Peru Here & Now - Machu Picchu

MACHU PICCHU

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Weather

From June to October the mornings are warm with bright sunshine, though it can get quite cool in the shade. At night temperatures can drop to 10º C.

From December to April showers and downpours are common, followed by bright, intense sunshine. We recommend to pack a raincoat or umbrella.

Train Cusco-Machu Picchu

The 4-hour train ride from Cusco to Aguas Calientes--nearest town to Machu Picchu, offers a spectacular journey in the Andes region. It starts with a series of uphill zigzags out of Cuzco to the beautiful village of Poroy, and then descends into the Sacred Valley, passing by lush, green fields and colourful villages in the foothills of the Andes. Before reaching Aguas Calientes the train travels along the Urubamba River, with awe-inspiring views of its dramatic canyon.

Aguas Caliente offers shops, restaurants, different lodging options and several internet cafes.

The visit by train to Machu Picchu can be done in one day, leaving Cusco at dawn and returning in the midafternoon or at dusk.

Included in a 1-day visit to Machu Picchu:

Transfer from Cusco hotel to train station and back

Round Trip Train ticket Cusco-Aguas Calientes

Bus ride from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu

Bilingual Spanish/English professional guide in Machu Picchu

Not Included

Tips for the guide

Meals

History

Machu Picchu, a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site discovered in 1911 by archaeologist Hiram Bingham—and voted one of the New 7 Wonders of the World on July 7, 2007—is one of the most beautiful and enigmatic ancient sites on the planet.

“In the variety of its charms and the power of its spell, I know of no place in the world which can compare with it,” Bingham wrote. “Not only has it great snow peaks looming above the clouds more than two miles overhead, gigantic precipices of many-colored granite rising sheer for thousands of feet above the foaming, glistening, roaring rapids; it has also, in striking contrast, orchids and tree ferns, the delectable beauty of luxurious vegetation, and the mysterious witchery of the jungle.”

Perched 2,430 m (7,972 ft) above the rumbling Urubamba river, the cloud shrouded ruins have palaces, baths, temples, storage rooms and some 150 houses, all in a remarkable state of preservation. These structures, carved from the gray granite of the mountain top are wonders of both architectural and aesthetic genius. Many of the building blocks weigh over 50 tons, yet were sculpted to fit together with such exactitude (and without mortars) that even a thin knife blade cannot be inserted between them.

While under the rule of Inca Pachacuteq, the Incas used the Andean mountain top (2,800 m / 9,060 ft), erecting many hundreds of stone structures from the early 1400's, legends and myths indicate that Machu Picchu (meaning “Old Peak” in Quechua) was revered as a sacred place from a far earlier time. Whatever its origins, the Incas turned the site into a 1,300-hectare (5 sq. mi) extraordinary city. Invisible from below and completely self-contained, surrounded by agricultural terraces sufficient to feed the population, and watered by natural springs, Machu Picchu seems to have been used by the Inca as a secret ceremonial city and an astronomical observatory. Because the Incas left no written records, historians can only speculate.

The Spaniards never found Machu Picchu, even though they suspected its existence. The mountain top sanctuary was abandoned some 40 years after the Spanish took Cuzco in 1533. Supply lines linking the many Inca social centers were disrupted and the great Empire came to an end. Four centuries later, when Bingham found the “Lost City of the Incas”, the ruins were overgrown by dense forest. Today, it is a treasure for visitors to explore.