Peru
Cusco, Inca Trail, Machu Picchu, Ollantaytambo, Salinas, Moray, Písac
Preparation: Before your trip, consider reading the amazing story of the fall of the Incan Empire in Kim MacQuarrie’s The Last Days of the Incas. Day 1: The first day of your trip will most likely be spent flying to and staying the night in Lima, Peru. As most flights to Cusco are in the morning, it is difficult to make the trip to Cusco all in one day. Day 2: Your adventure to the lands of the mighty Inca begins in the Incan capital of Cusco. Cusco lies at an elevation of over 11,000 feet, so some will encounter altitude sickness. If you have any concerns or have experienced altitude sickness before, please consult a medical professional for advice. Some suggest starting a trip in the Sacred Valley, which is at a lower elevation, then hiking the Inca Trail and saving Cusco for the end of your trip. After checking into your Cusco hotel, where you will stay for two nights, walk to the Plaza De Armas, the main city square in Cusco with two important churches and a grand fountain. Stepping away from the busy square, spend some time in the Museo Inka, which has an extraordinary collection of artifacts. Finally, end your day visiting the city’s most important spot during the Inca reign: the Coricancha (Qurikancha), or Sun Temple. It is difficult to imagine what the building looked like before the Spanish came and removed stones and melted down tons of gold from the temple, but the exquisite stone work remains and is a testament to the great importance the Inca placed on the building. Day 3: On this day, you will tour sites on the outskirts of the city. If you have not booked a day tour, you can visit on your own by taking a taxi to the furthest site (Tambomachay) and then walking back towards Cusco and visiting the other sites along the way. After the last stop, Saksaywaman, you can either continue walking back into Cusco, or take a taxi. Be warned, however, that there are no sidewalks and the road is narrow in places, so be careful especially during the middle of the day when the area is full of tourist vehicles. One advantage to going on your own, however, is that you will not feel rushed at the sites as you might with a tour group. Except for Saksaywaman, the rest are minor sites. If you are visiting Cusco at the end of your trip after having already seen sites on the Inca Trail and Sacred Valley, you could skip Q'ingu and Puka Pukara. Tambomachay is a small site, but includes flowing water through Incan stone channels. After Tambomachay, make a quick stop at Puka Pukara, which may have been the site of Incan fortifications. Further down the road is the small site of Q'inqu, where you will duck through small caves and crevices, which were likely the site of Incan rituals. Your last stop is the best—the fortress of Saksaywaman. The fortress was the site of a great battle between the Spaniards and Incas. Afterwards, the Spanish destroyed and dismantled much of the site. Still, the remaining stonework is impressive. Here, huge stones were cut and fitted together so perfectly that no motor was used. Take your time at Saksaywaman and walk up on the stone walls for great views of the site and Cusco below. Often, you can observe llamas eating straw on the grassy fields. Day 4: Today, you begin your four-day hike of the Inca Trail. Please note that there are many Inca Trails, but the one this itinerary covers is referred to by most guides as the Classic Inca Trail. All visitors hiking the trail are required to go with a guide, and most groups include porters who will carry group equipment and food as well as a portion of your personal gear. The first day of the trek begins with a bridge crossing of the Urubamba River and then an ascent to a lookout over the expansive ruins of Llaqtapata before the final ascent to camp after hiking a total of just under eight miles. Day 5: Day two of the hike is considered by most to be the toughest, not because of the miles walked (about seven), but because of the elevation, which culminates in the summit of Dead Woman’s Pass at over 13,000 feet. Your climb, however, is rewarded with a beautiful walk through the cloud forest and then spectacular views of the surrounding mountains and plunging valley below. After a good meal, you will sleep well with your toughest day of hiking behind you. Day 6: Today’s hike has the longest mileage, but much of it is downhill and is broken up by frequent stops for tours of Inca ruins along the way. In the evening, you will stop at the final camp site near the fascinating terraced ruins of Wiñay Wayna. Day 7: On the last day of the hike, many groups will awake early to attempt to reach the Sun Gate and the day’s first views of Machu Picchu at sunrise. The hike to the Sun Gate is only a few miles, but it is beautiful and a shame to miss by hiking in the dark. If seeing Machu Picchu at dawn is not a priority for you, then sleep in till first light, and you will have the trail to yourself (be warned, however, that if you are a light sleeper, you will probably be awakened by the noise of the other groups breaking camp early in the morning). From the Sun Gate, your guide will give you a tour of the famous and well-preserved Inca site of Machu Picchu, the grad culmination of your four-day hike. When your tour of Machu Picchu concludes, you will take a bus and then a train to the Sacred Valley town of Ollantaytambo, the best preserved town of the Incas, where you will stay the night. Day 8: Your final sightseeing day is a busy one. After waking up in Ollantaytambo, you will tour the massive ruins of the former fortress and temple, which was also the location of a famous battle where the Incas beat the Spanish back and forced them to temporarily retreat. Next, you will need to hire a car or prearrange a tour to take you to Salineras, the site of a salty spring, which locals have channeled into hundreds of individual pans for the production of salt. Set against a cliff side, the multicolored hues of the slat pans are a dramatic site. Near Salineras, is another interesting spot, which demonstrates the highly advanced agricultural techniques of the Incas at an otherworldly site of concentric circles called Moray. If you have time, the ruins of Písac are another Sacred Valley site that is popular with tourist groups. The ruins are high above a valley on mountains terraced by the Incas and still in use today. If by this time, you are burned out on Incan ruins, you can skip it, but what many tourists like about the area is that in the valley below the town of Písac there is a large market with many souvenir stalls. If souvenirs don’t interest you, spending time in the adjacent local market where can you observe locals in native dress sell their wares, including potatoes of many varieties, is worth the trip to Písac alone. After your shopping, return to Cusco for your last night. If you haven’t tried eating cuy (guinea pig), llama, or alpaca, consider ordering some of these delicacies. Day 9: Today, you begin your journey home, after a joyous trip through the amazing remains of the impressive Inca Empire. |