Machu Picchu- Private Tour
23 reviews
Machu Picchu- Private Tour
23 reviews
Overview
Our amazing Machu Picchu Private Tour guides will lead you throughout the ancient city, wonder by wonder – special for your own private group! You will learn about ceremonies, how people lived, and how they connected with the Pacha Mama – or “Mother Earth”. Our local guide will give you inside information passed down so that you will get the real story of what happened here.
Machu Picchu is tangible evidence of the urban Inca Empire at the peak of its power and achievement—a citadel of cut stone fit together without mortar so tightly that its cracks still can’t be penetrated by a knife blade. It stands 2,430 m above sea-level, in the middle of a tropical mountain forest, in an extraordinarily beautiful setting. It was probably the most amazing urban creation of the Inca Empire at its height; its giant walls, terraces and ramps seem as if they have been cut naturally in the continuous rock escarpments. The natural setting, on the eastern slopes of the Andes, encompasses the upper Amazon basin with its rich diversity of flora and fauna. It is situated on a mountain ridge above the Sacred Valley which is 80 kilometers (50 mi) northwest of Cuzco and through which the Urubamba River flows.
The complex of palaces and plazas, temples and homes may have been built as a ceremonial site, a military stronghold, or a retreat for ruling elites—its dramatic location is certainly well suited for any of those purposes. The ruins lie on a high ridge, surrounded on three sides by the windy, turbulent Urubamba River some 2,000 feet (610 meters) below.
The Inca’s achievements and skills are all the more impressive in light of the knowledge they lacked. When Machu Picchu was built some 500 years ago the Inca had no iron, no steel, and no wheels. Their tremendous effort apparently benefited relatively few people—some experts maintain that fewer than a thousand individuals lived here.
Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. In 2007, Machu Picchu was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in a worldwide Internet poll.
Machu Picchu was built in the classical Inca style, with polished dry-stone walls. Its three primary structures are the Inti Watana, the Temple of the Sun, and the Room of the Three Windows, of which your tour will visit all three – and plenty more!
You will have a full guided tour by your English speaking guide. After that you will have plenty of time on your own to explore and enjoy Machu Picchu, and discover the wonders of the ancient city yourself!
This Machu Picchu Tour is booked with an Expedition Tourist train, reserved seats.
Transfer from hotel approx at 6:30 -6:45 am. This will be reconfirmed by main office the day before the tour at your check-in
Itinerary
Day 1,TRANSFER FROM AGUAS CALIENTES TO MACHU PICCHU.
The bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu takes about 25-30 minutes and costs $10 per way ($20 round trip). The ride itself is spectacular, as the narrow track meanders along the mountain slope. Buy your bus ticket in advance either at the Aguas Calientes ticket office the night before or at the Cusco city offices (located on childhood avenue “Parque Marianito Ferro”; it is a short walk from the main office of the train station or simply ask for a taxi. Driver to take you there, it will cost 3-4 soles / us $ 2). The last buses leave Machu Picchu at approximately 5:30 pm, be sure to check the time of the last bus, as it can be a long walk back to hot water if you miss it. (approximately 1 hour if you follow the most direct route rather than follow the road)
Since May 2007, the government has set a limit of 400 on the number of people who can climb Huayna Picchu, the mountain seen behind Machu Picchu. This means that during the high season.. As soon as you enter Machu Picchu, it is recommended that you head to the base of Huayna Picchu, where you will find a small cabin to give cabins. The first 200 people can climb Huayna Picchu 7 I am right away, however, everyone has to come back down at 10 am when the second group of 200 can make the ascent at 10 am. It takes about an hour to reach the top, climbing slowly, not recommended for those who suffer from vertigo. The narrow trail can be quite dangerous sometimes after the humid weather. Unfortunately, if you arrive by Inca Trail or train on the same day, it is becoming more and more difficult (in fact, almost impossible in the peak months) to climb Huayna Picchu on the same day. You will have to spend the night in Aguas Calientes and return early the next morning. But we have other options for you: optional sun trekking trail or Inka bridge trail, offers you different points of view, a wonderful option for a postcard photo. (less crowded, free)
Entrance ticket to Machu Picchu Important note: Entrance tickets to Machu Picchu Buy your entrance tickets to Machupicchu more than a couple of months in advance if you travel on your own: www.machupicchu.gob.pe If you travel in Machupicchu with our company we will organize and take care of your machupicchu tickets.
Ticket options for Machupicchu:
Ciudad inka mapi. (including only the archaeological site of machupicchu)
Mapi-huyna. (including huyna pichu mountain hike 7:00 am -10:00am, archaeological site of Machupicchu)
Machupicchu archaeological site: walk Inti punku or sun gate.
Archaeological site of machupicchu – trekking mountain machupicchu.
If you want to go back to Machu Picchu the next day and walk any mountain the next day, then you have to buy another ticket!
Machu Picchu opens at 6 am and remains open until 5:00 pm. You can take small bags to the ruins, but anything larger should be left in the hold near the entrance for $3 per piece. Machu Picchu is much quieter before 11 am and after 2:00 pm. Monday is the busiest day, as many people head to Machu Picchu after visiting the Pisac market on Sunday. Sunday is one of the quietest days. May June, July, August and September are the busiest months in which up to 3000 people visit the archaeological site every day. Even during the low season, you can expect between 1500 and 2000 visitors per day.
Guided tour of Machu Picchu. We offer professional guides for the tour in machupicchu. The guide speaks English. The information will be more detailed and informative. The tours in Machu Picchu are private tours, for small groups of people only for some friends, small groups of family to enjoy every pleasant part of Machu Picchu.
The professional guide will pick you up from your hotel or train station in hot waters and then make the tour or visit to Machu Picchu.
After finishing the tour in Machu Picchu, you must be at the hot water train station 30 minutes before to return if that is the case.
Included
- Early transfer at 06:30/ 06:45 am from your hotels to Poroy or Ollanta train station.
- Expedition train ticket from Poroy or Ollanta to Aguas Calientes.
- Expedition train ticket return to Cusco or Ollanta and Private bus to Cusco.
- Tourist bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu picchu. ( 25-30 minutes )
- Admission entrance ticket for Machu-picchu sanctuary.
- Guided tour in English. (2 hours approximately) (2 hrs free time to explore in your own).
- Tourist bus from Machu Picchu to Aguas Calientes.
- Transfer from station to your hotel.
No Included
- Buffet lunch – Aguas Calientes.
- Sanctuary Hotel restaurant US$40 for a lunch, even snacks are expensive or bring a snacks and drinks with you.
What to bring
Prices
| Number of persons | Price per person |
Travel Guide
Macchu Picchu information:
Machu Picchu is a trip to the serenity of the soul, to the eternal fusion with the cosmos; where we feel our fragility. It is one of the greatest marvels of south america. A resting place of butterflies in the epicenter of the great circle of life.
Located 120 km northwest of cusco, the Inca city of Machu Picchu lay hidden from the world in dense jungle covered mountains until 1911. This ‘lost city’ is one of the world’s archaeological jewels and is one of South America’s major travel destinations.
The well preserved archaeological place of Machu picchu seem to almost cling to the steep hillside, surrounded by towering green mountains overlooking the Huillca Mayu river. Even after having seen the classic photos of Machu picchu in guide books, web sites and postcards you still cannot fail but to be impressed by the awe-inspiring location of the archaeological place.
As you can see in the map above, the main way of getting to Machu picchu is by bus along a steep, narrow zigzagging dirt track from Aguas Calientes. Regular buses run this route throughout the day with a journey time of about 25-30 minutes. For the really fit and adventurous, the only other way of getting to Machu picchu is on foot either along the classic 4-day inca trail starting at km82, Salkantay optional trail 5 days, or along the shorter 2-day inca trail starting at km104.
Aguas Calientes to the outside world and there is no airport. Aguas Calientes can only be reached by train from Ollantaytambo or Poroy.
So if you are planning a trip to Machu Picchu then the best place to start your journey is from the city of Cusco, the Historic Capital of the incas located about 120km to the south-east. Cusco is a beautiful and fascinating city and a great place to base yourself for a few days the other better choice to start your journey is also from the Sacred valley of the incas (Urubamba – Ollantaytambo) very nice places to stay and short trip to Machupicchu.
The most popular optionow to get to Machupicchu from Cusco or Sacred Valley of the Incas to Aguas Calientes is by train.
*****IMPORTANT NOTES *****
NEED A PERMIT: In order to book your Inca Trail treks, the Peruvian authorities cap the number of Inca Trail trekking permits to 500 per day. Everyone entering the trail needs a permit including the trekker, guide, porters and other support staff. Permits often sell out several months in advance and you must book well ahead to secure your place.
When you fill in our booking form you must fill in alternative start dates that are possible for you to begin the trek and these have to be validated. If your preferred date is sold out we will use one of these alternative dates for your permit. Once we purchase your permit from the National Park office, you are 100% confirmed to start this day; this date cannot be changed. Permits are completely non-refundable or transferable, so please make sure the date you booked is a good date to start this adventure.
Your permit is linked to your name and passport number. If you change your passport after booking your Inca Trail trek permit or you plan to travel with a different passport, you MUST also bring the passport you used to book your permit, or you will not be able to trek the Inca Trail trek.
STUDENTS: If you booked your trek with your International Student Identity Card (ISIC) you must have this card and it must be valid for you to enter the trail. If you purchased a permit with the student discount and you do not bring your ISIC card or it is not valid at the time of your trek start they will not allow you to enter the trail. These are National Park rules.
HUAYNA PICCHU: Only 400 people can climb this mountain per day, so this ticket also needs to be booked in advanced. The price is $65 per person (read our Huaynapicchu sidebar about this cost). It is recommended to climb Huayna Picchu in the 10-11am time slot as otherwise you miss your guided tour. It is recommended to have this booked about 2 months in advance to secure your permit.
EXTRA NIGHT: If you want to stay longer at Machu Picchu then you can book an extra night at Aguas Calientes village. Just let us know that you plan to stay an extra night so we can organize your return train for the next day. You can either organize your accommodation by yourself or we can assist with making bookings. If you were thinking of going back to Machu Picchu the next day then you will have to buy a new entrance fee to Machu Picchu and the bus tickets for about $70.
RETURN TRAIN TO CUSCO: The return train is the Expedition train which departs either at 2:55, 4:20, 4:42 or 6:40 pm. The train that is booked depends on availability and is confirmed at your briefing. There is an option to upgrade your train to the Vistadome train, which is an extra $65 per person. Please let us know your preference at the time of booking. None of the trains go straight to Cusco, they run either to Ollantaytambo or Poroy but in either case we will transfer you back by bus to your hotel.
FOOD ON THE TREK: Definitely one of the highlights of the tour is the food. It is always fresh and most of it is organic. There is always a lot to eat and lots of options including vegetables, meat, chicken, fish and other types of protein and carbohydrates. Everyone sits down to eat together and we go out of our way to accommodate all dietary requirements including vegetarian options and any food allergies. We do not provide any alcoholic drinks on the trek but if you would like you can bring your own.
OUR EQUIPMENT: We provide 4 person tents for every 2 people, sleeping bags and foam mattresses for everyone. Our dining equipment includes a spacious dining tent, tables and chairs, plates and utensils. We do NOT supply walking sticks, but they can be rented from PumaPath. We bring an extra blanket for all our hikers for those especially cold nights. Just ask and your guide will provide you with this.
OUR GUIDES, COOK AND PORTERS: All of them are amazing, helpful, caring and great people to be around. Our guides speak excellent English and are patient and very informative. Our cooks provide amazing family-style food for you and our porters and you will be impressed with what they can whip up in the middle of the mountains! Your porters will carry everything for you which makes your trek as easy and comfortable as possible. Thanks to them you will finish your trek and have a great time. Our porters are called ´WE ARE PUMAS…´ on the Inca Trail.
We make sure that all our team are well looked after and we provide all the equipment that they need so that they can do the trek in as much comfort as possible.
FITNESS: The Inca Trail is certainly not easy but you do not need to be an athlete or a trekking expert to complete it. Fitness is naturally important but the Inca Trail is the kind of trek that anyone with a positive attitude and determination can do. Obviously the more fit you are the more you will enjoy the trail and the more chance you will have to take in the scenery and appreciate the Inca ruins dotted along the way. If you do not exercise regularly, it is advisable to do some extra walking or some kind of aerobic activity in the months leading up to your trip.
Many people worry whether or not they will be able to cope physically, but complete failure is rare and would usually only result from severe altitude sickness or a person lacking even a basic level of fitness. People of all ages (from teenagers to pensioners) complete the trek, and age itself is no barrier if you are positive minded and live an active lifestyle. Before departing for your tour, we recommend visiting your doctor who will be able to provide you with more information.
STORAGE DURING YOUR TREK: During the Inca Trail trek your main luggage will be stored in Cuzco and you will receive a small duffle bag at your Inca Trail briefing (briefings are normally set for the evening before you start the trek) to pack your clothes in for 3-4 days. Your team of porters will carry these bags together with the food and equipment for the trail. Please note that you will not have access to these items until the end of each day as the porters will always be ahead of the group. You should therefore bring a day pack in which you can carry personal belongings such as your camera, water and sun screen etc. By Peruvian law the duffle bag carried by the porters must not weigh more than 7kg (14pounds). You can either store the rest of your luggage at your hotel or you can leave it with us.
BOOK NOW
