Tripology

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Inca Trail Trek to Machu Picchu

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Detailed Trip Description

The Inca Trail is a great way to reach the lost city of Machu Picchu. An ancient road lined with settlements through the Sacred Valley, the “Classic” four-day trek offers beautiful views of snowcapped mountains, high cloud forests, and treasured Incan ruins. This route takes you over high passes and is a challenging trek. The hike begins in Lima, spends two days in Cusco, and arrives at Machu Picchu through the spectacular Gate of the Sun.

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Trip Itinerary

Day 1 - Lima

 
Airport Transfer

Upon arrival in Lima, you will be met and transferred to your hotel.

Lima Airport Transfer picture
Sightseeing

Enjoy a tour of the city of Lima. On your tour, you will visit the Plaza de Armas, the newly refurbished main square, where you will appreciate the majestic colonial architecture.

Museums

You can see the Government Palace where Francisco Pizarro took up residence in 1538, and the cathedral/museum that houses Pizarro's remains.

Sightseeing

You may also visit the Archbishop's Palace with its beautiful balconies, the catacombs and library of the San Francisco Church and Monastery, and Plaza San Marin.

Museums

Finally, you might also opt to visit the Gold Museum or the Larco Herrera Museum, which has 45,000 pieces, mainly pottery, that were excavated by Peruvian archaeologist Rafael Larco Hoyle. (For evening arrivals, this tour will be on Day 9.)


Day 2 - Cusco

 
Lima/Cusco.
Commercial Flight

Your day begins with an early morning flight to Cusco, high in the Andes.

Cusco Commercial Flight picture
Airport Transfer

You will be met and transferred to your local hotel.

Historical and Educational Tours

Enjoy an easy afternoon walking tour of the ancient city. From the Plaza de Armas, you can visit many of the city’s historical sites, see Incan stone walls serving as the foundations of Spanish architecture, and view the cathedral built atop the ruins of an Incan temple.

Food and Dining

For lunch and dinner, enjoy the variety of great places to eat in the city. (To start acclimatizing to the high altitude, don’t overdo it on your first day, and drink plenty of water.)

Hotel

Stay overnight in Cusco for the next two nights. [Altitude 10,990’]
Meals: Breakfast.


Day 3 - Cusco

 
Cusco Ruins/Jakima Project of Chincheros.
Sightseeing

This morning you will have a guided tour of the four extraordinary nearby ruins, Sacsayhuaman, Qenko, Puca Pucara, and Tambomachay. Cusco was the head of the Incan Empire and was built in the shape of a puma. The city itself is the puma’s body, and the enormous Sacsayhuaman ruins represent the head and teeth. The largest and most impressive of Sacsayhuaman’s original rocks are still in place, though only about 20% of the entire site remains today. Qenko, meaning zig-zag, consists of a large limestone rock covered with carvings with mysterious caves and alters below, and its zig-zag walls and channels are thought to have been used for ritual sacrifices. Puca Pucara, or red fort, is a small site that appears red when viewed in the right light. Tambo Machay, another small site, is known locally as “El Bano del Inca,” or the Incan bath, as it has beautiful ceremonial stone fountains and bathing pools.

Sightseeing

In the afternoon, visit the Jakima Project of Chincheros at the Center for Traditional Textiles in Cuzco (CTTC). The Center was formed in response to concerns that valuable 2000-year-old textile traditions are in danger of being lost in our generation. The Jakima Project was created to engage as many children as possible from communities around Cusco to learn the basic skills of weaving and the designs native to their respective communities. [12,000’-12,350’]
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch.


Day 4 - Cusco

 
Cusco/Q'ente - Begin Trek (Sun or Wed).
Train

You will be transferred to the station and board the train that brings you to kilometer marker 88.

Camping

From here the small bridge brings you over to Q’ente. At this camp, levels of terracing are evident, each having different purpose and structure. There is a shelter here to enjoy dinner, toilets, and your last hot shower until the end of the trek.

Sightseeing

You will have a chance to visit the surrounding archaeological remains of Patallacta (also known as Qentemarca) and in the afternoon the sites of Q’ente and Machu Q’ente, which are located amidst Inca terracing. (Time: 4-6 hours, Distance: 11 km). [8,365']
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.


Day 5 - Peru

 
Llulluchapampa.
Hiking

This morning, wake up to some hot tea delivered right to your tent. Get an early start for your day of climbing Inca stairs through lush tropical forests and small villages and trekking over rivers and streams until you reach your camp in a valley near Llulluchapampa. The trail winds slowly uphill through a small forest to reach the site of Patallacta.

Sightseeing

After a short visit you continue up the Cusichaca Valley, passing houses of settlers to finally reach the Andean community of Huayllabamba. From here the trail ascends steeply to a large pampa below the first pass, where you will camp. This camp hosts wild llamas and has a breathtaking view of Mt. Huayanay. Along the trail up this narrow hanging valley, you can begin to see a cloud forest that harbors the Queñua tree.

Camping

Llulluchapampa is a bare area above the forest with good camping, but please be aware that it gets very cold at night. This is a long uphill day of trekking. (Time: 6 hours, Distance: 9 km) [12,000']
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.


Day 6 - Peru

 
Warmiwañusca Pass/Phuyupatamarca.
Hiking

This morning, continue your trek through cloud forests along mountain streams and old Inca trails. The trail ascends at a typical angle of 30 degrees across the hillside of Puna grassland as you leave the campsite behind, bringing you to the Warmiwañusca Pass, or "Dead Woman's Pass," the highest point of the trek [13,776']. The trail descends to the Pacaymayo River and then climbs slowly past Runkuraqay ruins.

Camping

You finally reach camp at Phuyupatamarca, which means “the town at the edge of the clouds” in Quechua. Take things very slowly and carefully today. Most people experience minimal altitude discomfort. (Time: 8 hours, Distance: 9 km) [11,100']
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.


Day 7 - Machu Picchu

 
Phuyupatamarca/Winay Wayna/Machu Picchu.
Hiking

Wake up very early this morning so that you can negotiate an Incan stone tunnel and follow a buttress along a ridge-top to the ruins of Phuyupatamarca. Mt. Salkantay is prominent from this perspective. The trail winds sharply down a series of Incan steps and flagstone paths through thickening cloud forest to the well-restored Inca ruins of Wiñay Wayna. After a two-hour walk through cloud forest, you reach the Intipunku, or Gate of the Sun, the main entrance to Machu Picchu.

Hotel

You will have some time to admire the ruins before you continue to your hotel. Stay overnight in Aguas Calientes (Upgrade to the Sanctuary Lodge, additional $275pp double/$450 single per night.). [9,000’ to 7,900’ at Machu Picchu]
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch.


Day 8 - Cusco

 
Machu Picchu/Cusco.
Sightseeing

Enjoy a guided tour of the ruins with time afterwards for individual exploration. Be sure to read about Machu Picchu in advance to fully appreciate your guide's expertise. Stumbled upon by accident in 1911, it remains a mysterious site, as there are no Spanish records, Incan legends, or oral histories which describe its exact purpose. Elegant ornamental stonework hints at the possibility of Machu Picchu's importance as a ceremonial center.

Optional
Mountain Climbing

You will have the option to climb the steep path to Huayna Picchu for a spectacular view of the ruins.

Train

This afternoon, take the four-hour ride back to Cusco on the train through the spectacular scenery of the Urubamba Valley.

Hotel

You will be met at the station and transferred to your local hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch.


Day 9 - Lima

 
Cusco/Lima/Onward.
Commercial Flight

You will be transferred to the airport for your flight to Lima.

Hotel

You will be met and transferred back to your hotel, where you will have the use of a day room.

Airport Transfer

Later, you will be transferred to the airport for your late flight to the U.S.
Meals: Breakfast.


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