Planning a Peruvian trip from Europe this winter? Here are the newest dengue figures with their dates, the chikungunya risk, where malaria and yellow fever occur, and when a bed net matters.
Dengue in Peru: the newest figures and what their dates mean
Dengue is a viral infection spread by day-biting Aedes mosquitoes. Peru has reported dengue for years, and the case count moves with the seasons. The Pan American Health Organization's October 2026 update gives Peru 63,407 dengue cases between weeks 1 and 38 of 2026, of which 49,650 were confirmed, including 71 deaths. Incidence was 183.02 per 100,000 people, and the case fatality rate was 0.11%. Three serotypes circulated, with DENV-3 predominant. A later PAHO report, updated on 23 October 2026 with data to week 39, puts Peru at 67,472 cumulative suspected cases and 5,404 suspected cases in week 39 alone. Read those figures with their dates. They describe the year to late October, not your travel week.
The wider regional picture: why Peruvian numbers sit in a continental trend
Peru's figures make more sense against the region. PAHO's week 39 report records 1,813,577 suspected dengue cases across the Americas in 2026, a figure it says is 55% below the same period in 2025 and 62% below the average of the last five years. It records 614 deaths and a case fatality rate of 0.034%, with 565,945 laboratory-confirmed cases, and counts 28,008 new suspected cases in week 39, including 76 classified as severe dengue and 10 deaths. Forty-six countries have reported cases in 2026, and 21 reported dengue in week 39. The October 2026 update, with data to week 37, reports 1,692,937 suspected and 523,102 confirmed cases regionally, with 3,413 severe cases and 571 deaths. Regional direction is not a personal risk estimate.
Chikungunya: a listed risk with no Peruvian figure in the update
Chikungunya is another viral infection carried by Aedes mosquitoes, and it causes fever and severe joint pain. UK guidance for Peru lists a risk of chikungunya, and so do the authorities that publish country pages for travellers. What the evidence does not give is a Peruvian chikungunya count. PAHO's 20 October 2026 update records 213,919 suspected and 78,481 confirmed chikungunya cases across the Americas, with 88 deaths in 20 countries and territories, but its country section does not include Peru and gives no Peruvian figure. Read that absence plainly: no figure supplied does not mean no risk. The listed risk stands. Treat chikungunya as a mosquito-borne hazard wherever you meet day-biting mosquitoes in Peru. PAHO's 20 October 2026 update frames the regional outlook around the anticipated intensification of the El Niño phenomenon over the coming months and the approaching peak season for dengue and chikungunya transmission in South America.
Malaria: below the altitude line, east of the Andes
Malaria is caused by parasites and spread by Anopheles mosquitoes, which bite mainly from dusk to dawn. In Peru, the two main travel health authorities agree broadly on where it occurs, and differ on detail. UK guidance puts malaria at low risk in the Amazon basin along the border with Brazil, particularly Loreto province, and in other rural areas below 2,000 metres. It reports no risk in Lima or on the coast south of Chiclayo. The US CDC places malaria in all areas below 2,500 metres east of the Andes, including Iquitos and Puerto Maldonado, records it as rare in Tumbes and Piura, and reports no transmission in Lima, Arequipa, Ica, Moquegua, Nazca, Puno, Tacna, Cusco, Machu Picchu, Lake Titicaca or the central and southern Pacific coast.
Yellow fever: vaccination recommended for parts of Peru
Yellow fever is a viral infection spread by mosquitoes, and a vaccine prevents it. Peru has recorded recent cases. PAHO's March 2026 alert reports 49 confirmed human cases and 19 deaths in Peru in 2025, a case fatality rate of 39%, with cases in Amazonas, Huánuco, Junín, Loreto, Madre de Dios and San Martín. Between weeks 1 and 7 of 2026, Peru confirmed two cases in Madre de Dios with no deaths. PAHO classifies overall risk in the Americas as high. UK guidance recommends yellow fever vaccination for travellers aged 9 months and older going to listed areas below 2,300 metres, and not for travel limited to areas above 2,300 metres, areas west of the Andes not listed, Lima, Cusco city, Machu Picchu or the Inca Trail. CDC gives matching altitude advice and records no entry requirement.
Day biters and night biters: how to plan your protection
Not all mosquitoes keep the same hours, and that changes how you protect yourself. UK guidance states that some mosquitoes bite during daylight, including Aedes species, while others are more active from dusk to dawn, including Anopheles species. It adds that Aedes aegypti can bite at night in well-lit areas, and that Anopheles can be active during the day, at dawn and dusk, and throughout the night depending on species and place. The World Health Organization says the mosquitoes that spread chikungunya bite primarily during daylight, and that Aedes aegypti feeds both indoors and outdoors. So plan for both ends of the day: repellent and clothing when the sun is up, and repellent plus a net or screened room after dark.
When a bed net matters, and how to use repellent properly
A bed net matters wherever night-biting mosquitoes and malaria occur. UK guidance says all travellers to malaria-endemic areas should sleep under a mosquito net unless the room is well screened or has working, switched-on air conditioning where mosquitoes cannot enter. Screens on doors and windows should use fine mesh. For daytime sleepers, the World Health Organization advises insecticide-treated nets, naming young children, sick patients and older people. Protection also depends on repellent. UK guidance recommends DEET at 50% for travellers over two months, with no further gain above 50%, and says icaridin has similar properties at 20%. Apply DEET after sunscreen, and use a 30 to 50 SPF sunscreen. Babies under two months need clothing and treated nets over cots and prams, and DEET is not recommended for them.
Sources
- Report on the epidemiological situation of dengue in endemic countries of the Americas, as of epidemiological week 39, 2026: Pan American Health Organization / World Health Organization
- Epidemiological Update: Dengue and Chikungunya in the Americas Region, 20 October 2026: Pan American Health Organization / World Health Organization
- Peru country information: TravelHealthPro (UK National Travel Health Network and Centre)
- Peru, CDC Travelers' Health: US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Insect and tick bite avoidance: TravelHealthPro (UK National Travel Health Network and Centre)
- Chikungunya (fact sheet): World Health Organization
- Epidemiological Alert: Yellow fever in the Americas Region, 13 March 2026: Pan American Health Organization / World Health Organization
This article is general information, not medical advice. Ask a doctor or pharmacist about your own health.