Cusco, Perú
3 days
15 people
18 yo
Hotel (Historic Center)
We start our adventure early in the morning in Cusco. We will pick you up from your hotel around 06:00 am. Then we will drive you by car through the amazing Sacred Valley of the Incas passing the native town of Chinchero with amazing views of Vilcabamba and Vilcanota Mountains Range and enjoying the panoramic views of the small towns.
After 2 hour drive we will stop in the Inca town of Ollantaytambo to stretch your legs and use the toilet. Then we will still driving the car up to Abra Malaga pass at 4350 masl. At this point we will start biking down to Santa Maria town at 1430 masl.
At Abra Malaga, you are going get all the biking gear and also a biking training to ensure the triumphant arrival to Santa Maria town.
Biking (40 km) starts high in the Andes with the majestic view of Veronica snow-capped. We will do downhill biking from Abra Malaga to Huamanmarca village.
Afterward, we get back on the car to get to Santa Maria to have lunch. Then, we will go to do white river rafting in the afternoon. After finishing rafting we will catch the car again and it will transport to the Hot Springs Cocalmayo in Santa Teresa town.
Once in Santa Teresa, you will go to the accommodations. And finally, in the evening, dinner at the restaurant in town.
You will wake up around 06:30 am, then you will have breakfast, and after that, around 08:00 am, the zipline company will pick you up to take you to their base where you will have all the information to do the activity.
The zipline takes around 2 hours to do 4 different cables and then the suspension bridge. After that, you will take a car for 1 hour to Hidroelectrica to have lunch.
After lunch, you will hike 3 hours to Aguas Calientes town along the train rails. Once you make it to Aguas Calientes, we take you to the hotel.
Around 07:00 pm, you will have dinner in the restaurant, and after, you will go to sleep. The next day, you will wake up early to go to Machu Picchu!
The last day of the tour you will visit Machu Picchu. You will need to wake up around 04:00 am to get ready for the hike to Machu Picchu main entrance.
After you grab your pack breakfast you will start walking to Puente Ruinas checkpoint for 30 minutes (which is open at 05:00 am). Here you have to show your passport and your Machu Picchu tickets.
After you pass the first checkpoint, you will hike all upstairs for one hour to Machu Picchu main gate to be there around 06:00 am.
Once everybody meets at the gate, you will go into Machu Picchu for the guided tour for 2 hours to learn everything about the Lost City of the Incas.
After the guided tour you have free time to explore on your own the Inca City of Machu Picchu. The time that you will spend in Machu Picchu will depend on how you would like to go back to Cusco and also will depend if you want to climb the Machu Picchu or Huayna Picchu Mountain which you must book it in advance.
After visiting Machu Picchu, you have 2 options to return to Cusco
Bus return option:
The bus option is the cheapest, but after Machu Picchu you have to return walking 3 hours to the hydroelectric bus station and then go up to the bus and in total it is a trip of 8 hours to Cusco and you arrive in Cusco at approximately 10 pm. with the final stop at Plaza Regocijo in the center of Cusco city.
This return option does not provide enough time for additional hikes to Waynapicchu or Machu Picchu Mountain, as they require about 3 extra hours. To catch the BUS at 2:00 pm at Hydroelectric, it’s recommended to leave Machu Picchu no later than 11:30 am.
Train return option:
The option to return by train is more comfortable, after visiting Machu Picchu you have time to rest, have lunch and wait for your train.
The return train option is more convenient. After visiting Machu Picchu, you have time to rest, have lunch, and wait for your train.
But remember that there are two options for this return trip: one when your reservation includes a ticket to Machu Picchu, and the other when a ticket to Machu Picchu is not included.
Option 1:
Train schedule if your reservation includes a ticket to Machu Picchu (See the tour description above for details on Machu Picchu ticket availability).
Train 14:30 or 15:20 $90:
Return at the Machu Picchu train station (the train ride from Machu Picchu town to the Ollantaytambo train station is 1 hour and 50 minutes).
Then, at the Ollantaytambo train station, we continue on the bus from the same train company that will take you to Cusco for approximately 2 hours, finally arriving in the city of Cusco before 7:45 pm.
Train 18:20 or 19:00 $75:
Return at the Machu Picchu train station (the train ride from Machu Picchu town to the Ollantaytambo train station is 1 hour and 50 minutes).
Then, at the Ollantaytambo train station, we continue on the bus from the same train company that will take you to Cusco for approximately 2 hours, finally arriving in the city of Cusco before 10:30 pm.
Option 2:
Train schedule if your reservation does not include a ticket to Machu Picchu (See the tour description above for details on ticket availability to Machu Picchu).
Train for passengers without Machu Picchu ticket $90:
Return at the Machu Picchu train station (the train ride from Machu Picchu town to the Ollantaytambo train station is 1 hour and 50 minutes).
Then, at the Ollantaytambo train station, we continue on the bus from the same train company that will take you to Cusco for approximately 2 hours (The arrival time in Cusco will depend on the departure time of the train.)
The schedule for this train will depend on availability and price (if there is an earlier but more expensive ticket, the passenger would have to pay the difference) once the passenger has purchased the ticket to Machu Picchu.
This ticket does not have a fixed schedule, as last-minute train ticket prices always increase due to demand.
Another benefit of this is that the passenger will already have a guaranteed return train ticket after visiting Machu Picchu. If the passenger needs to stay an extra night in Aguas Calientes (MP town) to purchase the Machu Picchu ticket, only the return time will be changed at no additional charge.
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