Lares Trek 5 Days & Short Inca Trail 5 Days

Your Andean Mountain adventure through the Lares Valley to Machu Picchu begins early with your pickup at 6:00 am from your Cusco hotel. Then we will drive to Huaran where will start our hike. We will meet your horsemen and horses. Time to get ready, boots on, and begin our first 3 hours gradually ascending towards Cancha Cancha. Along the way, your lunch will be served next to the river, replenishing your energy for the trek ahead with a delicious meal prepared by your trekking chef.

Cancha Cancha (3,900m/12,800ft) is one of the most isolated and traditional communities, self-sustaining as it has been for hundreds of years. There is no road to the community and they were recently connected to electricity in December 2019. After settling into your tents and having afternoon tea, you will have the opportunity to visit a local family. You will learn all about life in a traditional Andean village, with your guide as your interpreter. After dinner, your guide will show you the Inca constellations on which they depended for their agricultural guidance and still do to this day.

• Meals included: Lunch – Afternoon Tea Time – Dinner
• Accommodation: Camping facilities with bathroom building
• Distance: 8 km / 5.6 miles
• Time: 3.5hrs approximately
• Difficulty: Moderate

L, D Meals

3 HOUS Walking Time

8 km / 4.97 miles. Walking Distance

MODERATE Level of Difficulty

3,200m / 10,496ft Starting Altitude

3,800m / 12,464ft Highest Altitude

Your guide will wake you with a hot mug of tea or coffee to enjoy in your sleeping bag before you get up for breakfast. Feeling all revved up to begin our second day, after another delicious breakfast, we begin our 7 hour hike northeast. It starts out as an intense walk, accomplishing high passes on our way to the highest point of our trek at Pachacutec Pass(4,500m /14,800 ft). This is where you pat yourself on the back and embrace the satisfaction and exhilaration for making it up to the summit. Motivating you along the trail for this intense part of the trek are the views of glaciers, remote lakes, alpaca herds, rugged valleys and spectacular mountain vistas. Keep your eyes on the sky for the Caracara falcons and Andean geese!

After enjoying the summit, we descend for 3 hours until we reach our campsite located by the Quiswarani community, (3,700m/12,139ft). On the way, we will be taking an isolated trail where we will see indigenous highland people in their traditional outfits herding their llamas and alpacas. The local indigenous people will open their hearts and interact with you in the Quechua language (the Incas’ language). Your guide will act as your interpreter to translate and teach you some Quechua language. When you arrive at the spectacular seven waterfalls, you are almost to the campsite!

At the campsite, everything will be ready. Enjoy hot drinks and appetizers before dinner, then snuggle in for a comfortable night sleep.

• Meals included: Breakfast – Lunch – Afternoon Tea Time – Dinner
• Accommodation: Camping facilities with bathroom building
• Distance: 12kms / 7.5 miles
• Time: 7hrs approximately
• Difficulty: challenging

B , L , D Meals

7hrs Walking Time

12kms / 7.5 miles Walking Distance

CHALLENGE Level of Difficulty

3,700m / 12,136 ft Starting Altitude

4,420m / 14,498 ft (pass Highest Altitude

Your adventure continues as you begin the most scenic day yet!  We begin our ascent for 3 hours until we reach the Willqaqasa Pass, (4,200m/13,779ft) getting a bird’s eye view of the reflections of the mountains in mirror images in the glacial lakes. The majestic Colquecruz and Pitusiray Mountains are awe-inspiring to admire from the pass. We continue our trek through the Puna grasslands, undulating and productive agricultural sites, and natural pristine lakes. Time to descend for 2 hours to the Cucani community. By connecting with the local indigenous children, you may have the opportunity to visit their school and share in some quality time with the students.

From Cuncani we meet our driver and ride down through a lush valley with extensive agricultural areas, fruit-bearing trees, varied flora, and native flowers like begonias and wild orchids. Finally, we reach our destination, the Lares Hot Springs (3,100m/ 10,170ft), where we cannot wait to soak in the natural volcanic hot springs for an hour, have lunch, and relax. Time for our goodbyes to our remarkable chef and horsemen.

After lunch in Lares, we take our private transport to 2.5 hours Ollantaytambo, where we have dinner together and spend the night in the hotel.

• Meals included: Breakfast – Lunch – Afternoon Tea – Dinner
• Distance: 15kms / 9.3 miles
• Time: 6 hrs approximately
• Difficulty: Moderate

B , L D Meals

6 HOURS Walking Time

15kms / 9.3 miles Walking Distance

CHALLENGE Level of Difficulty

3,700m / 12,136 ft Starting Altitude

4,200m/13,779ft Highest Altitude

we will also provide you with your box lunch, which you will carry in your backpack. Then, you and your tour guide will take the train for 1 hour and 30 minutes to the beginning of the Inca Trail, called km 104 (2,000 m / 6560 ft above sea level).

After passing the Inca Trail checkpoint, your guide will take you to visit the first archaeological center, called Chachabamba. This site was one of the last refuges used by the Inca pilgrims before reaching Machu Picchu. The Inca site of Chachabamba has several fascinating buildings, and your guide will be happy to share the history with you.

Then, your hike along the Inca Trail begins with a steady ascent for about 3 hours, climbing up the original Inca stone staircase, with several viewpoints where you will stop to have a wide view of the Urubamba River. If you are lovers of flora and fauna this stretch will be very special as there is a great variety of orchids and also very oriunos hummingbirds of this place will be totally enchanted. After passing a spectacular waterfall, you will arrive at the archaeological site of Wiñay Wayna, located at (2,650 m / 8,694 ft above sea level). Most hikers stop here to marvel at its exquisite architecture.

At the amazing archaeological site of Wiñay Wayna, you will see many water fountains for rituals, sacred places dedicated to natural deities such as the Temple of the Rainbow, and beautiful agricultural terraces overlooking the Urubamba River. Wiñay Wayna (which in Quechua means “always young”) is the perfect place to learn a little more about the impressive history of the Incas, take time to relax, be in silence and connect with Mother Earth through birdsong or the refreshing touch of the wind.

After exploring the archaeological site of Wiñay Wayna, you will walk for 5 minutes to the lunch spot and have time to eat your delicious box lunch provided by our company, admiring the surrounding tropical flowers, then relax and recharge energies. You will also see the campsites where people doing the classic Inca Trail spend the night before reaching Machu Picchu. You will also have access to the toilets but they are very rustic.

After lunch, you will have a mostly flat hike to Inti Punku, (gate of the sun), from where you will have your first view of the impressive architecture of this majestic Inca City. Although the one-hour hike is a gentle up and down, it ends with a set of steep stairs carved directly into the bedrock by the Incas. Once you reach the stairs you will know you are almost at Inti Punku.

The Sun Gate, also called Inti Punku in Quechua, is located at (2,720 meters/2,924 feet above sea level) is one of the most incredible and mystical sights because when you get to this place you feel an indescribable peace, it is difficult to express in words the impact of seeing this ancient, sacred and world famous site.

After being in this mystical place, you will walk down the Inca Trail for approximately 1 hour until you reach Machu Picchu

Once we finish this magical experience in one of the New 7 Wonders of the World, we will walk down to the main entrance of Machu Picchu from where we will take the bus to Aguas Calientes, and will have acomodation in hotel and dinner in the restaurant

• Meals: Box lunch / Dinner
• Hiking distance: 12 km / 7.46 miles
• Walking time: 6–7 hours
• Lowest elevation: 2,170 m / 7,170 ft.
• Highest elevation: 2,720m / 8,924 ft.
• Physical rating: Moderate

B , L ,D Meals

6 – 7 hours Walking Time

12 km / 7.46 miles. Walking Distance

MODERATE TO CHALLENGE Level of Difficulty

2,150 m / 7,052 ft. Starting Altitude

2,650 m / 8,692 ft. Highest Altitude

After a well-deserved night’s rest, It’s the moment you’ve been waiting for wandering the mysterious streets of the majestic historical sanctuary of Machu Picchu. Today, we’ll wake up early to have breakfast at your hotel, and then we take a short walk from your hotel to catch a bus that’ll take you on a 25-minute drive to the entrance of the Machu Picchu Inca citadel. You and your tour guide will enter just before the sun comes up and paints the fortress with a gorgeous hue.

After soaking it all in and taking your first few photographs, your guide will take you on a 2-hour private guided tour of the amazing Inca site, where you’ll be visiting all the most important parts of Machu Picchu, including the Temple of the Sun, Temple of the Condor, Temple of the Three Windows, Sun Dial, Quarry, the Houses of the Inca and learning a lot from your local expert.

Once the tour is up, you then have a few more hours to explore by yourself or climb Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain if you’ve booked ticket in advance; however, spaces are subject to availability. In the unlikely event that Huayna Picchu permits are not available for your departure date, you will climb Machu Picchu Mountain instead.

Those with tickets to Huayna Picchu will have time to climb the mountain, which takes about an hour and a half round trip, and you will need up to 3 hours to Machu Picchu mountain and enjoy more impressive views of the entire Inca city. If you do not have a reserved ticket

After exploring the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, it will be time to return to Aguas Calientes for lunch (not included). You will have time to choose a restaurant for a bite to eat before catching the train. Depending on the train departure time, you will also have time for shopping, sightseeing or visiting the museum or hot springs. Your train back to Ollantaytambo will depart at 14:55 pm or 15:20 pm (subject to availability).

Once you arrive in Ollantaytambo, then a private transport will be there to pick you up and take you back to your hotel in Cusco. You can expect to arrive at your hotel at 19:00 pm.

• Meals: Enjoy breakfast at your hotel
• Minimum altitude: 2,040 m/ 6,691 ft
• Maximum altitude: 2,400 m/ 7,874 ft

B Meals

JUST BY BUS Walking Time

JUST BY BUS Walking Distance

EASY Level of Difficulty

2000 MASL / 8465 FEETS Starting Altitude

2400 MASL Highest Altitude