Cusco Travel

Tour: Short Inca Trail
(2 Days / 1 nights)

Trip type	:	High altitude walking / moderate grading
Recommended season	:	March to December
Good for	:	Minded travelers interested in archaeology, ancient history, traditional Andean cultures, spectacular scenery, flora and fauna.
Group size	:	Small group. Average 4.5 passengers per departure
Departures	:	Any day upon request basis 2 persons as minimum
Bookings	:	Must be done 4 o 5 months in advanced due high demand.

We take the train from Cusco or Ollantaytambo, following the Urubamba river to Km.104 of the railroad, where we alight and cross a footbridge to begin our hike at the Inca site of Chachabamba. After a brief visit to this lovely ruin with its water channels and fountains, we start the four-hour ascent that will take us past spectacular overlooks above the great valley, then below a lovely waterfall near the delightful site of Wiñay Wayna (Forever Young). We ascend through this largest and most exquisite of the Inca Trail sites, passing its chain of ritual baths and elegantly curved terracing, and then joining the main Inca trail. We follow it across a steep mountainside and up narrow stairways through lush, humid cloud-forest of giant ferns and broad-leaf vegetation. Suddenly we cross the stone threshold of Intipunku (Sun Gate) and encounter an unforgettable sweep of natural beauty and human artistry -a backdrop of twisting gorge and forested peaks framing the magical city of Machu Picchu.


We walk the last half-hour or so down the royal flagstone walkway, past outlying shrines and buildings and through the heart of Machu Picchu, taking a bus to the small town of Aguas Calientes where we overnight in a local hotel.
We enjoy an early morning visit to the fabled ruins, spending the day in both guided and individual exploration. After we visit the most fascinating features of this astounding and mysterious Inca settlement, some will want to take the optional hike to an amazing overview of the site, while other may prefer to investigate Machu Picchu's multitude of hidden nooks and corners.
After a full-on experience of this glorious monument to the Inca achievement, we return to Aguas Calientes and board the return train to Cusco.





More about Machu Picchu

Perched high above a sinuous bend in the Urubamba River, Machu Picchu has lured explorers, poets and pilgrims to its mist-wreathed ridge top ever since its discovery by the American explorer Hiram Bingham in July, 1911
No one lived here before the Incas. Those mighty empire builders from Cusco discovered this extraordinary place, finding it rich in natural features sacred to their religion. Both inspired and humbled by its dramatic natural beauty, their answer was to create on a vast scale one of the planet's most sensitive and harmonious works of art. The aesthetic genius of its layout and architecture coupled with the durability of its brilliant planning and engineering have given us today this finest of jewels among the UNESCO world heritage sites.
Scholars still argue about the meaning of Machu Picchu: why it was built and what purpose it served, who lived there and when they departed. Most agree that its main intent was spiritual and ceremonial.

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