Protests in Peru
While traveling in Peru, you have to be prepared to adjust your travel itinerary in order to avoid protest in Peru. Road blocks and protests against the Peruvian government are not uncommon. As in Ecuador, they are usually announced in advance, so people can take their precautions. The protests often involve farmers, mine workers, drivers and/ or students. But in 2017 there even was huge protest from teachers, who demanded better salaries.
Corruption in Peru
That the people in Peru aren’t happy with their government, shouldn’t come as a surprise. Peru’s ranking on the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) remains low. Besides that, 81% of Peruvian citizens believe that corruption has increased in the past six years. And eight of the ten Peruvian presidents since 1990 are either in jail, have been in jail, or have faced a detention order! Each of them faced corruption charges for graft during their tenure as a public official.
Cause of current protests in Peru
The current (20 October 2025) protests in Peru started small in Lima, after the government approved a new pension law. The new law required self-employed workers to contribute to the public pension system. However, the new law limits the amount that those under 40 could withdraw early to a minimum. The law angered many young people in a country where politicians of all stripes are at the center of corruption scandals day after day.
Disappointment in their Peruvian government
Other, mainly young Peruvians, quickly joined these protests, showing their discontent with the Peruvian government. One of the main problems in Peru is the lack of security and the widespread extortion of small businesses and transporters. Other problems include an increase in crime and decades of corruption and disillusionment with their government (see for statistics above).
Resigning presidents
This time the young protesters in Peru were likely encouraged by the success of young demonstrators in Nepal, who managed to topple their corrupt government. The protesters in Peru also demanded their president to resign and a change of government. On Thursday October 9, Peru’s Congress voted to remove President Dina Boluarte. On Friday October 10, they installed José Jerí as new president. However, Jerí is also surrounded by corruption scandals, and even sexual violation, so the protests continue
Protests while traveling in Peru
Should the current protests, or future protests stop you from booking your vacation to Peru? No. First of all, the current protests are likely finished by the time you might arrive in Peru. Second, Peru is a huge country (37x bigger than the Netherlands), so there is generally enough place to avoid the protests. Third, transport companies and Peruvian tour agencies have many years of experience in dealing with protests and roadblocks. Most of the time they are well informed, flexible with their itineraries and/ or find good alternatives. If you travel alone in Peru, then I recommend watching the local news.
Travel anecdote about a protest in Peru
Years ago, when I worked as a tour leader for a big Dutch tour agency, I was on my way to Isla del Sol in Lake Titicaca, Bolivia, when I received a phone call. I was surprised to have reception on the lake and had to concentrate to listen. The call came from our local tour operator in Lima. They told us that mineworkers in the province of Cusco decided to block the main roads entering Cusco, starting from midnight. According to our itinerary we would travel the next day to Cusco end then to the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu. But these roadblock would make this impossible. We had to try to depart as soon as possible towards Cusco, in order to avoid this roadblock.
Rushing to the Peruvian border
We turned the boat around and upon reaching shore in Copacabana I instructed our passengers to quickly pack all their luggage. I still had to find a few group members who were spending their afternoon in Copacabana. I also wanted to talk with a colleague tour leader who was also with his group in Copacabana. We both had to find and instruct all our group members to pack their luggage and meet at the receptions of our hotels. We coordinated with the local travel agent in Copacabana that they would bring us to the Peruvian border (only 10 km away). From there we would travel with both groups together in a big touring car bus towards Cusco.
Good coordination
It was already late afternoon, and it would take around six hours to reach the point between Puno and Cusco, where the roadblocks would start at midnight. We would have little time for stops. Surely no time for dinner for a big group. So my colleague and I decided to ask our local agent in Puno to buy pizza, soft drinks and water for our group. Our local agent waited for us with our dinner at the main road, when we passed through Puno in the evening. We ate our dinner in the bus, had quick toilet stops at gas stations and finally managed to cross the border of the Cusco province at 23:40 h! We had made it right on time. Later we found out that the roadblocks would last for more than a week, so we had been lucky! But avoiding these protests in Peru wasn’t only luck, it was also a very good coordination between all our colleagues who work in tourism. Using AI to organize your travel itinerary wouldn’t be much of a help in these cases.
