Inca Trail, one of the worlds most famous trails, that leads you to one of the wonders of the world can be done many ways. If you want to hike but hesitate to sign yourself of 3 nights of tenting in the Andean mountains, then a lesser known and less traveled option might be for you (it was for us). Catch the last 15km of the trail, see several Inca sites, and some pretty amazing scenery.
Day 1
The morning starts early leaving from Cusco at 5am, followed by a two hour bus ride to the train station at Ollantaytambo town. From there you take the train with the other people who aren’t hiking and going straight to Machu Picchu town (Aguas Calientes), jumping out early, several mountains early, at km 104. From there the rest is by foot.
Get your hiking boots on!
We hit the trail at 9:20 am, it was only a short walk before hitting the first set of Incan ruins. The site is smaller, but surrounded by some gorgeous mountains that were anything but. After a short tour we were back on the trail.
The rest of the morning found us hiking until we reached our second site just before noon. Wiñay Wayna with its amazing terraces, along with near by waterfall was a nice stop just before lunch.
On our way out of Cusco our guides picked up boxed lunches, which we devoured at the lunch stop. Where we ate is actually the 3rd night rest stop for the 4 day Inca Trail Hikers. Lunch was simple, a chicken salad of sorts, with chicken, cold french fries, green beans, and carrots all cooked and mixed together (could have used some hot sauce). Our lunch break took us to about 1pm.
After lunch the trail evened out for a while, from the ups and downs of the morning. As we got close to the sun temple the trail quickly made up for it and through what felt like nearly vertical stairs at us to enter the temple. At the top we got our first glance at Machu Picchu.
Wonder of the World
From the sun temple, about 30 minutes down the trail we reached the upper entrance of Machu Picchu. Along the walk down some of the best views of the site can be had, capturing both the ruins and Huayna Picch mountain (the signature domed mountain behind the site)
Once we had snapped all the pictures we wanted to, it was time to head down to Machu Picchu town.
Our ‘tent’, here is where the glamping comes in. On this option, our tent wasn’t actually a tent at all, but a hotel in Machu Picchu town. A good night’s rest, a nice meal at a local restaurant, and a hot shower!
Day Two
The second day is used to explore Machu Picchu, the first day you don’t get to actually walk around inside the site because each day requires a separate permit. However you do get plenty of chances for great photos on day one, but the tour and exploring happens on day 2.
If you want the experience of hiking the Inca trail, but camping isn’t your thing then this tour is for you. For this trek we went with Llama Path. Everything was pretty organized, not the cheapest option, but overall I was happy with everything.Make sure to check out our post on planning your trip to Machu Picchu for more tips.
