6 Day Machu Picchu Express (Land)

Once we welcome you we’ll take you to your hotel.

Now you can decide, either you can enjoy the Inca city and colonial heritage on your own.  Or you might want to rest and wait the evening when Cusco shows its nightlife; At night time, there are several places to have a delightful night and eat too.

Your other option for this first part of your Inca 5 days, is to get onto a half day tour at an additional price of USD 30 per person. The  half day city tour starting at 13:00 hrs and cover the following places:

• The Koricancha: Temple of the sun.

• The Cathedral: Marvel of the religious art.

• Sacsayhuaman: Majestic place with impressive works in stone, some up to 120 tons.

• Q´enqo: (Labyrinth) a religious center dedicated to the adoration of the Earth.

• Puca Pucara: (reddish place) that was used as a military control center.

• Tambomachay: (Temple of the Water) a center of adoration and worship of water.

Included:

• Transportation

• Professional English speaking guide.

Not included:

• Tourist ticket for entrance to attractions (extra USD 33)

• Dinner

• Gratuity

Overnight at: Casa Andina Classic Cusco Plaza or Similar.

As a part of your Inca Trail Express to Machu Picchu 5 days trip, we will travel to the Sacred Valley.  As you may know, The Inca Trail is one of the most famous trails worldwide and begins at some point within this Sacred Valley. The Sacred Valley is one of the most representative and beautiful landscapes of Cusco.  

We need to leave Cusco during the morning time at around 08:00 am and head towards Pisac village.  We have chosen this location as part of our Inca Trail Express to Machu Picchu 5 days because Pisac offers you a fantastic artisans market and a well preserved Inca architecture of the same name as the village.  The artisans market is worthy to visit as all the hand made products are using organic materials, very well made and designed.

After being in Pisac market,  the Inca ruins in this valley of Pisac are awaiting our visit.  We will head up on private transport and to have also a panoramic view of this impressive and beautiful Sacred Valley.

If visiting Pisac liked you, then Ollantaytambo will not be less.  We are leaving Pisac in the direction to Ollantaytambo but before getting to our final destination, we will have a lunch break (not included) on the way.  

The Ollantaytambo Inca site shows you the magnificent temple of the sun.  This Inca tour shows you also the enormous blocks of rock perfectly carved and polished, stone water fountains, stairs and terraces.

Looking at the people of Ollantaytambo, you will notice, their pride in keeping their traditions reflected in their beautifully wearing of typical dresses.  This village is surrounded by its local sacred mountains and Valleys.

Finished our journey to Ollantaytambo, we will be visiting Chinchero market and then return to Cusco at about 18:30-19:00 hours.

Included:

• Transportation

• Professional English speaking guide.

Not included:

• Tourist ticket (extra USD 25)

• Meals

• Gratuity.

P.S: Tonight we will have a briefing on next day tour at 7:00pm at the hotel lobby.

Today we are heading to the train station, to embark ourselves on a wonderful train journey.  

The train journey will long last three and half of unforgettable hours in which you will be surrounded by the panoramic Andean valleys views until you get to Aguas Calientes town.  

Aguas Calientes is a nice small town.  This town is in the middle of a deep and green valley crossed by a river.  If you decide to try the natural hot springs you can do it because Aguas Calientes has hot springs! You’ll be relaxed for tomorrow when you visit Machu Picchu.

We also suggest visiting the Machu Picchu 'Manuel Chávez Ballón' museum and orchid exhibition. Open from 9 am to 4.30pm, and is a 35-minute walk down the road from Aguas Calientes to Puente Ruinas. It is a very illustrative museum that gives you an interesting introduction to Machu Picchu.

Many things can cross your head when you first contemplate Machu Picchu but you will never be indifferent.

It is a fantastic location which mixed very well with the whole nature around it.  you can see all the mountains around it. It’s just amazing.

Then you’ll have a 2 hour guided tour you will get all the secrets the citadel has to offers. After this guided tour, you can explore the city by yourself.

If you have done the arrangements before now it’s the time to climb any of the mountains around: Machu Picchu Mountain or Huayna Picchu Mountain. Once you finish exploring the city or part of it,  your guide will meet you in Aguas Calientes to have lunch and to receive your train tickets back to Cusco. The return to Cusco takes about four hours with a bus transfer in Ollantaytambo to Cusco.

Today you have the two options, either stay in Cusco and relax or to take the Maras Salt Mines and Moray tour; at an additional Price: USD 40 per person.

If you take the second option, we will pick you up in a private transport around 09:00 am.  Heading to Urubamba Valley so close to the Sacred Valley. The Urubamba Valley has a fantastic landscape and mountain range to admire.

Once in Maras, a side of the mountain shows us the salt mines. They are like various small lakes over the mountain, the salt effect of displaying their white shores make these mountains a spectacle of real beauty.  The Salt mines are located on a wide-open hill above the Urubamba Valley, a natural salt water stream runs underground.

This salt mines dated from pre-Inca times and the local people extract in small amount the salt by evaporating the salty water from its stream.

Our guide will explain to you how this work: there are stream points. The flow is directed into a system of tiny channels constructed so that the water runs gradually down onto the several hundred ancient terraced ponds. The water, which is exposed to the sun, leaves salt on the land. Viewed from the peak, the myriad of rectangles looks like an enormous painting designed by nature.

Finished our visit to the salt mines in Maras, we quickly move to the Moray ruins. They are composed of three big circles each one different on its size, in appearance is similar to a Roman Coliseum.   We will be descending to some of these circles which are really big. The archaeologist has been based their theories about these circles as an Inca laboratory for crops.

The Incas who built these circles understood very well the effects. Once this effect is the managing of the temperature as there are sides of the terraces hotter than other ones getting as much as 15 °C/27 °F between the top and bottom.

Finished visiting Moray, we return back to Cusco.

Include:

• Transportation

• Professional English speaking guide.

Not include:

• Tourist ticket (extra PEN 80)

• Dinner

Another option:

Half day city tour

On this day also still available the half day city tour option instead of doing the Maras and Moray one.

We will pick you up at 1:00 PM from your hotel to start the tour and visiting the following places.

• The Koricancha: Temple of the sun.

• The Cathedral: Marvel of the religious art.

• Sacsayhuaman: Majestic place with impressive works in stone, some up to 120 tons.

• Q´enqo: (Labyrinth) a religious center dedicated to the adoration of the Earth.

• Puca Pucara: (reddish place) that was used as a military control center.

• Tambomachay: (Temple of the Water) a center of adoration and worship of water.

Include:

• Transportation

• Professional English speaking guide.

Not include:

• Tourist ticket (extra cost - Consult Us)

• Dinner

Finished your breakfast, you will get the transfer to the local airport for you to take your flight back (according to your airline schedule).  Have a safe journey.