How to get to Vilcabamba
Well, there is not much, it’s a village famous for their old people, which you won’t see because here as well the western lifestyle entered and especially the hippies.
This village is full of Gringos, who want to escape from the industrial nations. There are a lot of places for meditation and you can even stay in a Hippie Community. I stood there for four nights to come down and enjoyed the peace with nature. The community unfortunately lacks the ability of communication and therefore is a bit unorganized. This can be frustrating. That’s why I left earlier and took the cheapest hostel in town, which is not vegan friendly (they offer horse riding).
Another accommodation that is recommendable is Izhcayluma. It is also a bit off the village, that’s why I didn’t go there.
They have a direct shuttle service from and to Cuenca which starts at 8am from their hostel and goes back at 1pm from Cuenca. It’s 15$ and it’s two hours faster than the regular bus.
Otherwise to reach Vilcabamba you have to take the bus in Loja (Terminal) by Vilcabamba Turis (1.25$). To cross the border from/to Peru I highly recommend Loja express (Piura-Loja is 14$). They start in Piura at 1pm or 8pm.
To cross to Peru in direction of the Amazon (Jaen) you have to take a bus to Zumba, where you can take another one to San Ignacio (Peru) and then to Jaen, where you have connections to Chachapoyas and other cities.
