Compare Classic Inca Trail to Machu Picchu - 4D/3N by Action Peru Treks

Day 1: Cusco – Trailhead at KM 82 – Ayapata

Your guide will pick you up at your hotel in Cusco at 4:30 a.m. to drive to the trailhead at Kilometer 82. The early start is rewarded by the most beautiful drive through the Sacred Valley with dawn breaking around us.

Along the way, we stop at the Raqchi lookout to take photos (weather conditions permitting). This gorgeous location overlooks the valley of Urubamba with the Chicon glacier clearly visible in the background as well as Mount Veronica and the Urubamba River.

Our drive then continues to the market town of Ollantaytambo, where we will stop briefly to take advantage of more photo opportunities.

We then arrive at the trailhead at Kilometer 82, also known as Piscacucho where the Classic Inca Trail begins. Our porters and chef will meet us here with a nutritious breakfast! After breakfast, we go through the Inca trail checkpoint and our adventure on the Inca Trail begins.

The trek starts easily with 2.5 hours of relatively flat terrain to reach the Wilkaraqay Inca site. Here we will have spectacular views of the Llactapata ruins, which was a checkpoint on the Inca trail approach to Machu Picchu. Your guide will talk about the history of the site as well as provide an overview of the history of the Inca trail.

Back on the trail, we hike for two more hours to Hatunchaca (2,598 m/8,525 ft) where we will have a delicious lunch.

In the afternoon, we will hike for another 2.5 hours until we reach our campsite at Ayapata. This campsite is a little further along the Inca Trail than the traditional night-one campsite at Wayllabamba. We chose this deliberately because it is more isolated and much quieter, allowing us to truly enjoy the spectacular display of stars visible in this part of the Andes.

Our chef will prepare a sumptuous dinner for us all to enjoy together before we retire for a well-earned night's rest in our comfortable tents.

Meals: Lunch/Dinner
Accommodations: Camping
Maximum altitude: 3300 m/10,824 ft
Minimum altitude: 2,750 m/9,020 ft
Distance to walk: 14 km/8.7 miles
Approximate walking time: 7 hours
Difficulty: Moderate

Day 2: Ayapata – Dead Woman’s Pass – Pacaymayu – Chaquicocha

After breakfast, we begin our hike to the famous Dead Woman’s Pass! For the first two hours, we will be in the cloud forest, passing through various bio-zones, including the low Sierra and the high Puna. There are many opportunities to see a variety of plant and birdlife and if we are lucky we may also spot White Tailed Deer roaming wildly.

After this two-hour hike, we reach Lluchapampa (3,800 m/12,460 ft). This is a small camp and it is the last location on the trail to buy supplies. After a 15-minute break, we will continue on the trail.

The portion of the trail leading to Warmiwañusca “Dead Woman’s Pass” at (4,215 m/13,825 ft) takes around two hours through the most beautiful mountain scenery and the grasslands of the high Andes. We will pause at the top of the pass to admire the majesty of the highest point of the Inca trail (and take photos of course!)

We then descend to the Pacaymayu camp for lunch. After lunch, we climbed approximately 45 minutes to the Inca site of Runcuraccay. Your guide will provide a tour of the ruin before we continue uphill for an additional hour to the Runcuraccay pass (3,950 m/12,959 ft).

After a 90-minute descent, we arrive at the Inca site of Sayacmarca (3,657 m/12,000 ft). Here we will have the chance to see one of the most amazing sunsets across the Aobamba valley!

From here it is just 25 minutes to our campsite for the night at Chaquicocha (3,600 m/11,800 ft).

Once again, we have selected a quieter, more isolated campsite to really enhance our experience on the trail.

Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner
Accommodations: Camping
Maximum altitude: 4215 m/13,825 ft
Minimum altitude: 3,300 m/10,824 ft
Distance to walk: 16 km/ 10 miles
Approximate walking time: 8-9 hours
Area: Andes and Cloud Forest
Difficulty: Challenging

Day 3: Chaquicocha – Phuyupatamarca – Wiñay Wayna

Day 3 of the Classic Inca Trail starts with a 2-hour hike to the Inca ruins at Phuyupatamarca (3,680 m/12,073 ft). From here we will enjoy spectacular views of Aguas Calientes, Machu Picchu Mountain, and Huayna Picchu Mountain, before getting a guided tour of the ruins.

Now it is time to head into the rainforest! We will walk downhill for 2 ½ hours until we reach our camp. During this stretch of the trail, we will visit Inti Pata. Many people feel that the most beautiful pictures of the entire Inca trail can be taken from here. Leaving Inti Pata it is then just 40 minutes to our campsite at Wiñay Wayna (2,680 m/8,792 ft).

Arriving at the campsite we will have lunch and then enjoy some time relaxing before visiting the archeological site that bears the same name as the camp.

Wiñay Wayna is the largest and most beautiful archeological site on the Inca trail and means forever young in Quechua, and we are one of the few companies that provide a guided tour of Wiñay Wayna.

Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner
Accommodations: Camping
Maximum altitude: 3600 m/11,808 ft
Minimum altitude: 2,680 m/8,792 ft
Distance to walk: 10 km/6.2 miles
Approximate walking time: 6 hours
Area: High Cloud Forest
Difficulty: Easy

Day 4: Wiñay Wayna – Sun Gate – Machu Picchu – Cusco

We rise very early on our final day to complete the last few kilometers of the Inca Trail. Leaving after breakfast, the trekking here is fairly easy going for around an hour, and brings us directly to Inti Punku or the “Sun Gate”.

This is the ancient entrance of the sacred city and gives us our first incredible views of Machu Picchu and (weather permitting) the spectacular sunrise over the Andes.

Our trek ends with one final 45-minute downhill hike to the entrance gates of the city. We will go to the classic photo spot for pictures as soon as we arrive. Then there will be a short break before starting our 2-hour guided tour of Machu Picchu. All of our guides are experts in the history and mythology of the site, and really bring the visit to life!

After the tour, we travel to Aguas Calientes by bus and then take the train to Poroy or Ollantaytambo where our private transportation will be waiting to transport you back to your hotel in Cusco. Arrival time in Cusco depends on the time of your train ticket but will be in the evening when your adventure on the Classic Inca Trail has come to an end,

Meals: Breakfast
Maximum altitude: 2700 m/8,856 ft
Minimum altitude: 2,430 m/7,972 ft
Distance to walk: 6 km/3.73 miles
Approximate walking time: 2 hours
Note: This itinerary is subject to change without prior notice according to weather conditions, strikes, roadblocks, or other events that are beyond our control. At Action Treks Peru we will always do our best to follow the itinerary as closely as possible.