Machu Picchu“Crossing these terraces, I entered the untouched forest beyond, and suddenly found myself in a maze of beautiful granite houses! They were covered with trees and moss and the growth of centuries, but in the dense shadow, hiding in bamboo thickets and tangled vines, could be seen, here and there, walls of white granite ashlars most carefully cut and exquisitely fitted together.” Machu Picchu is Peru's main tourist destination and it is magnificent - never a disappointment. It is definitely one of the world's great sights and will surely be the pinnacle of our tour. 70km/43 miles northwest of Cusco, Machu Picchu is often referred to as the ‘lost city of the Incas’. The outside world and even some Peruvians forgot about it for centuries, and it was brought to international prominence by Yale archaeologist Hiram Bingham along with the National Geographic Society of Washington DC a century ago. It was the latter who organised a subsequent two-year excavation and the beginning of restoration. Its fascination is due in part to its position, high on a mountain ridge, 2,430m/7,972 ft above sea level. There is also the beauty of the ruins themselves. Some experts agree that the Sanctuary was a ‘llacta’, a settlement built to control the economies of the neighbouring regions and this was the most beautiful llacta built by the Incas. Most authorities agree that this was a royal estate of Pachacuti, the great Inca who started the expansion of the huge empire “The city that emerged was a place of magical beauty. It contains many buildings in the finest interlocking Inca masonry. But it is Machu Picchu’s remarkable unity and state of preservation that are so satisfying to a visitor. Here, standing intact to the roof line, are the houses, temples and buildings of a complete Inca city. The house groups are set amid banks of tidy agricultural terraces, and Machu Picchu is bound together by a web of paths and hundreds of stairways. Its location is fantastic, with the city clinging to the upper slope and crest of a narrow ridge. The sheer sugarloaf of Huayna Picchu rises like a rhinoceros horn at the end of the spur, and the Urubamba roars in a tight hairpin bend around the site, trapped in a green canyon hundreds of feet below. Steep forested hills rise all around Machu Picchu, and its mystery is heightened by great wisps of low cloud that cling to these humid mountains.” 
Photo Credit: Peter Frost
    Practical Information for Machu PicchuAs Machu Picchu will probably the climax of your journey around Peru, careful planning is important in order to make the most of your visit, since Machu Picchu is very busy especially in peak tourist season (July & August). Here are three important tips: walk if you can, overnight if you can, and stay in the only hotel by the ruins if you can afford it. Oh! And if you don't walk, and you can afford it, take the new Hiram Bingham Luxury Train service. To get to Machu Picchu, your starting point is the City of Cuzco. There are flights to Cuzco from Lima and other cities in Peru. Once in Cuzco there are different options: you can either drive for a couple of hours and trek the Inca Trail (5d/4n), take the train part of the way and trek the One-day Inca Trail (5 hour walk) or take the train all the way (4 hours). You may also want to consider spending a few nights in the Urubamba Valley (also called Sacred Valley), the staggeringly beautiful Valley that lies north of Cuzco on the way to Machu Picchu. For more details on what to do and see in the Urubamba Valley, please click here. From the Urubamba Valley, specifically in Ollantaytambo, you can take the train to Machu Picchu or start your drive to the start-off point of the Inca Trail as mentioned above. Click here for a detailed map of the area. You can go to Machu Picchu for the day, but we don't recommend it. It tends to get very busy during the 4-hour time slot between incoming and outgoing trains in the middle of the day, and the crowds detract from the magic of the experience. Once in Machu Picchu, if you can afford it, you should stay right at the only hotel by the ruins: the Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge, and it is expensive!!! There is more affordable accommodation in Aguas Calientes. Click here for our recommendations. Aguas Calientes, (where the train station is located) is 30 minutes away from the ruins by minibus on a winding road uphill. It is not a very pretty place and there is really nothing to see. It is merely an overnight spot. Our most highly recommended Machu Picchu hotels:The following set itineraries cover Cusco and Machu PicchuItinerary (5 days): Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu,Itinerary 0109 (3 days): Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 0209 (3 days): The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, The North, Itinerary 0509 (7 days): Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 0609 (9 days): Lima, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 0709 (11 days): Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 0809 (10 days): Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 0909 (11 days): Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 1009 (11 days): Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Northeast Rainforest, Amazon cruises, Itinerary 1109 (11 days): Manu and Tambopata, Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 1209 (12 days): The Colca Valley & Canyon, Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 1309 (12 days): Arequipa and Colca, Lake Titicaca, Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 1409 (14 days): Lima, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Southeast Rainforest, Itinerary 1509 (15 days): Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 1609 (17 days): Arequipa and Colca, Trujillo and Chiclayo, Lake Titicaca, Lima, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 1709 (17 days): Arequipa and Colca, Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 2011 (13 days): Lima, Huascaran National Park, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 2012 (17 days): Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 2014 (17 days): Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, Itinerary 2014 (17 days): Lima, The Urubamba Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu, |
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