What our Short Inca Trail Includes:

• Professional Guide – We have the best selection of guides, all graduated from the national university of Cusco and grown up in this region with a deep love and passion for teaching our culture. They are fun but professional and will make sure you are safe and happy.
• Tourist transport. – We use clean and new vehicles for all our services, with professional drivers that will guarantee you a safe trip. Our drivers are constantly trained in prudent driving and customer service. The transport will be from Cusco to Soraypampa and from Ollantaytambo to Cusco at the end of our trek.
• Pick up from the hotel. – Our service includes pick up from your hotel to start the tour, pick up time will be confirmed according to the location of your hotel, at the end of the tour we will also leave you back at your hotel. (Our service does not include pick up from AIRBNB type houses because many do not have a clear name or address), in that case we will coordinate a place and time to pick up.
• Snacks – beside the breakfast, we will provide you snacks every morning so that you can take you along the way. We will also provide snack bags that are made of cloth, we are very careful with the environment so we try not to take anything plastic to the route and if we do, we bring it back.
• Train Tickets. – The train ticket included is the Inca Rail the Voyager service, however, on the way you can make an Up Grade to a 360 ° train that has windows on the roof to enjoy the beautiful views on the road. This has an additional cost of $. $ 75 per person up to Poroy and is subject to availability. Poroy station is 30 minutes out of Cusco, we will still include the transfer to your hotel.
• Bus tickets. – It is 25 minutes from the Town to Machu Picchu and 25 minutes from Machu Picchu to the town + one-way bus ticket the day before.
• Inca Trail Entrance Tickets: We will get the Inca trail entrance tickets and provide you, this will be given to you in the beginning of the hike, as well as we will get the entrance for our crew.
• Entrance to Machu Picchu. We take care of providing you with the entrance ticket to Machu Picchu and this will be giving to you on the day of the tour, by your guide.
• Porters: We include a personal porter, who is responsible for carrying your travel bag with your personal items. There is no additional fee for this.
• Hotel: this Inca trail option ends at Machu Picchu Pueblo. The last night is spent in a hotel in the village, instead of camping. This 3-star hotel is included in the cost of the trek and is based on a shared room. If you want to improve your hotel or prefer a single room, you will have an additional cost.
• Camping equipment: In Peru Private Tours we have the best equipment. We use a 4 people tent only between 2 people so you will have more space to put your belongings inside your tent during the night. You will have a large tent to enjoy your meals as well as chairs and table.
• Food: 5 breakfasts (the last included in the hotel) 4 lunches and 4 dinners, all prepared by our professional walking chef. Our professional chefs prepare delicious meals that many previous hikers have commented on. We honor all dietary restrictions. Be sure to remind your tour guide about any food restrictions at the beginning of your walk (Breafing time). The food is typically served family style. You will enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner every day of the trek, with a delicious happy hour every afternoon before dinner. You will also be provided with a snack every morning, so that you can enjoy the walk. Your last meal with your chef will be breakfast on day four since lunch and dinner will be at a restaurant. Lunch on the last day (day 05) is not included.
• Water: from your first lunch until your last breakfast, PPT will provide you with all the necessary water. This water will be boiled, filtered and then cooled, before distribution. You must supply your own bottles of water or camelback. We recommend carrying around 3L. We will fill our waters at every meal.
• First aid: each of our guides has received training in first aid from a doctor. We hold mandatory training sessions every February, to which all the guides must attend. Your tour guide will always have a first aid kit for basic medical problems (traveler’s diarrhea, cuts, scratches, etc.) and oxygen tank. We will get you out of the way as quickly and comfortably as possible if necessary, and we will make sure you go directly to a clinic to receive treatment.
• Extras: We believe that it is the attention to small details that differentiates us from other travel companies. Each hiker receives a backpack covers to protect your belongings during the trek, a rain poncho. We will work hard to create your best vacations.
• Private transfer from Ollantaytambo to Cusco. – Upon arrival at the Ollantaytambo train station our staff will be waiting for you with a van only for our group to transfer you to your hotel in Cusco or Sacred Valley.
• Permanent Assistance. – We want all the activities you do in our destination to be unique, unforgettable and safe, so you will always have an assigned personal assistant who will be in constant communication with you.

Not included

• Walking sticks (pair): $. USD 15 per person
• Headlamps: it is strongly recommended to bring a head lamp for the evenings. There will be no lights on the camping sites and it will be difficult to get to your dining tent or bathroom tent without one. Hand lanterns are acceptable, if you do not have a head lamp, but it makes some tasks difficult.
• Huayna Picchu – Huayna Picchu is the mountain that is seen behind Machu Picchu in the classic photos, to go up this mountain you need to buy an additional entrance and it has a cost of $. 35 dollars per person, however, this entrance must be requested at the time of your reservation and it will be confirmed according to availability of spaces as they only allow 200 people.
• Flights. – Flying to Cusco can be complicated. Delays occur frequently especially between October to March and it is not uncommon for flights to be canceled. Make sure you arrive in the city at least two days before the start date of your trek to Machu Picchu. LATAM is the most reliable airline. Avianca and Peruvian Airlines are also acceptable companies. You will not return from your tour on the last day until around 8 pm So make sure your flight is not the day of the Machu Picchu Tour, rather the next day.
• Tips – Tips are always appreciated and should be based entirely on your level of satisfaction. Although it may not be usual for you, it has considerable importance to the people who will assist you during your trek.
• Travel insurance. – To protect your travel investment, we recommend the purchase a travel insurance. Getting travel insurance before leaving home is highly recommended and very easy. There are many insurance companies depending on your country of origin and at different prices according to your time of stay, take some time to review them and hire the one that best suits you. This is an excellent way to protect yourself while visiting Peru.

Briefing (Previous Information)

All information sessions are held in our office at 06:00 PM the night before your trek. If you cannot assist to this talk please contact our office staff to serve you better.

Arrive in Cusco

The best way to get to Cusco is by air and there are several airline options. LATAM tends to be the most expensive, but it has more flight options. But you also have PERUVIAN, AVIANCA, STAR PERU, LC PERU to choose according to your preference. Expect flight delays or cancellations, due to the high altitude of Cusco, tends to be difficult to land so that on rainy days you can paralyze air traffic. Bus tours are always available and although the journey may be long, especially from Lima, Peru buses are well maintained and are comfortable. This option is recommended if you come from a city closer to Cusco like Puno or Arequipa. Buses from Lima will take around 20 hours to arrive to Cusco.

Pick Up from The Hotels

We pick up all our clients from the hotel for all tours. While your hotel is in the center of the city of Cusco, we will coordinate this pick up with the guide at the information session. Pick-up times may vary between 20 and 30 minutes depending on traffic conditions and hotel locations.

Cusco is an ancient city with cobblestone streets and very narrow corridors. Very small hotels and Air BNBs are often located on streets that cars cannot pass through. They are also usually located on the side of the hill, with long and steep climbs to the property, difficult to maneuver with luggage. We recommend that you do not stay in one of these places and try to find places where there is easy access to carry your bags.

Leaving Machu Picchu

Leaving Machu Picchu requires a lot of logistics, but everything is included in your journey.

• Machu Picchu Ruins to Machu Picchu Pueblo: 25-minute bus
• Machu Picchu Pueblo to Ollantaytambo: 2-hour train
• Machu Picchu Pueblo to Poroy: 3.5-hour train
• Ollantaytambo to Cusco: 2-hour van
• Poroy to Cusco: 30-minute van

Entrance fees to Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu has now different schedules to visit: morning or afternoon. Your ticket will be for a single entry, in the morning, once your time is done, the guards will ask you to leave.

NOTE: If you have tickets to climb to Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain, you will have additional time until 2:30 PM. And you can re-enter for a single time as long as it is within the time of re-entry (05 hours from the first entry)

If you want to spend all day at Machu Picchu, we can add a ticket for the afternoon group to your reservation for $ 50 per person.

Huayna Picchu / Machu Picchu Mountain

Machu Picchu is more beautiful when viewed from above, so it is very popular to hike one of the mountains next to the ruins after your guided tour.

Huayna Picchu: 50 minutes to the top, 40 minutes downhill. Two schedules: 8-9 am and 10-11 am.

Machu Picchu Mountain: 2 hours to reach the top, 1.5 hours to reach the bottom. Two schedules: 7-8 am and 9-10 am.

Health Concerns

It is important that you be honest with your guide about any health problems you may suffer. Although the guides are not medical professionals, they are trained in first aid. We also work with a clinic in Cusco that can help our team.

Weather & Altitude Sickness

The climate in Cusco and Machu Picchu is unpredictable. Be prepared for four seasons in a day. Many of the excursions through the Andes involve many microclimates and you will have to be prepared for all seasons.

For farther information about altitude sickness read our article HERE

Community

At Peru Private Tours (PPT) we are proud of the work we do for our community. This is the main objective for our company. We are working directly with the villages to help them meet the needs of their families. We support the children of the villages by giving them school supplies, books and clothes.

What to Bring

• Original passport
• Comfortable hiking shoes
• Headlamp or flashlight
• Waterproof clothing
• Warm layers
• Personal medication
• Water bottles or camelback (3L capacity)
• Snacks
• Camera
• Walking sticks (optional – $15 USD)
• Cash for tips and personal expenses