Itinerary

Day 1 : CUSCO – GOLDEN LAKE – QUENCCO

We pick you up from your hotel at 6:00am by car and take you to the Inca site called Puca Pucara (3700 mtrs) which is only 20 minutes from the city of Cusco. We begin hiking gently uphill for 1.5 hours to get to the first pass (4100 mtrs) from where we’ll have spectacular views of two valleys. To your right you will see the capital of the Incas, Cusco, with stunning mountains surrounding it. Your guide will tell you about how and where the Incas arrived to this area and also about the conquest of the Spaniards. There are two Inca sites at the bottom of the valley and on your left, there is beautiful landscape of mountains and farmlands. From the pass we follow along the side of the valley, making our way towards the top of the valley so as to cross over to the other side. It´s about a 45 minute walk to the top end of the valley, once we get there we´ll cross a small stream that divides the valley and then begin making our way up to our lunch spot at Queullacocha Lake. The scenery at the lake is quite barren, this whole area is a high puna between the mountains and is covered with a tough Andean grass called Ichu. In this area it is possible to see a wide variety of birdlife such as Andean Geese, Lapwings, Partridges and a variety of birds of prey.

After our lunch stop we´ll continue on to our campsite for the night at the village of Quencco. Making our way over the top of one of the ridges we´ll descend towards Qoricocha Lake (Golden Lake) and loop around it. It´s about a 2 and a half hour walk to the village where we´ll be greeted by groups of children and adults, happy to meet and welcome us to their community. After we´ve settled in and had a steaming cup of mate de coca we´ll visit one of the local families to learn about their way of life, if you have brought any gifts with you then you can share them with the family now. After visiting the family we´ll have some free time to relax and your guide will teach you more about the Andean way of life. If you are interested in taking home gifts or souvenirs of the Andes, there is a good opportunity to find them here

Distance walked: 14 km

Day 2 : QUENCCO – HUCHUYQOSQO – LAMAY- OLLANTAYTAMBO- AGUAS CALIENTES

You will be awakened with a cup of hot coca tea and when you are all packed up we will enjoy a tasty breakfast. From Quencco we begin our walk to the Inca site of Huchuy Qosqo. It´s about 2 hours of walking before we reach a stretch of the original Inca trail, just below the village of Pumamarca. Along the way we´ll pass by many local people tending to their llamas. This is one of the main industries of the people at this altitude as the terrain is perfect for it. Once we reach the Inca Trail the scenery really changes going from the high mountains to a secluded valley. This valley is a beautiful microclimate and is full of lush vegetation. There are many small birds that can be seen including a variety of hummingbirds that feed off the many flowers that grow here. As we make our way down the valley we will be able to see snow-capped mountains above us and the famous Urubamba mountain range. There will be ample time to take advantage of the many picturesque vistas for photos on offer.

Little by little we will be making our way towards the main site, as we approach we´ll pass through an adobe Inca gateway and finally arrive to the magnificent Inca site of HUCHUY QOSQO (LITLE CUSCO 3600mtrs) which is perched above the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Here, you will see amazing Inca buildings like sacred temples, storehouses, Inca terraces for agriculture and an Inca reservoir used to store water in the dry season. Your guide will take you on a tour of the site and is an expert in the history of the Incas, so he will explain and teach you about everything. Afterwards you will have time to explore the site on your own before we have lunch. From here we will begin our walk downhill to the Sacred Valley, it takes about 2 hours to get to the village of LAMAY (2800mtrs) on the Urubamba River where the bus will be waiting to take us to Ollantaytambo. We will have dinner in a restauraunt here before taking the 7:00pm train with your guide to Aguas Calientes. We will get set up in our hotel and be able to rest. Hot showers are available. Walking distance 7 km.

Day 3 .- AGUAS CALIENTES – MACHU PICCHU- AGUAS CALIENTES – CUSCO

Reaching Machu Picchu is the most important part of our trip and we will give you the option of how you want to arrive to this magnificent sacred site. You can either walk up the stairs for 1hr 20 minutes at 4.00am or you can take the first bus at 5.30 am, which takes 25 minutes. We’ll need to wake up early to arrive early to Machu Picchu and see the sunrise over this beautiful place (weather allowing) and once we enter you will have a guided tour around the area for 2 hours. Then you will be free to wander on your own through these ancient ruins (with the options of climbing Huayna Picchu if you choose – this is a separate entrance ticket and costs $25 per person) or climb up to the Sun Gate. Both have breathtaking views but make sure there is plenty of time to explore Machu Picchu. After you have taken in all of MacchuPicchu, you will return to Aguas Calientes to enjoy lunch with your guide. Then board the afternoon train (usually at 3.pm) to Ollantaytambo where you will board a bus and return to Cusco at approximately 6.30pm.

Included / Not Included

INCLUDED IN THE TREK

Gallery of Photos

Galley Photos

Reserve Tours