Monkey Run Peru
The Details: Monkey Run Peru
Monkey bikes take some beating. Unless there’s a steep hill. Or bad weather. Or even a non-steep hill. Luckily there’s loads of that sort of thing in Peru, which is part of the reason this is currently the toughest thing you can do on a monkey bike.
1. The un-route
Start Line - Ayacucho
Your adventure kicks off with a few pre-adventure beers, followed by a day of test driving to master your monkey. Mechanical sessions bestow you with nuggets of wisdom to help keep your machine mostly moving. A slightly violent game of monkey bike football encourages camaraderie and occasionally inflicts some minor injuries, sustained in the quest for victory.
Then we all have a big feed and a proper knees up at the official launch party in the evening. The following morning we gather for the launch ceremony and send you off into the hills.
Finish Line: Jungle lodge in the Manu Reserve near Pillcopota
Accommodation is included at the finish line jungle lodge. Once you've washed off the mud and checked for snake bites it's time for the official finish party.
The following morning we'll feed you and drive you back to Cusco. You'll arrive in Cusco late afternoon, or early evening if there are any delays. From Cusco you can take a connecting flight back to Lima, but make sure you allow a full day to travel back from the finish line when you're booking onward flights.
2. The dates
September 2025
April 2026
September 2026
3. The rules
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1. Ride a comically unsuitable 90cc Monkey Bike
Proper adventure is only possible if you get slapped about the chops with glorious disaster. Throwing a monkey bike at the Andes mountains and Amazon jungle guarantees splendid mayhem.
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2. No set route
Get lost. Go in the wrong direction. Go in circles. It's up to you. Just as it should be.
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3. No back up
If you get stuck, you have to get yourself un-stuck. The Monkey Run is an unsupported adventure.
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4. Help save the world
Do your best to raise £500 for the official Monkey Run charity Cool Earth who work to stop jungles being chopped down. Because the world would be shit if there were no jungles.
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5. Have a motorcycle license
You need a motorbike license or endorsement on your domestic license that allows you to ride a 90cc motorbike in Peru.
4. Entry fee & what's included
You can pay in instalments too, chopping the fee up into monthly chunks.
We also take a fully refundable bike deposit of £300 to make sure we get our bikes back at the end of the adventure. We don't charge for general wear and tear, only proper damage or missing bits.
What's included?
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90cc monkey bike
A miniature adventure machine to thunder across a chunk of South American awesomeness. Plus the legally required vehicle insurance and vehicle paperwork to get past police checkpoints.
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Test Driving
A day of monkeying around to make sure you know where the go pedal is, with advice and instruction from the crew if you need it.
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Monkey bike repair lessons
Mechanical briefings to help you keep your mighty machine on the move.
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Launch Party
No adventure should begin without a big old shindig. And a couple too many Pisco Sours.
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Launch Ceremony
Official send off on the morning of the launch
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Finish Line & Finish Party
A stage to mark your victorious arrival and another party including dinner to celebrate the end of the adventure.
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Accommodation at the finish line
We put you up at the jungle lodge on the day of the finish line.
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Rider bus to Cusco
We drive you back to Cusco so you can catch a flight back to the terrifying boredom of normal life.
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The Knowledge
The team handbook packed with pre-adventure info and updates on your Run. A chat group to meet your fellow riders. And we're on hand by phone and email to answer your questions before the adventure.
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Monkey Run Rider Swag
Official Monkey Run rider t-shirt, seamless multi-functional headwear and rider patch to attach to your riding jacket.
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A community of likeminded idiots
Most importantly you get the company of fellow Adventurists, a collective of genius-idiots drawn to the call of overland stupidity.
5. The monkey bike
"You’re sort of spreading a wave of joy and happiness in your wake as everyone behind you bursts out laughing" - Mr. Tom, founder of the Monkey Run
• It's close to the ground, so you don't have far to fall.
• It's about the size of a rollerskate, so will fit through tiny gaps in traffic.
• It's incredibly light, so when it inevitably breaks down it's easy to carry.
• It's mechanically basic so a chimp could fix it.
They also have a super handy luggage rack over the rear wheel which can easily hold your wallet and maybe your keys (probably best to stick to three of four keys).
Here's some quick stats to prove just how spectacularly unsuitable they really are:
Engine: 90cc of 4 stroke genius
Power: 5.1 BHP
Weight: 72kg
Brakes: Disc front, drum rear
6. License and insurance
Motorcycle License
Vehicle Insurance
The insurance doesn't cover damage to the bike, that comes out of your deposit. We only make deductions if you do real harm to our beauties - we don't charge for the standard kicking you'll give the bike just by taking on the adventure.
Travel Insurance
7. Saving the world
Anything above this can be raised for any other registered charity of your choice.
Cool Earth works alongside indigenous villages to halt rainforest destruction. Local people stand to lose the most from deforestation but the most to gain from its protection, that’s why they are the forest’s best possible custodians.
All Cool Earth partnerships are community-owned and led. By developing local livelihoods, their mission is to end the cycle of deforestation entrenching villages into further poverty. Creating strong, self-determining communities.
8. The warning
Your chances of being seriously injured or dying as a result of taking part are high. Individuals who have taken part in past Adventurists' adventures have been permanently disfigured, seriously disabled and even lost their life.
This is not a glorified holiday, it's an unsupported adventure and so by its very nature extremely risky. You really are on your own and you really are putting both your health and life at risk. This is what makes them adventures.