Trip Report: Venturing through Brazil & Peru

[kpc]

Nice trip report; a lot of work has gone into writing this trip report!...Reminds me fondly of my trip to Peru in 2012 . South America is my favourite continent to visit, having visited 4 times. Everyone needs to visit this wonderful place!!

Desperate to leave that awful hotel, I got up really early the next morning and checked out. The real reason though was that I had reserved a place to climb Waynapicchu mountain (sometimes referred to as Huayna Picchu). This is the mountain you could see in the background in some of the previous photos. You have to reserve a place as only 400 people are allowed to enter each day - 200 between 7/8am and another 200 between 10/11am. If you can get a place on the later climb that is better because firstly, you don't have to get up so early and secondly, there is often low cloud around Machu Picchu early in the morning.

I left it to the day before to book a place so my only option was the 7am climb. I got a bus at around 6.30am but by the time I walked through Machu Picchu to get to the Wayna Picchu control point and queued up, it was already 7.30. When I arrived, the whole valley was covered in cloud/fog and you couldn't even see the top of the mountain.

The climb was not a simple stroll. At times the path was steep and narrow and I found it physically challenging. You also need to remember that this is at a high altitude, meaning the air is thinner. It took me a little over an hour to get to the top, and when I did, there wasn't much to see other than clouds. Occasionally Machu Picchu would make an appearance from behind the clouds, but we didn't get those postcard views unfortunately. On a good day, I can imagine the views would be stunning, but in this case I would just describe them as good. I do still think it was worth the effort, but that was a little disappointing.

View attachment 25885
Machu Picchu makes an appearance from behind the clouds.

We also did the 7am climb up Wanya Picchu. It was raining and cloudy when we started (and we nearly abandoned the climb) but fortunately the sun broke through and the clouds had cleared by the time we got to the top to get the most magnificant view of Machu Picchu. It took me 1.5 hours (with many rest stops) to get to the top. Although it was only an accent of 300 metres, because of the altitude, it was one of the hardest things I have done in recent times! We did have a head start as we stayed at the Sanctuary Lodge hotel at Machu Picchu overnight

​

 

[Mattg]

Thanks so much everyone for your feedback! I'm pleased you were able to get something out of it.

We will be part of the oldies wandering around complaining about all the stairs.no way would either of us get up the mountain.
But with age come a few benefits.If we go we will stay at Palacio Del Inka in Cusco and also at Tambo del Inka.Both of course are SPG properties.

You should be able to climb the stairs at Machu Picchu without too much difficulty. Just pace yourself and take sensible precautions against altitude sickness, e.g. by drinking plenty of water and drinking coca tea and you should be okay.

If you can afford to stay at the Tambo del Inka, I would definitely recommend it. It looked wonderful in the short time I was there!

We also did the 7am climb up Wanya Picchu. It was raining and cloudy when we started (and we nearly abandoned the climb) but fortunately the sun broke through and the clouds had cleared by the time we got to the top to get the most magnificant view of Machu Picchu. It took me 1.5 hours (with many rest stops) to get to the top. Although it was only an accent of 300 metres, because of the altitude, it was one of the hardest things I have done in recent times! We did have a head start as we stayed at the Sanctuary Lodge hotel at Machu Picchu overnight

So glad you were able to get that view, it looks amazing and I'm sure it would have made the climb more than worthwhile! Either you were very lucky or I was just unlucky...

 

[Kangarucci]

Great read. Thanks for your time and effort.

 

[kt_kez]

Thanks for the report! This is all very helpful before my trip in may!

 

[Cool Cat Phil]

Thanks for the Trip Report.

Outstandingly written , a complained by some great photography.

Your trip report makes me want to put South America well & truly on my bucket list!

 

[Mattg]

Just thought I would give a quick update - my domestic flights within Peru were posted to my Qantas frequent flyer account, but I did not earn any points or status credits. Going back to check the fine print, the tickets were in fare class L, which is one of 8 fare classes which do not earn QF points/SCs on LAN domestic flights in Peru. I feel a bit disappointed considering I paid so much money for those tickets. Next time I go to Peru I think I'll give Peruvian Airlines or Star Peru a go, as I don't think I got any tangible benefit from flying LAN as a oneworld sapphire.

 

[drron]

Strange as I have been looking at these flights and LAN L bucket earns 100% base miles with Aadvantage-not regarded as deep discount-G,N,Q,S are those fare buckets for Peru.

 

[Salem]

Thanks for such an interesting read and detailed report Mattg!

I'm heading to Peru this December and would appreciate any of your comments on my itinerary. I was initially planning on staying in Cusco the whole time and venturing out to the sites each day but am now thinking to perhaps stay in Aguas Calientes like you did (and hopefully avoid the place you stayed in!).

Ideally my plans are:

14th Arrive Cusco 12:45pm, go straight to Aguas Calientes
15th Machu Picchu
16th Wayna Picchu, head to Cusco
17th Sacred Valley, Pisac and Ollantaytambo
18th Depart Cusco 10:00am

Everything I've read besides your report suggests that getting tickets to Wayna Picchu is extremely difficult so I'm surprised you managed to get one the day before! Very lucky despite the weather (and detour) you had.. My dilemma is if I can't secure a ticket now, I think I'd rather only spend one day at MP and two days exploring the other sites.. I'll have to try my luck with tickets but aside from that, any comments on my plans?

TIA

 

[Mattg]

Thanks for such an interesting read and detailed report Mattg!

I'm heading to Peru this December and would appreciate any of your comments on my itinerary. I was initially planning on staying in Cusco the whole time and venturing out to the sites each day but am now thinking to perhaps stay in Aguas Calientes like you did (and hopefully avoid the place you stayed in!).

Ideally my plans are:

14th Arrive Cusco 12:45pm, go straight to Aguas Calientes
15th Machu Picchu
16th Wayna Picchu, head to Cusco
17th Sacred Valley, Pisac and Ollantaytambo
18th Depart Cusco 10:00am

Everything I've read besides your report suggests that getting tickets to Wayna Picchu is extremely difficult so I'm surprised you managed to get one the day before! Very lucky despite the weather (and detour) you had.. My dilemma is if I can't secure a ticket now, I think I'd rather only spend one day at MP and two days exploring the other sites.. I'll have to try my luck with tickets but aside from that, any comments on my plans?

TIA

I'm glad you found my trip report useful! Your trip sounds great and I'm sure you will enjoy it.

Just a few comments I would make about your itinerary:

Firstly, how do you plan to get to Aguas Calientes on the afternoon of the 14th? The trains from Cusco (or somewhere nearby) to Agaus Calientes only leave in the morning. So, I would probably suggest you stay the first night in Cusco, then take the early train the next morning. You should still get to Aguas Calientes early enough the following day to get in a full day of sightseeing at Machu Picchu. In any case I think resting on the first day is good for acclimatisation. Another option would be to spend the first night at an intermediate point such as Ollyantaytambo, then take the (shorter) train ride to Cusco from there the next morning.

I was very lucky to get a ticket to climb Wayna Picchu the day before. But I was travelling in the low tourist season, so that may have been a factor. If you're travelling just before Christmas, I would rate your chances of getting a ticket the day before at close to zero. Definitely get that well in advance if you can as space is definitely restricted. Even if you can't get a ticket, Aguas Calientes is still a nice place to spend a day, and there are other walks around Machu Picchu that are worth doing so I'd probably look at staying the two days (with one night in Aguas Calientes in between).

I would also probably suggest doing the Sacred Valley/Pisac/Ollyantaytambo tour before you go to Machu Picchu, rather than afterwards. The tour is great, but nothing is quite as good as Machu Picchu. I think you might be slightly disappointed if you see the Sacred Valley having just seen Machu Picchu itself! If you do this tour on the 15th, you could even ask to be dropped off in Ollayantaytambo. Then you could either stay a night there and train to Machu Picchu the next morning, or you could take an afternoon/evening train from onwards from O. to A.C. and spend the night in A.C. (There are many more departures from O. than from Cusco.) That is probably what I would do.

Hope that helps and let me know if you have any more questions.

 

[RooFlyer]

<snip>
I was very lucky to get a ticket to climb Wayna/Huayna Picchu the day before. But I was travelling in the low tourist season, so that may have been a factor. If you're travelling just before Christmas, I would rate your chances of getting a ticket the day before at close to zero. Definitely get that well in advance if you can as space is definitely restricted. Even if you can't get a ticket, Aguas Calientes is still a nice place to spend a day, and there are other walks around Machu Picchu that are worth doing so I'd probably look at staying the two days (with one night in Aguas Calientes in between).

I would also probably suggest doing the Sacred Valley/Pisac/Ollyantaytambo tour before you go to Machu Picchu, rather than afterwards. The tour is great, but nothing is quite as good as Machu Picchu. I think you might be slightly disappointed if you see the Sacred Valley having just seen Machu Picchu itself! If you do this tour on the 15th, you could even ask to be dropped off in Ollayantaytambo. Then you could either stay a night there and train to Machu Picchu the next morning, or you could take an afternoon/evening train from onwards from O. to A.C. and spend the night in A.C. (There are many more departures from O. than from Cusco.) That is probably what I would do.

Hope that helps and let me know if you have any more questions.

I hope Salem and Mattg don't mind me chiming in (apologies if so!). I 'did' much the same itinerary as Salem is contemplating last April. Trip report here.

I agree with Mattg about doing the Sacred Valley before Machu Picchu for the same reason but also because a day or two in the valley is a good period to acclimatise to an elevated environment. I on the other hand would support your heading away from Cusco same day as arrival. Cusco is 'high altitude' and although not everyone is adversely affected, and there are tablets you can take to mitigate the effects (Diamox), it is pretty horrible if you are affected and you probably won't be well until you head away. So maybe look at Arrive Cusco, then straight to Urubamba/Yucay (2 nights) seeing Sacred Valley sights, Aguas Calientes two nights. Its only a couple of hours drive from Cusco to Yucay, with spectacular scenery.

I would recommend against only having one day at Machu Picchu, whether or not you do Wayna Picchu. The weather is very variable, so if you have 2 days (or, probably, 2 half days) you spread the risk of closed-in weather. From my own experience, and what I was told, the sky is usually clearer in the morning, more cloudy in the afternoon.

You can of course get tickets for Wayna/ Huayna Picchu on-line. I actually got mine via my travel agent, but I did find the booking site. It reported 'sold out' when I first looked, I think 6 months before my trip, but again, I was told that the 'window' only opens up ??? 3 months before the day you want to go (check this if you want to buy on-line). In the end I decided against doing the climb as I'm not the fittest person and the exertion would have half killed me and probably affected me on-going through my trip. The iconic pictures of Machu Picchu actually come from the hill/mountain behind MP on the other side, readily reachable and part of the ruins themselves.

 

[Milboo]

I will add my 2 cents worth having come back less than a week ago (trip report not yet completed).

I agree with getting out of Cusco at the start. I was not affected by the altitude (bar feeling like I needed to exert more energy) however it hit my friend hard as soon as she walked out of the terminal.

We did the following:

- Arrived in Cusco and transferred to Urubamba in the Sacred Valley. We used Inka Natura Tours here and the guide who was contracted for our stay was outstanding. He works independent and I can pass on his details if you like. We arrived around lunchtime and spent the afternoon just relaxing.
- Visited Machu Picchu the following day - training from Ollyantay. We did this as a single day trip only as time was not on our side and we were lucky with the weather. Be prepared for insanely long bus lines to get down the hill - unless you walk down. If we'd had 2 days, we would have stayed in AC the night.
- Following day we had a leisurely transfer to Cusco via Pisac arriving early afternoon. There is a little town you can stop in that does the best cuy around too!
- Following day was in Cusco.

I would have easily spent another day in the Sacred Valley and another in Cusco. Really enjoyed these areas and felt like I did them a disservice with only scratching the surface!

 

[kpc]

Thanks for such an interesting read and detailed report Mattg!

I'm heading to Peru this December and would appreciate any of your comments on my itinerary. I was initially planning on staying in Cusco the whole time and venturing out to the sites each day but am now thinking to perhaps stay in Aguas Calientes like you did (and hopefully avoid the place you stayed in!).

Ideally my plans are:

14th Arrive Cusco 12:45pm, go straight to Aguas Calientes
15th Machu Picchu
16th Wayna Picchu, head to Cusco
17th Sacred Valley, Pisac and Ollantaytambo
18th Depart Cusco 10:00am

Everything I've read besides your report suggests that getting tickets to Wayna Picchu is extremely difficult so I'm surprised you managed to get one the day before! Very lucky despite the weather (and detour) you had.. My dilemma is if I can't secure a ticket now, I think I'd rather only spend one day at MP and two days exploring the other sites.. I'll have to try my luck with tickets but aside from that, any comments on my plans?

TIA

Book your tickets for both MP and WP online before you go!!

In 2012, we did:
1) Arrive in Cusco; stayed 2 nights
2) Travelled by train in early am to MP, arriving around noon. Stayed 1 night at MP summit (only one expensive hotel here but IMHO was worth it esp since +1 paid).
3) Got up early for climb up WP. Left MP early pm, and spent a couple of hours at Aguas Calientes, then train to Ollantaytambo. Overnight here.
4) Explored Ollantaytambo in am, than taxi to Pisac in early pm. 1.5 hours IIRC by taxi. Explored Pisac market in late pm. Stayed 1 night in Pisac.
5) Explored Pisac ruins in am, then taxi back to Cusco (1 hour) in pm. Night in Cusco.
6) Flew out of Cusco.

My recommendation (mainly to avoid altitude sickness at Cusco)
1) Arrive Cusco. Taxi straight away to Ollantaytambo. Stay 2 nights, leaving 1 full day to explore Ollantaytambo ruins
2) Early start to MP. Either stay 1 night at Aguas Calientes or MP itself if the budget stretches that far. You have the pm to explore MP and the next am as well (weather can be bad)
3) Leave MP early to mid afternoon for Ollantaytambo by train, than taxi to Pisac arriving late pm / early evening. Stay 1 night at Pisac, and explore Market in am (1.5 hours) and the Pisac ruins (3-4 hours). Then taxi to Cusco for 2 or 3 nights (you should be acclimatised to the altitude by now).
Then +/- trip to Lake Titicaca (even higher than Cusco) for 1 (or 2) nights, the latter allowing for a boat trip on the lake, the highest lake in the world apparently!

PS: We travelled to Peru independently, and took no organised tours

 

[Mattg]

PS: We travelled to Peru independetly, and took no organised tours

I also travelled independently. I originally got a quote from an agent, but then realised I could do exactly the same thing for about half the price by organising it myself!

 

[love_the_life]

For a rollicking good time I suggest the Hiram Bingham train from MP (serves dinner). The drinks (included) flow freely and the singing and dancing is a hoot.

 

[RooFlyer]

For a rollicking good time I suggest the Hiram Bingham train from MP (serves dinner). The drinks (included) flow freely and the singing and dancing is a hoot.

Absolutely!

 

[Salem]

Thank you all so much for your feedback!! And apologies for taking so long to reply.. It's a lot to get my head around!

I will definitely book my MP/WP tickets asap and agree with the idea of exploring the other ruins before MP. With all of your suggestions, I've updated my plans as follows:

14th Arrive Cusco 12:45pm, taxi to Ollantaytambo (Would love to see Pisac on the way to avoid backtracking so far the following day but it's probably not wise to leave our luggage in a taxi.. So maybe just explore Ollantaytambo that afternoon)
15th Sacred Valley and Pisac, go to Aguas Calientes (by train I assume?)
16th Machu Picchu
17th Wayna Picchu, head to Cusco (train again I assume)
18th Depart Cusco 10:00am

It would be good to have a full day in Cusco but your suggestions of two days at MP in case of bad weather make sense.

Milboo, I'd love the details of your guide, it would be good to have some commentary and nicer than relying on a taxi.

When it comes to taxis, are there generally plenty available and are they metered or negotiable? Also, is it ok to buy train tickets there or advisable to get them now?

Thanks

 

[RooFlyer]

Only way to get to Aguas Calientes is by rail (hiking and rafting not being contemplated ... at least by me!).

Ollantaytambo has its own Inca ruin to explore

I assume you've checked the PeruRail timetables? The trains go pretty slow! Especially the one uphill from Aguas Calientes to Cuzco (or rather, Poroy for the Vistadome train, at least ... its on the outskirts of Cusco).

 

[Salem]

Hiking and rafting are definitely a no for me too!

Yes, thanks for the link. I find the destination names confusing as Aguas Calientes is not shown in the drop down box, so it's just known as MP right?

 

[RooFlyer]

Yes. Its sometimes called Machu Picchu Pueblo

 

[kpc]

When it comes to taxis, are there generally plenty available and are they metered or negotiable? Also, is it ok to buy train tickets there or advisable to get them now?

Thanks

Ask your local hotel for a price guide. The price is fixed although a little negotiable but overall it was cheap. The hotel should also be able to point you to where the taxis are but generally the taxis found us....the second they see you lugging your luggage, you will be asked "taxi, taxi...?" Consider staying at the place below in Ollantaytambo...it is right at the train station to MP...ask for a room at the back to avoid the train noise! Has a nice restaursnt for dinner as well!
El Albergue Hotel - Ollantaytambo