4-Day Huchuy Qosqo Trek & Short Inca Trail

Starting time: 

5:00 am

Travel:

Bus to start of trek at Tambomachay then trekking all day.

Difficulty level: 

Hard – Strenuous.

Highlights of the Day: 

We will start our hike at Patabamba (122020 ft). From there our path will lead us through the vast grassland of the Andean Puna above the Sacred Valley. After lunch we climb toward the Sihuas mountain pass at 13700ft. .  On our trail we will pass through many small communities, rivers and farms  In those places we will be able to contemplate the life of the traditional Andean villagers that inhabit these areas.   The people inhabiting these grasslands and villages are mainly farmers and herders.  This area is off the beaten track and very rarely will we see other tourists on these trails.  After a well deserved lunch the original Inca trail will lead us through one of the most beautiful hiking places of Cusco, which is a ravine formed by the lares river.  The second part of the day will come to an end when we reach our destination at the archaeological site of Huchuy Qosqo.  Our camping spot for the evening will be located right within this impressive and beautiful Incan site. At night, we will be delighted by the breathtaking Andean sky.  Our tour guides will give us a brief introduction to the Andean astronomy as well as contemporary astronomy. Huchuy Qosqo is by far one of the best places in the mountains of Cusco to do some stargazing.

Meals: 

Lunch on the trek at Sihuas and dinner at Huchuy Qosqo campsite

Accommodation: 

Camping in tents at Huchuy Qosqo.

Starting time: 

7:00 am

Travel:

Trekking then car to Urubamba

Difficulty level: 

Moderate.

Highlights of the Day: 

To help us ease into the day and set our mood for the beautiful day ahead, our guides will prepare a nice cup of coca tea or a hot drink of your choice. After we have packed up and finished our breakfast overlooking the Sacred Valley and amazing views of the peaks of the Urubamba mountain range, our guide will give us a walking tour around the archaeological site of Huchuy Qosqo.  During this tour our guide will explain to us the historical background of this ancient Incan city. Every lecture our tour guide will deliver will be to prepare us for what we will see at our final destination; Machu Picchu.  We encourage all our customers to visit the resource section of our website and to watch the videos or read some of the materials to enhance the presentations our guides will deliver throughout the trek.  After we finish our visit to Huchuy Qosqo Incan site we will continue our hike to Lamay town.  This part of the trek is mainly downhill, the trail follows through a lush and beautiful ravine filled with birds and exotic plants. It will take us approximately two hours to get to the bottom of the mountain at Lamay.  Once at Lamay town, we will have aa walking tour around Lamay town and get to see a place where very few tourists have seen.  Lunch will be ready upon our return to our lunch spot located at the side of the Urubamba river.  After lunch we will catch a us toward the best anthropological and historical museum of Cusco, which is the Inkarri museum located in the city of Calca.  Here a local guide will take us on a 45 minute tour of the museum to show us the most important aspects of the civilizations that preceded the Inca; this information will be valuable to our visit to Machu Picchu. Our bus ride will finish at Our campground at the Spirit of the river lodge in Urubamba. 

Meals: 

Breakfast at Huchuy Qosqo, lunch on the trek and dinner at Urubamba

Accommodation: 

Spirit of the lodge at Urubamba

Starting time: 

5:40 am

Travel:

Transfer to train station, train to KM104, then trekking.

Difficulty level: 

Hard.

Highlights of the Day: 

Our third day of adventure starts early in the morning at the hotel, after breakfast we will check out and head to the train station where we will catch the train that will take us to the starting point of the short Inca trail at 104Km or Chachabamba.  At Chachabamba we will go through the first checkpoint, and park ranger post of the national Sanctuary of Machu Picchu.  Here we will show our documents and tickets before we start our hike.  The hike to Winaywayna Incan site is a long and steady climb, the hot temperatures of the Machu Picchu canyon will demand a lot of our energy before we reach our lunch site. The first part of the trail goes through a lush area with abundant vegetation roper of the cloud forest, but a half hour into the trail we will get to a grey area where we will be exposed to the sunlight.  We recommend people take a lot of water and electrolytes for this part of the trail as it takes a toll on our physical endurance.  Once we get out of the grassy area, we will enter into the lush, humid tropical cloud forest.  In this section of the trail, we will encounter a great variety of air plants, “epiphytes”, orchids and bamboos as well as moss and an enormous amount of butterflies and hummingbirds. At Winaywayna Incan site or ‘Forever Young” 2680m/8792ft our guide will give us another presentation about this beautiful Incan site, perhaps the most beautiful of all Incan sites in Peru.  after a well deserved and necessary lunch, we will proceed to the second part of our hike toward the Sungate or Inti Punku 2730m/8956ft. The path to the Sungate is easier than the first one; it is mainly flat or undiluted with a few small stairs to climb.  Once we get to the Sungate we will have the first view of this impressive place.  Then, we will continue with our hike following the path that goes down the hill toward Machu Picchu 2400m/7873ft. Once we get to Machu Picchu we will spend some time in the are near the “house of guardian” where we will enjoy the beauty of Machu Picchu before the park closes at 5:00 pm.  From Machu Picchu, we will take a shuttle bus to Aguas Calientes where we will have dinner and spend the night at our hotel.

Meals: 

Breakfast at the hotel, lunch on the trek and dinner in Aguas Calientes.

Accommodation: 

Hotel in Aguas Calientes.

Other information:

Although a shortened Inca Trail, this trek joins the main Inca trail in time to see the highlights.

Starting time: 

5:00 am

Travel:

By bus to Machu Picchu.

Difficulty level: 

Easy.

Highlights of the Day: 

Early in the morning we will walk from our hotel to the bus station for the shuttle buses to Machu Picchu.  The line to catch the bus takes approximately an hour, and the bus ride itself takes approximately 30 minutes.  Once we get to Machu Picchu, our guide will give us a final walking tour bringing together all the lectures we have listened to throughout our 4 dyas as we tour the most important sites of Machu Picchu. 

The optional climb of Huayna Picchu 2720m/8923ft takes approximately 45 minutes to reach the top. 

Meals: 

Breakfast at the hotel in Aguas Calientes.

Accommodation: 

You will be back in Cusco to your own accommodation for the evening.