Full disclaimer: No one told me how hard it was to hike the Inca Trail because once you make it to Machu Picchu and as time passes, you only remember how beautiful it is. My family is from Chicago — 594 feet and not much of hikers, but we have always been athletic and exercise regularly. However, on this 4-day hike, you pass through different climates each day at an altitude that ranges from 8,000 to 14,000 feet and scale several mountains until you reach the “old mountain,” Machu Picchu.
Before committing to the Inca Trail, make sure to ask yourself if you like hiking for 6–11 hours per day or camping without access to a modern toilet or shower for several days. If not, do not do this — use your brain, take he train. There is a three and a half hour train from Cusco to Aguas Calientes, the town at the foot of Machu Picchu, and then you can take a thirty minute bus from there.
In April 2016, I hiked for 4 days, 26 miles, and camped for 3 days on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu with my four siblings. You need a permit and tour guide to do this hike, and there are many companies that provide both. I highly recommend the company with whom I trekked called Alpaca Expeditions. The cost came out to $710, which includes tents, 3 days of breakfast, lunch, and dinner, sleeping bags, air mattresses, foam pillows, duffel bags, private porters to carry your stuff, ponchos, and daypack covers.
We arrived in Cusco, the historic capital of the Inca Empire, about 2 days before our trek in order to acclimate to the altitude. Cusco is actually higher in altitude (11,152 feet) than Machu Picchu, which sits at 7,972 feet. However, there are mountains that you will climb on the Inca Trail that are higher than Cusco. I recommend arriving in Cusco a few days early before the hike to acclimate to the altitude. I also suggest you do your sight-seeing beforehand, such as paragliding in the Sacred Valley, shopping for Alpaca sweaters and blankets in town, and checking out Sacsayhuaman because after the hike, you will be exhausted and want to shower and rest for a few days.
In Cusco, we stayed at Hotel Rumi Punku on Calle Choquechaca #339. It is in a great location, walking distance to the main square and also to Sacsayhuaman. This hotel will pick you up from the airport for free with a sign with your name on it. As long as you are staying with them afterward, they will also hold your luggage as you hike the Inca Trail. It is a comfortable hotel that costs about $110-$170 USD per night with free wifi, free breakfast every morning, and free cocoa tea served throughout the day, which helps with the altitude sickness. They also offer laundry service!
In Cusco, we made it our mission to eat like the locals, and learned that Peruvian food is an interesting mixture of Italian, Japanese, Chinese, African, and Spanish cuisines. On restaurant menus, you will see pasta, pizza, noodles, rice, beans, meats, and fish. I highly recommend Morena Peruvian Kitchen, one of the best restaurants in Cusco. The pork belly, aeropuerto dish (Lima dish of rice, noodles, and an array of meat and seafood), and the lomo saltado (beef strips and french fries) were especially tasty! Some other food and drinks we tried are:
- Chupe (seafood stew)
- Empanadas
- Guinea pig (tastes like chicken)
- Yuca
- Choclo (South American corn)
- Ceviche
- Pisco sour (local liquor made of grapes which has egg whites in it)
- Cusqueña regular or dark (beer)
- Chicha (fermented corn beer, given to us on the trail)
A few notes I have regarding Cusco:
- Pay attention as you are flying into Cusco — great views of The Sacred Valley and the city!
- There are many places in Cusco for currency exchange, so don’t fret if you forget to do it at the Lima airport.
- Check out the side streets of Cusco to buy and eat — cheaper and more authentic than the stores and restaurants in the main square.
- Alpaca sweaters should not cost more than 30 sols.
- Taxis should never cost you more than 5–10 sols. Just negotiate.
In preparation for this trip, the CDC recommends Hepatitis A and Typhoid vaccinations. I received both from a local travel clinic, and vaccinations are not covered by health insurance. I also received a prescription for Diamox, the anti-altitude sickness pills. Some people choose not to take altitude pills, and my family did a bit of a controlled experiment. My two sisters and I took Diamox and my brothers chose not to take it. Some of the side effects we experienced were a tingling sensation in our feet and hands and also unable to taste carbonation in our sodas. I will say that all of us endured headaches with or without Diamox, but cocoa tea and ibuprofen easily took care of that. According to my brothers after the trip, if they were to do it again, they would still not take the pills. On the other hand, my sisters and I agreed that we would still take the medicine. Therefore, know your body and how altitude usually affects you, then decide.
On day 1, we were picked up at our hotel at 4:30am in a bus by our tour guides, Sabi and Angel, and then picked up the other hikers. In our group, we had a young married couple from Philadelphia, a couple from France, an older couple in their fifties from Zurich, and three teenage boys from São Paolo, Brazil. At about 7am, we arrived at the opening of the Inca Trail and ate breakfast, made by our cooks who travelled with us the entire time. It was quite unbelievable how tasty the food was in the limiting conditions on the trail. On that first day, we hiked uphill for 5 hours in the morning. We took a few breaks and stopped for an hour for lunch and then hiked another three hours. Around 5pm, we broke for camp and were so exhausted that we all passed out right after dinner.
Day 2 was the most difficult day, and I’m not sure what could have prepared us for it. We woke at 4:45am and hiked 11 hours. The second day is the hardest day because you hike to the highest point throughout the entire trip called “Dead Woman’s Pass” (14,000 feet). When hiking this trail, you will encounter constant climate change — one minute it will be raining, the next minute, it will be sunny, and then you’ll be cold, then hot. You will be taking layers on and off every thirty minutes or so. On the second half of day 2, we hiked through the rainforest, so legitimate rain gear is very important. Everyone was soaked and didn’t want to stop and take breaks because you would get cold. We broke for camp about 5:30pm and after dinner, we all passed out by 7:30pm.
Day 3 is considered the easiest day and that is with 6 hours of hiking: three hours uphill and three hours downhill. For some, including my older sister, downhill is much harder for them, especially on your knees. I still thought the constant uphill was hardest, but to each his or her own. The saying: “what goes up, must come down” takes on a quite literal meaning throughout this experience.
On day 4, we woke up at 3:30am to get in line for the gates to Machu Picchu, which open at 5:30am. You will see lots of other hikers on the Inca Trail, but I never felt that it was over-crowded because everyone goes at their own paces. Luckily, we camped very close to the gates, so we had a good place in line. We hiked to Sun Gate aka Inti Punku, which has a beautiful vantage point to Machu Picchu. If you decide to do the 2-day, 1-night “glamping” Inca Trail, as those of us who did more than 1-night of camping joked, you also get to pass through Sun Gate.
From there, we made our way to what we had worked so hard for: Machu Picchu. It’s beautiful but over-crowded. Each day, 3,000–5,000 people visit Machu Picchu. You walk through the ruins, but the only way you can get the real “big” picture is from a vantage point like the Sun’s Gate or climbing Huayna Picchu. I wasn’t as impressed when I was standing among the ruins, as I was when I was at the Sun Gate and Huayna Picchu looking down.
Huayna Picchu is the mountain next to Machu Picchu, which you can climb for an additional $65 USD. You must make arrangements in advance to do this, and if you do not do the Inca Trail or go to Sun Gate, I definitely recommend it. It’ll take about 2 hours total and is a steep uphill climb with ropes to hold onto, but the view is incredible!
One of the best parts of the 4 days is the camaraderie you feel toward the group with whom you hike, eat, and camp. My group consisted of 14 people from all over the world: Switzerland, Russia, France, Brazil, and the United States. We all grew very close and fond of each other, including our two tour guides, Sabi and Angel. I think the 4-day, 3-night hike is long enough to form close bonds with your fellow hikers and short enough to keep you motivated until the end.
Lastly, I’ll add my packing list. It is important to pack lightly. You will most likely wear the same thing two days in a row aside from changing socks and undergarments. Whatever you pack, the porter will have to carry, and you can’t go over 14 pounds, including your sleeping bag and mat. (This is only specific to Alpaca Expeditions.) You should also bring lots of big ziploc bags to put everything from your packing list in there, plus 1 extra bag to separate dirty clothes from clean.
Packing List
Clothing
- 3–4 quick dry t-shirts
- 1–2 long sleeve layers
- 3 pairs of hiking pants or yoga pants
- Undergarments for every day
- Sweatshirt or fleece and sweatpants for night time
- Good REAL waterproof hiking shoes (They will not give you blisters or get wet!)
- 5 pairs of hiking wool socks
- Comfortable shoes like sandals for camp site
- Warm hat, bandana, and/or day hat
- Sunglasses
Rain Gear — very important!
- Rain jacket
- Rain pants (can buy in Cusco for like $8 USD)
- Waterproof gloves
- Waterproof phone case
Toiletries
- toilet paper
- Toothbrush and toothpaste
- Baby wipes and hand sanitizer
- Sunblock, bug spray, and chapstick
- Deodorant
Misc.
- First Aid
- Diamox (anti-altitude sickness pills)
- Ibuprofen
- Lots of granola bars
- Camera with lanyard
- Passport and bring immigration card
- Camelback with water storage for about 3L of water
- Headlamp (very important!)
Other notes
Extra sols
- Bring about 150 sols to give as tip to porters and chefs. It is 100% voluntary, but once you watch them carry your heavy bags and cook you flavorful meals, you want to give them a little extra more. This will most likely be pooled with the group.
- Some of the bathrooms in the national park cost 1 sol to use.
Photography
- Make sure to capture photos on two different devices, just in case something happens to one camera or phone (rain damage).
- Clear your phone and camera storage because you will take a lot of pix.
Good luck.
