Internet in Peru for travellers: which eSIM to choose
To get online in Peru, all you need is a data eSIM installed before you leave: it connects as soon as you land in Lima, you keep your number for WhatsApp and you skip registering your phone, which is compulsory if you buy a Peruvian SIM. Here's which plan fits each kind of trip.
Which plan suits you, by trip length
| Trip | Plan | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One week with maps and messaging | 3 GB · 30 days | €9.95 |
| One week with social media every day | 5 GB · 30 days | €12.95 |
| Two weeks: Lima, Cusco and Machu Picchu | 10 GB · 30 days | €22.95 |
| Three weeks or more, or remote work | 20 GB · 30 days | €45.95 |
Prices include VAT and match the Peru plan page. There's also 1 GB for €4.49 (7 days), for a layover or a couple of days in Lima.
Peru is a place where people film a lot: Machu Picchu, Rainbow Mountain, the Colca Canyon. If your phone uploads photos and videos to the cloud over mobile data, switch that off and let it do the job on the hotel Wi-Fi. Work it out in two minutes.
Weighing up an unlimited plan instead? Compare the prices, duration by duration, in Glowi vs Holafly in Peru.
How many GB is enough?
It isn't the number of days that decides, it's how you use your phone: video and automatic photo backup use more than everything else put together.
- Maps, messaging and looking up places: a week uses very little.
- Add social media and music: that's where 5 or 10 GB make sense.
- Video, video calls or remote work: go for the big plan.
The ranges, with figures, are in how much data a trip uses.
A Peruvian SIM: registering your IMEI
If you buy a Peruvian line, your foreign phone has to be registered; if you use your own operator's roaming, there's nothing to do.
- With a Peruvian SIM: according to OSIPTEL, Peru's telecoms regulator, a tourist who buys a local line must register their handset with the operator. If they don't, they get a warning text and, once the deadline passes, the phone is blocked on Peruvian networks. The Peruvian press (February 2026) reports a deadline of two working days after the warning.
- With roaming: OSIPTEL states explicitly that tourists using international roaming on their foreign operator's SIM don't have to do anything.
- With a travel eSIM: it connects to the Peruvian network in roaming, just like your operator's roaming, with no Peruvian line in your name. No SIM to buy and no shop to find when you arrive.
In addition, in November 2025 OSIPTEL restricted the sale of lines to foreigners in Lima and Callao to in-person points of sale, with biometric verification, for as long as the state of emergency lasts. If you plan to buy a SIM, check first whether the measure is still in force.
Sources: OSIPTEL press release of 19-09-2024 (osiptel.gob.pe); resolution 000116-2025-CD/OSIPTEL, reported by La República on 26-11-2025; regularisation deadline according to DPL News and Infobae, 23-02-2026. Checked on 06-11-2026.
What about my operator's roaming?
It depends on the operator, and it isn't always expensive. Vodafone Spain includes Peru in its Zone 6, with an add-on of €3.00 a day for 1 GB.
That add-on lasts 24 hours and renews automatically, for another €3.00, when the day ends or the gigabyte runs out. If you stay under 1 GB a day, a week costs you €21.00; ten days, €30.00; two weeks, €42.00. Compare it with the table above for your number of days: on a short break the add-on can work out cheaper, and the longer the trip, the more paying every day adds up. Calls and texts are extra.
We haven't been able to check Movistar's and Orange's rates for Peru on their websites: look them up in your contract before you go, because without an add-on, pay-as-you-go outside the EU can be very expensive. We explain it in eSIM vs roaming.
If you're travelling from Latin America: lines from Colombia, Ecuador and Bolivia share the Andean Community rules with Peru, which abolished roaming surcharges between member countries; check with your operator what your plan includes. From Mexico, Argentina or other countries, look at your operator's travel packs and compare.
Vodafone rate checked on vodafone.es on 06-11-2026.
Coverage and where your traffic exits
In Peru we connect to the Movistar and Claro networks, and your traffic exits via Belgium.
Some websites will see you as connecting from Europe: the language they greet you in or a search engine's local results may change, and the odd Peruvian banking or ticketing site may ask for an extra verification step. For maps, messaging, social media and video, nothing changes. We say so on the plan page, before you buy.
According to OSIPTEL's March 2026 dashboard, the average 4G download speed in Peru is around 13 Mbps, and Movistar is the operator that keeps you connected for the longest. That's plenty for maps, messaging and social media. 5G exists, mainly in Lima; outside the cities, don't count on it.
On the Inca Trail, in the Colca Canyon or on the islands of Lake Titicaca there are stretches with no signal, whatever the operator. Download your maps, train tickets and Machu Picchu entry tickets beforehand.
OSIPTEL data published by Gestión on 20-04-2026.
How to activate it
- Install it at home, on Wi-Fi. Installing uses no plan data and doesn't start the clock.
- When you land, turn on data roaming for the eSIM line.
- The days start counting from your first connection to a Peruvian network, not when you buy.
Steps for each phone model are in the installation guide; if you're not sure about your phone, check the compatibility checker. Carrying on to Chile, Ecuador or Argentina? Have a look at the South America pack, which includes Peru.
Frequently asked questions about internet in Peru
How can I get internet in Peru as a tourist?
You have three options: your operator's roaming, a Peruvian SIM or a data eSIM. The eSIM is installed before you leave and works as soon as you land, with no shop and no phone registration; a Peruvian SIM means registering your phone's IMEI.
Will my phone be blocked if I use a Peruvian SIM?
If you don't register the handset after the warning text, yes: OSIPTEL blocks unregistered phones on Peruvian networks. With roaming or a travel eSIM you don't need to do this.
Is there coverage at Machu Picchu and on the Inca Trail?
In Aguas Calientes and in the cities there's usually signal, but on the Inca Trail, in the Colca Canyon or around Lake Titicaca there are long stretches with no coverage, whatever the operator. Have your maps, tickets and entry passes downloaded.
Do I keep my number and WhatsApp?
Yes. The eSIM is data only and your usual SIM stays in the phone with your number for calls and texts. WhatsApp works as normal because it runs over data.
Can I top up if I run out of data?
Yes. Go to My eSIM using the link in your email and tap “Add data”: the data and days are added straight away, with nothing to install. We explain it in what happens when your data runs out.
Do I need to set anything else up?
Only data roaming on the eSIM line. On some Android phones you have to enter the APN by hand; the right one is on the plan page.
Our recommendation for two weeks in Peru
The 10 GB plan for €22.95, valid for 30 days. For a week of light use, 3 GB for €9.95.