Spain or Machu Picchu

Erm...they are completely different!
What I would say is that Spain is probably easier to travel to independently, saving yourselves the expense of a tour. So, perhaps Perú? I have never been (and not sure I ever will, it is so far from Europe...) but as far as I know, July is a good time to go.

Yes that really is the problem. They are so different.
Had a similar thought as you about being able to travel myself to Spain.

I would choose Peru. It is unique. Spain might be a bit hot in July and will be an easy country to do on your own by public transport at a later date. You don’t need a tour for Spain.

Balso is right. They are completely different. To me it would be easier to return to Spain on your own whereas Perú and Mach Picchu may be a once in a lifetime opportunity. I vote for Machu Picchu and Perú. We visited it on a National Geographic tour for no other reason than letting someone else deal with the logistics of getting to all the different places. Doing that in Perú is more difficult than for Spain. Before making a final decision check on the current Covid situation in Perú and well as the political situation. Perú was having some issues not too long ago.

Spain is easy to plan and visit on your own. There’s no reason to visit Spain on a tour unless that’s your comfort level.

Thanks for the information
When you did Machu Picchu, did you do the mountain hike? It is part of the tour. We are both scared of heights however. Is there something we can be doing instead while the group hikes up the mountain?

Several years ago we had a trip to Spain booked but changed it for Machu Picchu. We are glad that we did.
We booked another trip to Spain awhile later only to cx for Egypt instead. Heck, two years ago our booked trip to Spain was canceled due to Covid. This September’s Spain trip may be canceled due to hubby’s medical situation. Life gets in the way so pick the one that is the hardest to do and do the easiest one later.

Re heights. While others are hiking, could you take the train up early? I have no knowledge of the trip logistics, but even a minute longer at the site would be what I would want.

Most definitely I would choose Peru over Spain in July, especially if you have a guided tour.

We didn’t do a mountain hike and I’m assuming you’re referring from Aguas Calientes up to Machu Picchu. A hike wasn’t part of the tour and most of the people on the tour weren’t physically capable of climbing. You can always take a bus up the mountain. It will let you off right at the entrance. My wife is afraid of heights, but our guide got her to agree to climb Waynapicchu and I recommend you climb it if you can reserve a spot. Waynapicchu is the tall mountain peak you see in all the popular Machu Picchu photos. It rises about 2,000 feet above Machu Picchu. I will add that the trail is narrow and steep most of the way up. The link is to our Perú trip photos.

Peru will be more unique than Spain.

Every country is unique in its own way

You need more information on the MP hike. It's probably a jungle trail, not a mountain rock scramble. I haven't done any portion of the multi-day approach to the city that some serious hiker/campers book. More people book just a taste of that hike, a few hours.

Peru is likely to be much cooler, but look up historical weather data.

The two trips are not comparable. Our Peru trip had 5AM wakeup almost every day, in fine hotels.

Spain would take a month or more to see the many great places.

Peru is wonderful and deserves a visit. If you go, visit Lima for 3 days and do a tour of Cusco, the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu.
We did a great four day tour with PeruAgency.com that cost $799 per person with a private guide (still had to pay RT airfare from Lima to Cusco about $190 pp).

Spain is a European country and Peru is a third world country. They speak the same language, but the similarity stops there.

Peru is definitely cheaper. Tours, meals and lodging are cheap compared to Spain. Still Peru is best done with a tour.

Peru Peru Peru!

We just returned from Galapagos and Peru in February and I have to say Peru was amazing. We were on an Abercrombie and Kent tour and it was fabulous! You will love cusco, Urubamba and Machu Picchu. We did say at the Belmont hotel at Aquas Calientes one night. It was amazing and well worth it as our tours of Machu Picchu were late in the day (all day trippers were gone) and in the morning, it felt like a private tour - not many people. You will enjoy!

We are going to Span and France in a few weeks so I can't report on that yet.

It’s a very long time ago since I visited Peru and Machu Picchu, but we had a wonderful time (except the bit where on Lake Titicaca I got seasickness and altitude sickness simultaneously). We approached Machu Picchu having completed the Inca Trail and entered from above via the Sun Gate (Inti Punku, if memory serves) and our descent to Aguas Calientes was by bus so I’m not sure what the ‘mountain hike’ up to Machu Picchu is like. However some of us did climb Wayna Picchu - it was steep and at one point there were chains to haul yourself up the rocky path. But as most of the route was in trees there was very little sense of exposure until you reached the very top, above the tree line, and climbed some steep terraced steps to the airy summit. I do recall noting on the way up that “here would be a VERY bad place to fall off”! View from the small summit was sensational as you’d expect,

Descent was uneventful and only memorable because, with exquisite timing, the sole of my right hiking boot fell off as, safely down, I strolled past the ticket office on the way out. Fortunately, by that stage, the hiking boots’ work was done!

I’d do Peru first. And as others have noted, Spain is easy to navigate under your own steam. It must be if an eejit like myself has succeeded doing it armed only with a smattering of schoolboy Spanish and a Collins Spanish mini phrase book!

Wherever you decide I’m sure you’ll have a great trip.

Ian

Do Peru while you are younger. You'll age-out of Machu Picchu before you age-out of northern Spain.

Peru or Spain -- I would have thought that a rather curious conjunction, but I have visited both countries, several times each, and I ask myself, almost every year, which it will be (with Peru prevailing more often). I like both countries and hesitate to recommend one over the other. But if your experiences so far are within the affluent "west" (W. Europe, Canada, the US), you will probably find that in addition to its many wonders, Peru will provide the more unique cultural experience, and that itself could be valuable. Then again, I've found that compared to North Europe, Spain is quite culturally unique as well, especially if like me, you get off the main tourist trail, which it seems you are not proposing to do (except possibly for Zaragoza -- which I found to be a great city, by the way). Anyway, I don't want to leave the question unanswered, so I'll just say, pick Peru this time.
But note that pragmatically, a benefit of Spain is its great rail systems -- metros in Madrid and Barcelona, trains everywhere else -- though as you will be on organized tour in either country, this may not be a big factor for you. Then again, the July weather in the Cusco-Machu Picchu area will probably be nicer (possibly with cold nights). Spain can get quite hot in the summer, and though the northern part of the country is said not to be get hot as Spain's south, all my Spain trips have been in Nov. or Dec. so I'm not a good judge of this.