Inka Trail to Machu Picchu: abril 2016

Inca Trail "Classic"

Inca Trail to Machu Picchu in 4 days

The Inca Trail got used as a communication system for the Incas to run from one place to another in the humongous Inca Empire which stretched from south Colombia to north of Argentina. There are different Inca trails to hike, but this one is the most famous Inca trail and it will take you from Sacred Valley to Machu Picchu which is one of the Seven Wonders of the World, through beautiful landscapes and different archaeological Inca sites.

Availability for Inca Trail to Machu Picchu + Huayna Picchu 4 Days / 3 Nights

Our departure dates for the Inca Trail are from March to January. Our recommended dates are from April to October, because of the rain season. The Inca trail has a strict limit on how many people can use the Inca trail (500) three hundred of them are the guides, porters and chefs. Therefore we will recommend you to book your trip as soon as possible around 6 months in advance.

Day 1: Cusco – Huayllabamba

Our journey to Machu Picchu through the classical Inca trail begins at your hotel, from where you will be picked up after the breakfast (optional) around 6.00 – 6.30. From your hotel you will have a transfer 2 – 2.5 hours with your guide to our starting point which is called km 82. At the starting point you need to show your Inca trail permission card, your original passport, and your ISIC card if you have one.Here the Inca Trail begins and we will start hiking for 2 hours to Miskayl, where we are going to enjoy a nice lunch. The hike to Miskayl is a flat and a beautiful walk, where we can enjoy the incredible flora of the landscape around us.

After the lunch we are going to have another two hours hike to Wayllabamba (3.000 m.) which will be our camping spot. We will arrive there at 5. Pm in the afternoon, and we will enjoy a nice dinner from our personal professional chef at 6.30 pm. After the dinner we will settle down for the night.

Day 2: Huayllabamba – Pacaymayo

At the second day the guides wakes us up at 5.30 with warm tee, so we can get a good start of the day at the Inca trail and we will eat breakfast at 6.00. Our first hike of this day begins at 6.30 and it will take around 5 hours (7 km) to get from our camp to the high spot which is called dead woman pass (4.600 m), where you can experience the female spirit, a woman that lives on the side of the mountain.

From this place we have a 2 hour hike down to our second camping spot (Pacamayu 3,600 m), where we finally will have our lunch after 7 hours of hiking in total on the Inca trail. At the camp we will rest and around 6.30 we will have dinner. Later we will get comfortable under our blankets, so we can stay warm for the cold night.

Day 3: Paqaymayo – Phuyupatamarka

We get up at 6.00 am and breakfast will be served by the chef at 6.30. At 7.00 we will start hiking. This day is a very special and beautiful day where we will pass 3 Inca ruins along the Inca trail. To get to the first Inca ruin Runkqurakay (3.800 m.), we have to hike one hour up; thereafter we have another hour of walking to the second high spot, Runku Pass (4.00 m.). After the second Inca ruin it will get easier, from there we will walk down for 45 m. to Sayacrmarka (3580 m.).

After the visit we will have 25 min. to chakicoccha (3.600 m) where we will enjoy our lunch in natural surroundings and incredible landscape. After the lunch we have a one hour hiking to Phuyupatamarka (3.60 m), which is the last hike on the Inca trail of this day. On this place we can find the last Inca construction for today.

From this point we will have an easy two hour walk down to Wiñnahuayna (2.600 m), where we will settle our camp and our chef will make a nice buffet to everyone so we can say goodbye to the chefs and the porters in a very nice way at 6.30. If you still have energy left after the hike, you can visit the archaeological site of wiñahuayna, only 5 minutes from our camp spot, a really delightful site on the Inbca trail with a lot of terraces and ruins.

Day 4: Wiñay Wayna – Machu Picchu – Aguas Calientes

On the last day we get up very early 3.30 and eat breakfast at 4.00. After the breakfast we begin hiking to the first checkpoint which opens at 5.30. After the checkpoint we have one hour of hiking to the Sun gate, from where we will have great views of Machu Picchu and all the surrounding mountains. Here we will have 20 min. to rest. Thereafter we have 10 min. down to the lost city of the Incas; Machu Picchu. Here the Inca trail ends and we will enter the wonder of Machu Picchu. At the city, we have to pass the second checkpoint for leaving our bags and it will cost you 3 soles for every back, which is necessary.

There you will also need to show your passport, the ticket and the ISIC card if you have one. Thereafter your guide will show you around the Machu Picchu and the different important sites, ruins and temples of the site from 8.00 to 10.00. After the tour you will have some free time to explore the city, its many different roads and its beautiful surroundings. After you have enjoyed the magnificent city of the Incas you have to use your bus ticket to get down to Aguas Calientes and then take the train back to Cusco via Ollantaytambo. The “expedition train” leaves at 6.30 in the evening and arrives at Ollantaytambo after 2 hours. At Ollantaytambo there will be a bus waiting for you to take you back to Cusco. Here your journey will end at 10.30 in the night.

Machu Picchu It is situated on a mountain ridge above the Sacred Valley which is 80 kilometres (50 mi) northwest of Cuzco and through which the Urubamba River flows. Mostarchaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was built as an estate for the Inca emperor Pachacuti (1438–1472). Often mistakenly referred to as the "Lost City of the Incas" (a title more accurately applied to Vilcabamba), it is the most familiar icon of Inca civilization.

The Incas built the estate around 1450, but abandoned it a century later at the time of the Spanish Conquest. Although known locally, it was not known to the Spanish during the colonial period and remained unknown to the outside world before being brought to international attention in 1911 by the American historian Hiram Bingham. Most of the outlying buildings have been reconstructed in order to give tourists a better idea of what the structures originally looked like. By 1976, 30% of Machu Picchu had been restored; restoration continues today

Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. In 2007, Machu Picchu was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in a worldwide Internet poll.

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Terraced fields in the upper agricultural sector in Machu Picchu

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Temple of the Sun or Torreon in Machu Picchu

Inti Watana is believed to have been designed as an astronomic clock or calendar by the Incas

View of the residential section of Machu Picchu

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Inca Trail or Inka Trail

The Inca Trail to Machu Picchu (also known as Camino Inca or Camino Inka) consists of three overlapping trails: Mollepata, Classic, and One Day. Mollepata is the longest of the three routes with the highest mountain pass and intersects with the classic inka trail route before crossing Warmiwañusqa ("dead woman"). Located in the Andes mountain range, the trail passes through several types of Andean environments including cloud forest and alpine tundra. Settlements, tunnels, and many Incan ruins are located along the trail before ending the terminus at the Sun Gate on Machu Picchu mountain. The two longer routes require an ascent to beyond 4,200 metres (13,800 ft) above sea level, which can result in altitude sickness.