Description
DAY 01: CUSCO -ABRA MALAGA-SANTA MARIA -SANTA TERESA
Pick up from their respective hotels or hostels between 6:30 am and 7:00 am to have a meeting with the guide. Then we will leave the Imperial City of Cusco to head towards the Sacred Valley of the Incas, as well as Chincheros, Urubamba, and Ollantaytambo where we will make our first stop to take advantage of our latest purchases while having breakfast at the expense of each passenger. We will continue with the trip to the Abra Málaga (4,350 m.a.s.l )After this point we will descend 20 minutes more by car depending on the guide’s judgment of the fog and rain in the area. After the informative talk with our guide, we will provide you with the complete equipment. This includes such things as a protective vest, full-face helmet, gloves, knee pads, and a reflective vest.
We will begin the descent by bicycle for two and a half hours (45 km) until we reach the town of Huamanmarca. During the trip we will experience the beauty of the snowy peaks and the tropical forest where our Peruvian Amazon starts, crossing small streams, we will also be able to enjoy the change from cold to tropical weather.
During the journey, there will be several stops to check everyone’s bicycles and equipment. Once we finish our biking activity we will go to the town of Santa María (1,200 masl), where we will have our lunch.
Afterward, we will continue our trip in local transport from Santa Maria to Santa Teresa and thus arrive at our hostel in the town of Santa Teresa, once installed you can visit the thermal baths of Cocalmayo (optional). For this, you must take transport from Santa Teresa to Cocalmayo roundtrip. After a relaxing bath, we will return to our hostel. Overnight in Santa Teresa in a basic hostel.
Note 1: In the afternoon we have the option of rafting on the Vilcanota River (optional).This river offers category II and III rapids.
For this activity, we will give you a helmet, windbreaks, and category V life jacket. This activity is available between the months of April to December, and according to the Peruvian government, it is mandatory to know how to swim to perform it.
Overnight in Santa Maria in a basic hostel.
Note 2: If you do Rafting, which is an optional activity (extra cost), you will not have the option to go to the Hot Springs of Cocalmayo.
DAY 2: SANTA TERESA – HYDROELECTRIC -AGUAS CALIENTES (ZIP LINE OPTIONAL)
We will start by the day by having our breakfast between 7:00 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., then everyone will have the option of doing Zip Line activity with one of the highly trusted operators in the area for approximately two hours (This activity is at an additional cost and is optional). Then we will have transport to the Hydroelectric, where the government control is located, to enter the Machu Picchu National Park (Machu Picchu Historical Sanctuary).
In case you do not do the Zip Line then in our normal itinerary is walking from Santa Teresa to Hydroelectric for approximately 3 hours. In both cases, our meeting is at Hydroelectric with the people who make the Zip Line and with the people who walk. At this point we will start our trekking to the town of Aguas Calientes, passing through the area called Intihuatana, a small archaeological site where the guide will give us an explanation.
Then we will continue to San Miguel, where we will enjoy our lunch. In the whole journey, we will have the opportunity to contemplate the majestic Machu Picchu mountains and other constructions at the top of the mountain.
We will end the walk at roughly 16:00 hrs in the town of Aguas Calientes where we will spend the third night in a basic hostel.
DAY 3: AGUAS CALIENTES-MACHU PICCHU- CUSCO
The most important day of our trip, today we get to know one of the 7 wonders of the Machu Picchu world, and we have two ways to get there:
The first is through the Inca Trail, this walk lasts 1 hour and 30 minutes and is a pure ascent.
The second one is by tourist bus, this short trip lasts 30 minutes.
People who want to walk up the Inca Trail should leave the hostel early at 4:30 am to reach the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu very early and appreciate the sunrise.
And people who want to get in the bus will have to take it at 5:30 am to arrive early at Machu Picchu and be able to appreciate the sunrise that is a unique spectacle, then we can visit the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu for two hours approximately accompanied by a specialist guide who will explain to us the historical legacy of the citadel of Machu Picchu, and the full description of this great and imposing attraction.
After the excursion and if you have the ticket you can ascend to the mountain of Huayna Picchu or to Machu Picchu Mountain. After you must descend from Machu Picchu to Aguas Calientes by bus or by walking so you can have lunch with tranquility and board the return train to Ollantaytambo (2 hours of travel by train) where our transport awaits us to the city of Cusco (2 hours trip by car)
Note 1: If the passengers visit only Machu Picchu, the guided tour is two hours, but if they go up to Huayna Picchu Mountain or Machu Picchu Mountain, the passengers will only have an introduction for an hour at Machu Picchu.
Note 2: You must email us a scanned copy or photograph of your passport immediately after you have booked your tour. This is to enable the purchase of your Machu Picchu entrance ticket. It must be the passport you will use to enter Machu Picchu itself. This is a requirement when booking any tour of Machu Picchu from any operator.
Note 3: If you are staying at a different location than the one you select as your pick up location, it is explicitly your responsibility to be at the main entrance of the hotel or hostel selected as your pick up location for the duration of the pickup time range on your tour date. You must be in a visible place easy to see for the operator and be alert for their vehicle/guide when they go to pick you up for the tour.
