Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu - 2 day tour

First of all, we will head to Chinchero, a picturesque town in the valley. It’s known for its agricultural terraces and Inca ruins. We continue our journey to Moray, thought to be an old laboratory. With its circular terraces it has a unique appearance. It was built for agriculture purposes, which can be seen to its irrigation canals. Most probably, the terraces where used for acclimatization and hybridization of wild plant species, as the temperatures varies on top and bottom of the terraces. Afterwards, we visit Salineras de Maras. Salineras are protuberances of salt, or salt mines. As the name suggest there is a lot of salt forming, which is also still extracted in an artisanal way. The mines are build on the side of the mountain “Qaqawiñay.” During the dry season, every 3 days the mines are filled with salt water formed by local springs. As the water evaporates, the salt gradually solidifies. After a period of around 1 month, there is enough salt stacked up to extract. After visiting Maras we make our way to the citadel of Ollantaytambo. This city was originally made to guard the entrance of the valley, probably from invasions of jungle inhabitants. We will walk through the streets of the town and thus have a clear idea of how this military, religious and cultural center was during the Inca empire. From Ollantaytambo, we also take the train to Aguas Calientes, this will depart at around 16:45 where after we will reach Aguas Calientes around 18:20 pm. You are free to take a dinner of own choice anywhere in Aguas Calientes. Afterwards you can take a well deserve rest. During the tour we stop in Urabamba to have ourselves a nice prepared lunch!

After you receive your snacks, you can either travel up to Machu Picchu by foot or by bus. The first is absolutely recommended for the hikers between us. You have to start your walk from the gates at 04:00 and walk up in about 1-2 hours, some fit people go might go faster! The first bus can be taken at 05:30, and goes up in about 30 minutes to the citadel of Machu Picchu. The early wake-up is rewarded as the first glimpse of the Machu Picchu will come together with the first sunlight of the day. A lot of people decide to watch the sunrise from the Inti Punku or Sungate, an assured spectacular view! You can do this easily by yourselves by following a clear path up. After you have watched the sunrise you can enter the actual park itself. Most likely you can join a guided tour of the Inca city that will take approximately two hours – please ask your tour guide the day before. You can also choose to visit the city by yourself, normally, also for maximum 2 hours. Remember that after the guided tour you cannot enter the park again. Make sure to be back in Aguas Calientes to take the train back to Ollantaytambo at 18:00. From there, we have arranged a bus back to Cusco city centre, where we arrive approximately at 22:00.