Machu Picchu & the Sacred Valley: Peru

Sample Itinerary

• Day 1

  Depart for Peru & Arrive in Lima

• Day 2

  Cusco

• Day 3

  Sacred Valley of the Incas

• Day 4

  Inca Trail, Km.82 To Paucarcancha

• Day 5

  Inca Trail, Paucarcancha to Pacaymayu

• Day 6

  Inca Trail, Pacaymayu to Phuyupatamarca

• Day 7

  Inca Trail, Phuyupatamarca to Machu Picchu

• Day 8

  Machu Picchu

• Day 9

  Cusco to Lima

• Day 10

  Home

After departing the U.S., we arrive in Lima. Depending on our flight schedule, we may spend the night at a hotel in Miraflores, an upscale neighborhood in the capital city, or we may head directly onto Cusco.

This morning we travel to Cusco and get settled in to our hotel located downtown near the main plaza. A warm Coca tea will ease our adaptation to the high altitude (Cusco is at 11,200 feet above sea level). After a light lunch, we meet for a guided tour of the city and the nearby ruins of Cusco. In the evening we enjoy a welcome dinner with a cultural show at local restaurant.

We visit the Sacred Valley, beginning in the colonial town and Inca City of Pisac. After shopping, we travel by road following the sacred Urubamba or Vilcanota River on our way to Ollantaytambo. We enjoy lunch and take time to visit the impressive Inca remains there. Later we proceed down the Sacred Valley to our private campsite at Km. 82 where we enjoy a Pachamanca dinner (cooked in the ground) and camp for the night.

This morning we enjoy a plentiful buffet breakfast which will give us great energy for the start of our hike. We meet our porters, distribute the loads, register with authorities at the entrance to the trail and begin our trek following the left bank of the Urubamba River. After a couple of hours of gentle hiking we reach and visit the Inca ruins of Llactapata. We continue hiking, this time away from the Urubamba river ascending and following a stream towards the village of Huayllabamba. We have a picnic lunch nearby and continue ascending on a 40 minute detour from the main trail that will take us to Paucarcancha a magnificent archaeological site and right next to it a locally owned private campsite where we set up camp for the evening.

After enjoying the beauty of our campsite and a nutritious breakfast we begin hiking on a shortcut trail past Huayllabamba, register at the Park's control station to continue on an ascending trail that takes us to our lunch spot with fantastic views. Later we pass through an interesting protected cloud forest of native trees before reaching our lunch site at Llullucchapampa right before the high pass known as Dead Woman's Pass. Spectacular views lead our way in the afternoon as we reach the Pass at 4,200 meters to later descend to our campsite at Pacaymayu.

An early nourishing breakfast bolsters our energy for today's hike on the original cobblestone trail left by the Incas. We can appreciate the lovely changes in vegetation and geology as we pass through different ecological zones. We climb up and over the second high pass at 3,950 meters. On a clear day, our efforts are rewarded with unparalleled views of the snow covered peaks of the Cordillera Vilcabamba and the lush valley vegetation. Masterful Inca engineering is today's highlight along the trail as we discover the Inca remains of Sayajmarca at 3,640 meters, explore them and continue to the incomparable site of Phuyupatamarca, THE PLACE ABOVE THE CLOUDS at 3,680 meters. We camp here and have enough time to soak up some of the magical charm of this marvelous campsite.

Today we reach Machu Picchu, the Lost City of the Incas. After taking a short time to say good by to our camp crew and fortified with breakfast, we hike an easier trail for several hours down a clear stone paved road with several incredible stairways, a small tunnel and several viewing terraces. We finally arrive at the ruins of Winay Wayna (translated as "forever young") where we have a picnic lunch. We continue on to Inti Punku (translated as "the Gate of the Sun"). From here we first see the spectacular city of Machu Picchu below us. After taking time to take pictures and soak in the spectacular view we make a quick descent along the wide royal Inca road and enter the mysterious citadel. We spend some time exploring the ruins on our own this afternoon. In the evening we stay at a small hotel in the town of Aguas Calientes nearby.

We have a full day to explore Macchu Picchu. We have a guided tour of the ruins followed by some time to explore the ruins on our own. In the afternoon we board the train to return to Ollantaytambo and transfer to our hotel in Cusco.

We spend the morning preparing for our return to Lima and then home this evening