The Salkantay Trek Sacred Valley tour package has many of Peru's main Andean attractions - Cusco, Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu and Salkantay Trail. It is for the adventurous traveller and is fascinating cultural Andean experience. If your goal is Machu Picchu and you want to achieve it by hiking, but you cannot decide whether to trek the famous Inca Trail, now you do not miss even one of them, since you can undertake the Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu with us!!!
This packages involves the capital of the Incas - Cusco, Sacred Valley of the Incas and trekking expedition takes you to the foothill of the sacred snowy peak of Salkantay (6,271 m/20,700 ft), considered by local native people to be the "Guardian Spirit of the Jungle"! The first part of the trek provides you with an opportunity to observe remote native communities and enjoy gorgeous mountain scenaries before joining the trek! This second part enables you to discover remote Incan ruins that are hidden to common visitors as they are not accessible by means of transport! In the end, you experience the once-in-a-lifetime atmosphere of the New Wonder of the World - Machu Picchu!
Day 1: Cusco
Day 2: Sacred Valley of the Incas
Day 3 - 7: Salkantay Trek
Day 8: Departure Day
Crew: Salkantay Trek Machu representatives in Cusco as well as professional bilingual Tour Guides, a Cook , Muleteer and Horses on the hike.
Accomodation: 3* hotels (3 nights), campsites (3 nights) Hotel in Machu Picchu (1 night).
Meals: 7x breakfast, 4x lunch, 4x dinner, 4x afternoon tea duringt the Salkantay Trek.
Transportation: 1x domestic flight, transportation by private van, 1x train (Expedition Class).
Camping equipment: You can view our camping equipment! click here!
Transfer from airport to hotel free to explore Cusco. There is no place more beautiful to take a leisurely stroll than the ambient streets of Cusco. In the main square, the Plaza de Armas you can see the Baroque style cathedral of Cusco. There are plenty of archaeological sites in and around Cusco if you wish to see, such as Sacsayhuaman, Qenko, Puca Pucara, Tambomachay etc or the Qoricancha temple is exquisite if you just feel like a short walk.
You will be picked up by bus in the morning and head to the Sacred Valley of the Incas. We arrive at Pisac where you will visit the wonderfully vivid market of Pisac and a great place to pick up souvenirs such as artisan products and practice your bargaining skills! Next up is the attractive mountain town of Chinchero, where the Incas claimed that the rainbow was born! A few of the things that Chinchero has to offer are, charming Inca ruins, ancient textile dying and weaving tecniques and products and a vibrant market and a colonial church. Afterwards we carry on till Urumbamba where we have lunch, and then on to Ollantaytambo where there are plenty of ruins to admire and back to Cusco.
Today you begin the hike to Machu Picchu. These days follow the same itinerary as the Salkantay Trek to Machu Pichu 5 days. Involves about 6 hours of trekking daily. On the first day we will reach the awe inspiring mountains, Salkantay and Huamantay and have lunch at the Soirococha Lagoon. On the second day we enter a tropical cloud forest where you have the chance to discover exquisite plants and flowers, as well as beautiful birds. We will set up camp at Collpapampa. On the third day we go deeper in to the forest, where you will be surrounded by soaring trees and bamboo groves; wild fruit and pretty flowers, also the Santa Teresa River, before setting up camp at La Playa.
On Day 4 of the trek after a 3 hour hike we will reach El Mirador from where you can admire Machu Picchu the "Lost City of the Incas". We will view the Inca ruins of Llaqtapata, then lunch at the Hydroelectric plant before the trek continues through bamboo groves, orchirds and coffee plantations till we reach our final campsite. Ruins Bridge at the foothill of Machu Picchu. On Day 5 of the Machu Picchu Salkantay trek we continue up to the city of Machu Picchu where you will have a guided tour. Then you are free to explore Machu Picchu and Huayna Picchu (not included), and take your pictures. In the afternoon you will be taken back by train to Ollantaytambo, from where you will be taken back to Cusco by van.
Airport transfer - Time to extend you Peruvian trip or return home!
Meal budget: Please allow USD 100-150 for meals not included.
Single room: Please note that if you have booked the "Single Room" option for this tour, you receive your own single room for all overnights and a single tent for the Salkantay Trek.
Local flights: It is not included in the cost of your tour.
Many people include the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu in their “Things to do” list before they depart the planet, although what most people don’t know is that there are various Inca Trails Trips to Machu Picchu to pick from in the Cusco region. The difference lies in what kind of an experience you want, hiking the Inca trail and how challenging you like your treks.
You have to take into account that usually you will need to book in advance the Inca Trail, and in case it is fully booked, we recommend other best alternatives:
Generally speaking you should pack as lightly as possible. The horses carry your luggage from Soraypampa (3rd day) to Playa camping (5th day). 6 day hike, our chef takes your luggage by bus to Hidrolectrica. From there to Aguas Calientes, you are expected to carry your own luggage (max 3 hrs), in case, the local train running, our chef take your luggage to the town. We recommend keeping the weight under 5 kg/10lb. You will need to carry clothes, sleeping bag.
If very important your take best cover backpacker, because the weather in Salkantay trek is change every date, we can’t predict it raining or no. If you don’t have, we recommended to put your clothes, sleeping bag and other personal equipment inside the plastic bag.
