Hello! I am so excited to talk about my group trip that I am planning for this upcoming May. In partnership with Killa Expeditions, we are traveling to Peru on a small group trip (10-15 people). We will arrive into Cusco and acclimate for 3 days in order to get ready for the Ausangate Trek that starts on Day 4. This is the ultimate itinerary! It includes Rainbow Mountain and Machu Picchu (with optional Wayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain Hikes). You will stay in 4/5 star hotels while enjoying the amazing scenery that Peru has to offer.
ITINERARY OVERVIEW
DAY 1: Arrive in Cusco
DAY 2: Sacred Valley Day Tour
DAY 3: Rainbow Mountain
DAY 4-8: Apu Ausangate Trek
DAY 9-10: Machu Picchu
DAY 11: Transfer back to Lima
DAY 1:
After arriving into Cusco, transfer to hotel, Antigua Casona San Blas. This will be your home for the next 4 nights. Once settled, relax for awhile and then checkout Cusco city and nearby markets.
DAY 2: Sacred Valley Day Tour
You will be collected from your hotel in Cusco at 8:30am and driven via private transport to 4 local communities in the Sacred Valley. From Cusco it is just over one hour to our first stop, the local community called Pisac.
In Pisac, you will be guided through the ruins above the town and have a chance to explore the incredible Pisac Market (biggest on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays).
After Pisac, you will be driven for one more hour to Urubamba where you will have time for lunch at a restaurant of your choosing. Following lunch we depart again for 25 minutes to Ollantaytambo to explore the ruins there. We drive for another hour and twenty minutes to reach Chincheros where we will see the local colonial church and a little market. After we are finished exploring we return to Cusco via our private transport (one hour). You will be returned to your Cusco hotel at approximately 6:00pm.
DAY 3: RAINBOW MOUNTAIN
We will pick you up very early from your Cusco hotel (3:00am) and set out on a drive through the South Valley. The drive to the trailhead at Alqatari (4326m/14,189ft) is about 3.5-4 hours.
Once we reach the trailhead, we will have our box breakfast with hot drinks. After breakfast, we start on our day hike, following a lovely stream until we get to the checkpoint that is the trail entrance. You will pass by beautiful herds of alpacas and llamas and along the way we will have distant views of the Ausangate Mountain. We will hike through villages and see the local residents. If we are very lucky, we may see some chinchillas and vicuñas. Vicuñas are the only non-domesticated animal of the llama family in Peru and are very skittish. After a total uphill hike of approximately 2 to 2.5 hours, we reach the incredible Vinicunca Rainbow Mountain (5050m/16,568ft).
If we have time and weather permits, once we are done enjoying the scenery, having snacks, resting and taking pictures, we hike along the right side of the Rainbow Mountain to the Red Valley pass where you will see the beautiful, deep red hues located in this area. We take pictures here and then hike back down the way we came, taking approximately 1.5 hours to the trailhead where we started. Here we will have a hot buffet lunch and then we will take our private transport back to your hotel in Cusco (about a 3.5-4 hour drive).
DAY 4-8: APU AUSANGATE TREK:
The APU AUSANGATE TREK: The Apu Ausangate’s Trail or “Camino del Apu Ausangate” is a completely different route from the one commonly known as “Ausangate Trek,” offered by other agencies based in Cusco. The complete 5-day tour contained in our package starts at city of Cusco, with an interesting bus-ride along the Vilcanota Valley, on the paved main-road from Cusco to Puno (Lake Titicaca). After a stop at the town of Checacupe and a visit to its beautiful colonial church, we ascend the Japura Valley that leads to the communities of Osefina and Chillca, the final stop of the bus journey, where the groups are received by local people.
The actual trekking begins on the second day early in the morning after breakfast, and lasts until midday of day 5 when we reach the road halfway between Chillca and Checacupe. It ends with a picnic lunch, before boarding the bus back to Cusco, on the above mentioned road.
The hike itself is rather demanding, mostly due to the altitude, ranging from 14,000 to 16,700 ft / 4,300 to 5,100 m at the highest pass. There are also some significant changes of altitude during the course of the day. The distances on the trail vary from around 6 to 11 miles/10 to 16 km per day. The lodges are all within daily walking distances, easily reachable in six to seven hours, considering regular hiking-speed and plenty of stops for taking pictures and enjoying the landscapes.
Our exclusive circuit is located roughly 100 km (65 miles) south-east of Cusco. The access is from the small colonial city of Checacupe, on the main road from Cusco to Puno, in the fertile Vilcanota Valley. From there, a new unpaved sidebranch, turns east to the town of Pitumarca (capital of the district with the same name), the road then climbs up to the pastoral community of Osefina and finally ends at the hamlet of Chillca (4,300 m / 14,000 ft), about 3 km (2 miles) away from the first lodge (the Chillca Tambo).
DAY 9-10: MACHU PICCHU
2 DAY/1 NIGHT ITINERARY:
DAY 1: CUSCO – OLLANTAYTAMBO – AGUAS CALIENTES
Private transport will collect you from your hotel approximately 2.5 hours before your preferred train time and drive you through the Sacred Valley to the train station in Ollantaytambo. You will take the train to Aguas Calientes, the town below Machu Picchu, which is a lovely scenic ride that takes you through part of the Sacred Valley with views of the river and glacial mountains. Depending on the time of train arrival you may have time to explore the town, visit the local handicraft market, and take a dip in the local hot-springs (around 25 soles, open until 9pm, bring a bathing suit, towel, sandals). Dinner will be provided around 7:00 or 7:30pm at a local restaurant. You will stay in a comfortable hotel in Aguas Calientes to rest up before tomorrow’s early exploration of Machu Picchu!
DAY 2: AGUAS CALIENTES – MACHU PICCHU – CUSCO:
Wake up call and breakfast is very early (Approx 4am) in order for us to take one of the first (5:30am, 25 min ride) buses directly to Machu Picchu (2,400 m/7,875 ft). Once we arrive at Machu Picchu you will show your entrance ticket and passport. If you are a student you must bring your ISIC card to the entrance or you will not be permitted entrance. From the entrance, it is a 15-minute walk to the famous views from the South Zone of the farming terraces at the end of the Inca trail. Enjoy watching the sun rise over the ruin site and the fascinating tour of Machu Picchu with your guide who will unfold the mysteries of this magical site, explaining the history and flora/fauna. Your guide will spend about 2 1/2 hours relating interesting and amazing stories, explaining temples and special sectors. Your tour of Machu Picchu will finish between 9 and 9:30am after which you will have a little free time to take photos and explore. The new rules for 2019 have split the entrance times into three slots per day. Our tour includes the first ticket (6-10am) so at 10am you would need to exit the ruin site unless you choose to purchase an extra time slot (or two). If you wish to do one of the extra hikes within Machu Picchu (Wayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain) you would need to prepurchase a permit as well as an extra time slot in Machu Picchu (these new rules are dictated by the Peruvian government and we are sorry for the inconvenience). After you are done exploring the ruin site, either at 10am or later if you’ve booked more time, take one of the many, frequent buses down to Aguas Calientes. There are many restaurants to choose from and your guide can also help suggest a nice place to eat. After grabbing a bite to eat you will take the train back to Ollantaytambo where private transport will drive you back to your hotel in Cusco.
DAY 11: TRANSFER TO LIMA OR OPTIONAL DAY HIKE
This morning either take the early flight out to Lima and spend the day exploring the city or you can do an optional day hike to Lake Humantay. Overnight in Lima. (Hotel not included) Recommend Wyndham Hotel Costa del Sol.
For full details on this trek, please take a look at my webpage, here.
In order to book this trip or for more information, please send me an email at lauren@thatblondetravels.com and I can reserve your spot!