INCA JUNGLE – MACHU PICCHU 4D / 3N

Downhill mountainbike Cusco to Santa Maria

You will be picked up at approximately 7:00 am. You will be driven through the stunning Sacred Valley of the Incas and dropped off at the 4,316 m. at the highest point of the trail, at Abra Malaga. Here you will change into bikes and biking kit provided (gloves and helmet) and receive a 20 minutes briefing by your tour guide. Then the fun commences¦ freewheeling down quiet but challenging roads, past changing landscapes, you will not want to catch your breath until the first picnic stop in Alfamayo San Luis, three hours from your starting point. Here you will enjoy your lunch, while taking in the panoramic view. After a quick change and a dab of insect repellent, it’s onwards and downwards towards Huamanmarca, Archeaological Inca recently discovered, where your tour guide will provide you with the historical background. You will then carry on descending to 1500 meters, where the edge of jungle meets the small but charming town of Santa Maria. Here you can buy a snack or just rest your legs and enjoy a cold beer before a dinner of traditional Peruvian food. Accommodation is provided in the form of a basic, family run hostel with either single, double or triple rooms.
(RAFTING IS INCLUDED)

Trekking Santa Maria – Santa Teresa

You will wake up at around 6.30 am and enjoy the finest indigenous coffee. Then you will begin your walk which gets progressively steeper, until arriving at a family restaurant in Santa Rosa where you can relax in hammocks admiring the coca plantations and receive refreshments while being entertained by the monkeys. After a short walk you will reach a traditional Inca Trail, which winds around slopes and drops for approximately half a mile. The descent continues for just over two hours until you reach Qellomayo, a small town, where you will have lunch. From Qellomayo it is a short walk beside the Rio Vilcanota until reaching the famous hot springs of Colcamayo. Here you can enjoy the hot springs and relax your muscles in these natural settings. After wading in the hot springs you will carry on to Santa Teresa where you will spend the night in a hostel.

Trekking Santa Teresa to Aguas Calientes

You will wake up and have breakfast at around 7 am. After breakfast you will walk to Colpani with amazing views until you reach the restaurant where you will have lunch at Hidroelectrica. From here it is only about a two and a half hours walk to Aguas Calientes, the base town for Machu Picchu. Included is dinner at a local restaurant before retiring to your hostel with hot water and private bathrooms.

Optional additional activities

South America`s highest Zip Lines. Approximately 15 minutes from Santa Teresa. Duration roughly 2 hours. (Zip Lining IS INCLUDED)

Machu Picchu

You will take our breakfast, very early in the morning. Than we start our last day by climbing up to the entrance of the famous Inca Citadel of Machu Picchu, the Lost City of the Incas. Avoiding the crowds, you will be one of the first visitors of the day. Your bilingual tour guide will take you around the vast ruins for about 3hrs, comprehensively explaining its historical significance and place in the Inca Empire. After this you have some free time to wander around. Machu Picchu is the best known of the Inca ruins, as it is recognized worldwide yet it is not mentioned in any of the writings of the Spanish Conquistadors. It is believed to have been constructed around the mid-15th century and was rediscovered by American historian Hiram Bingham in 1911. The guided tour of this fascinating place is an unforgettable experience.

Visit the Main Square, the Royal Quarters, the Temple of the Three Windows, the Circular Towers, the Sacred Sun Dial and Burial Grounds. After the excursion you can hike up the mountain behind Machu Picchu,Huayna Picchu where you will have stunning views over the whole complex! However there are only 400 persons per day allowed, therefore you must let us know in advance. This, we have to book it when we reserve your tour tour and has a cost of US$ 10.00 plus. Due Huayna Pucchu is very fast oversold, we are offering Machu Picchu Mountain as a second optional climbing. The adventage of this hike is that its less crowed, but not less beautiful. The cost fot this climb are also US$ 30 per person.

Optional unguided walks include Inti Punku, the SUN GATE the traditional end of the Inca Trail, duration 45 min. and the Inca Bridge, duration 1 hr. Otherwise simply relax and take in the inspiring atmosphere. After your free time you can walk down to the town of Aguas Calientes for a late lunch or a dip in the hot springs (not included). In the afternoon you take the train back. A frequent bus service takes visitors back to Aguas Calientes, where you will catch the train to Ollantaytambo (sometimes subject to Peru Rail availability the train can be at 18:45 at 21:30h) and then the tourist bus on to Cusco.