything. You are quite content to sit on your bed and look at the wall, and that is quite a contrast from the person who travels all the way to Peru to explore a new culture.
So you're wondering How do I prevent altitude sickness?
As I've mentioned, you get sick because of the lack of oxygen and hydration in your body, so I'm not sure you can really prevent that as we need the oxygen to survive. But you can drink lots of water before going to Cusco, Puno or Arequipa and during your trip there.
THE PREMIER NUMBER ONE TIP: DO NOT START IN CUSCO.
Landing in Cusco may be a necessity, but take a taxi directly to Ollantaytambo. (it is at a much lower altitude and you may not experience any altitude sickeness there). It is a beautiful place. Stay there for a few days, go to Urubamba and Machu Picchu, and then go to Cusco. Also, limit the number of days you spend in Cusco after Ollantaytambo, just in case you get hit with altitude sickness still.
Here are some other things you can do to help cope with the altitude sickness:
Before Arriving:
1. Drink huge bottles of water
2. Chew on coca leaves
3. Eat heavy carbs (pasta, potatos and bread -yum!)
4. Do not overeat
5. Take an 'altitude sickness tablet' starting 1 day before
When Arriving or During Your Time in Cusco:
5. Take an 'altitude sickness tablet' starting 1 day before
When Arriving or During Your Time in Cusco:
1. Start out at a lower town after arriving in Cusco, such as Ollantaytambo.
2. Walk slowly. That means walk as if you have next to no energy left. Walk as if you haven't slept all night and you're getting up to walk at 4am. Slllooowwww
3. Plan no activities on your first few days in Cusco
4. No alcohol, no smoking, no sleeping pills
5. Hang out in Cusco by day, go back to Ollantaytambo just before sunset
6. Practice deep breathing techniques. Relax, breathe in slowly and deeply. Hold your breath for 3 seconds and release slowly
3. Plan no activities on your first few days in Cusco
4. No alcohol, no smoking, no sleeping pills
5. Hang out in Cusco by day, go back to Ollantaytambo just before sunset
6. Practice deep breathing techniques. Relax, breathe in slowly and deeply. Hold your breath for 3 seconds and release slowly
7. Drink lots of water all day
