Machu Picchu by foot · By foot in Machu Picchu
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By foot in Machu Picchu
By foot in Machu Picchu
Hiking the Inca Trail is a great way to arrive as you first see the city through the Sun Gate (instead of arriving from below as you do from Aguas Calientes). Both the four-day and two-day hikes are controlled by the government. Travelers should be fit enough to walk for days and sleep in tents.
There are also other options available for hiking to Machu Picchu. This is important to know as the Inca Trail hike is limited to the amount of people that can go on it each day, including porters. As such, there is a much steeper price on this trek and it is necessary to book far in advance to get a place on the dates you will be there.
Two other cheaper, but equally as good, options are the Salkantay Trek and the Inca Jungle Trek. Most, if not all, tour agencies in Cuzco offer these. The Salkantay Trek is a 5 day trek through the Salkantay Mountain Pass. The scenery is amazing and if you go in the rainy season you will be rewarded with dozens of waterfalls. Though, at the same time, you will be wet for the most part anyways. The other option, the Inca Jungle Trek, is a three day trek that begins with a drive to the top of a mountain and then a bike ride down to the bottom. A full day of hiking follows the next day to Aguas Calientes.
Both of these alternatives can be booked a couple days in advance when you arrive in Cuzco and can be much cheaper options and good ways to stay away from the crowds before getting to Machu Picchu. Prices, as of December/January 2011 was anywhere from US$180-200 for the entire trek. Do your research in Cuzco and pick the tour company you feel most comfortable with. Some groups will offer slightly more(sleeping bag included, etc) than others.
The Inca Jungle Trek is an agency tour, but the "backdoor" route they use is also an option for independent travellers wishing to go-it-alone. Minivans and buses are cheap (15-30) Soles from "Terminal Santiago" in Cusco and take you to either Santa Maria or Santa Teresa. Santa maria is further away from Aguas Calientes than Santa Teresa but is a nice option for those wishing to hike an alternative Inca trail used locally. The walk takes you through the mountains and tiny villages, even people's farms and offers impressive views of the valley. You can end up in Santa Teresa the same day and there are villages, such as Huacayupana and Quellomayo en route which offer an alternative view of local life and accommodation if you don't make it to Santa Teresa that day. Walking on from here to Santa Teresa is along the river (May - November) and by road during rainy season, although it is advisable to get advice before taking this route between December and April due to severe weather. From Santa Teresa to Hidroelectrica is a 25 minute taxi or minibus ride and from here you can walk the 2 to 3 hour flattish trek to Aguas Calientes which is one of the nicest parts of the journey.
From Aguas Calientes to get to the ruins themselves it is also possible to walk along a similar 8 km route that the buses run, which will take about 1-2 hours up, and around an hour back down. This route is mainly stairs, connecting the switchbacks that the buses take. It is a strenuous and long hike but is very rewarding, recommended to start around 4AM to make it to the top before sunrise. The descent is fairly easy, just take care when the steps are wet. Keep alert for the bus drivers that rarely brake for pedestrians.
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Machu Picchu Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.