Huchuy Qosqo Trek to Machu Picchu 3 Days

ACTIVITY LEVEL: Moderate to Strenuous
This trek is perfect if you are looking for a suitable trek with your family and children. You will be able to walk and enjoy an Inca trail and experience the real Andes in a short time. There will also be many opportunities to learn about the local traditions, agriculture, clothing and language as we pass through local communities and to gain spectacular views of the Sacred Valley and the Vilcanota Mountain Range from different angles. This trek ultimately leads to MACHUPICCHU, where you will have a 2-3 hour tour with your guide and also have free time to explore the city on your own before returning to Cusco.

DAY 1: Cusco – Tambomachay – Huchuy Qosqo 
DAY 2: Chinchero – Aguas Calientes
DAY 3: Machu Picchu

DAY 1: Cusco – Tambomachay – Huchuy Qosqo  
Early in the morning you will be picked up from your hotel and driven to Tambomachay where you will start your trek. You’ll begin your ascent up the Tambomachay Valley, admiring the view of Cusco city in the distance, until you reach the Abra Sicllajasa pass. From this vantage point, you will enjoy a spectacular view of the Ccauca ravine and typical puna landscape.
From here you’ll continue your journey to the Queullococha pass, at 13,727 feet (4,185 m), from which you can admire the splendid views of Lake Queullococha. The snowy peaks of Mount Veronica, Pitusiray, Chicon, and San Juan stand tall around you. Following the path, you’ll walk around Lake Queullococha, spotting Huallatas (Andean goose) and Andean ducks, before climbing again, this time towards the Challu Challu pass at 13,842 feet (4,220 m). Once at this mountain pass, you can observe the Chinchero plains and the Piuray and Qoricocha lagoons. On our last ascent, you hike towards the fourth and final pass, Rumicruz at 13874 feet (4230 m), and marvel at the panoramic views of the Qoricocha and the Vilcanota snow-capped ranges. Here you will stop and have lunch, taking advantage of these peaceful surroundings. After lunch, you’ll you’ll descend towards the Pucamarca community, cross an original Inca bridge and follow a cobbled walkway along the river, leading you to Huchuy Qosqo.
After a brief rest upon arrival, you will begin your tour of these fascinating ruins, characterized by double jamb doorways, 3-story houses, and mixed constructions of stone and adobe. The site also affords a spectacular view of the Sacred Valley and the Urubamba mountain range. You will have dinner here and camp amongst the ruins for the night. (L, D)

• ( 6 miles hiking, 5 – 6 hours ) – Camping

DAY 2: Chinchero – Aguas Calientes
Enjoy a hearty breakfast and take a last look around the ruins before beginning your second day of hiking. After a brief uphill start, you will begin to descend over the altiplano to the Piuray Lagoon, where you will stop for a picnic lunch. You will walk around the town of Chinchero before boarding the van that will take you to the spectacular, circular Inca terraces of Moray. You will have plenty of time to fully explore these fascinating ruins, believed to be an Incan agriculture laboratory for improving high altitude crops.
After this very atmospheric site, you will walk down to the Maras salt mines. Here, more than 5,000 terraces are still in use. Here you will be taken back by car to Ollantaytambo, and then catch the train to Aguas Calientes, the town near Machu Picchu. (B, L, D)

• (4 miles hiking, 2 hours). Overnight in Aguas Calientes – Hotel

DAY 3: Machu Picchu
It’s an early start this morning to be among the first to enter Machu Picchu. We will wake up very early to take the one of the first buses to the Inca City of MACHUPICCHU and enjoy the magic and mystery of the site taking awesome pictures as the sun rises above the mountain tops. The tour with your guide will take around 2-3 hours. You’ll learn all about the site as we take a tour through the most important parts of the site, this site is as fascinating as it is stunning. After the tour, there’s time to explore more of the site on your own time. For those who want to get the blood pumping, there may be an opportunity to climb Huayna Picchu, the mountain peak behind the ruins. (Limited numbers available) Later in the mid-afternoon you take the bus down to Aguas Calientes town to take the train back to Ollantaytambo then transfer to your hotel. (B)

• Private transportation from your hotel to the start point of the trail.
• Entrance fee to Machu Picchu (Does not include the Huaynapicchu Mountain).
• Entrance to the archaeological sites(Huchuy Qosqo, Moray)
• Professional English speaking Tour Guide
• Professional chef and his assistant
• Porters or Horses to carry all the equipment, food, cooking gear, etc.
• All the camping equipment: including dining tents, cooking tents, cooking stuff, sleeping tents, camping table with camping chairs
• Sleeping pad
• Complete meals during the trip (you’ll never be hungry!): 3 breakfasts, 4 snacks, 3 lunches, 3 happy hours, and 3 dinners. All of these meals are prepared by our cook and his assistant.
• Coca tea served each morning in your tent. When you wake up in the morning, you will be greeted at your tent with a selection of teas.
• Boiled water after breakfast, lunch and dinner to refill your water bottles.
• Snacks every morning.
• Oxygen tank and first aid kit.
• Vegetarian food and specialized diets on request at no extra cost.
• Tents (4 man tents for every 2 people - very comfortable)
• Train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes
• Hotel at Aguas Calientes
• One way bus ticket (to or from Machu Picchu)
• Expedition Train back to Ollantaytambo at the end of your journey
• Transfer back to Cusco

• Sleeping bag (can be rented at CHAT office)
• Walking stick (can be rented at CHAT office)
• Bus ticket one way back from Machu Picchu or you can walk down a set of stairs for one hour
• Last lunch at Aguas Calientes
• Tips for your field staff are much appreciated

• Cusco insider.
• A safe storage room to leave your backpacks.