Short Inca Trail to Machu Picchu: 2-Day Adventure with Night in Aguas Calientes
5.0
284 Ratings

Embark on a 2-day adventure on the Short Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. Explore archaeological sites, hike through stunning landscapes, and enter the lost city via the famous Sun Gate.

Duration: 2 days
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights

Cusco – Chachabamba – Wiñay Wayna – Machu Picchu – Aguas Calientes

Winay Wayna - We collect you from your Cusco hotel early in the morning and then transfer you in our van to the train station at Ollantaytambo.
Our train journey lasts about an hour before making an unscheduled stop at KM 104, the trailhead of the Inca Trail and the start of our hike.
Passing through the Inca Trail checkpoint we immediately see our first archaeological center, Chachabamba. These ruins were one of the last shelters used by the Inca pilgrims before they reached Machu Picchu.
After some hours we arrive at Wiñay Wayna. Named after an orchid and meaning “Forever Young” in Quechua the site provides incredible views far across the Sacred Valley.
Once the tour is complete we continue our hike for another 1-2 hours on a relatively flat section of trail. At around 4:00 pm we will reach the Sun Gate.
Intipunku provides our first views of the magnificent Machu Picchu.
Arriving in Aguas Calientes we will take you to check in at your hotel.
Dinner will be in a local restaurants in town.

Aguas Calientes – Machu Picchu – Cusco

Machu Picchu - The hotel will prepare an early breakfast for you before we meet to take a very early bus (5:30 am) along the winding road to Machu Picchu. As we climb gradually to the sacred city we should be lucky enough to see the magnificent sunrise over the Andes.
All of our guides are experts and enthusiasts in the history and legends of Machu Picchu, and so the 2-hour tour of the site will really bring the city to life for you. Of course, there will be plenty of time to take photos, of the city….and of the wild Llamas roaming the terraces!
If you have elected to climb Huayna Picchu mountain, you will begin the hike at 10 AM (Huayna Picchu is not included in the trek price).
If you are not climbing the mountain you will have some time to explore Machu Picchu before you return to Aguas Calientes.
Upon arrival in AC we board the expedition train to Ollantaytambo. From Ollantaytambo we will transfer you in our van to your Cusco hotel.

What's Included
  • Machu Picchu Entrance Ticket
  • Tour guide
  • One night in a B&B accommodation in Aguas Calientes
  • Lunch
  • Dinner
  • Inca Trail Permit
  • Bus ticket from Machu Picchu to Aguas Calientes on day 1 of the trip
  • Round trip train tickets
What's Not Included
  • Hiking poles (can be rented from us)
  • Tips
  • Bus tickets from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu on day 2 (US $24).
Additional Information

The Short Inca Trail to Machu Picchu offers a feasible option for those with time limitations or preference for a less strenuous journey. The trail begins at the 104 Kilometer point of the Machu Picchu railway line, leading to two archeological sites, Chachabamba and Wiñay Wayna. This hike further presents an opportunity to access the hidden Inca city through the legendary Sun Gate, offering the first view of the ancient ruins to the trekkers. A night’s stay in Aguas Calientes is included before waking up on the second day for a guided tour of Machu Picchu.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(284 Ratings)
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Joe-n-cindy
Aug 6, 2024
Family Trip to Machu Picchu - Action Peru Treks was fantastic! We arranged a private tour for our group of 6. From the moment they picked us up at the Cusco airport until they dropped us off 6-days later, we had nothing but exceptional service. Our guide, Christian, was very friendly, helpful and knowledgeable!. Our trip included a Cusco tour, the extended sacred valley, the short Inca trail and two days in Machu Picchu - including Huanya Picchu. Throughout the trip, he always made sure we knew what the day’s plan was and really looked out for everyone to make sure we were all doing well and going at a pace that worked for everyone. Great bucket list trip! Would highly recommend Action Peru Treks, and especially Christian!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lakhwants2020
Aug 4, 2024
Hardcore but an amazing hike - I did the short Inca trek with my wife and 2 kids, 10 & 11 yo. This was an amazing hike. Great views. Amazing pictures. Wonder of Inca architecture scattered along the way. Endless stairs through Waynawauna (?sp) and then the Monkey stairs towards the end were brutal. And then the final climb to the Sun Gate. You get a view of MachuPicchu only reserved for hikers. Really really a great trek. Nilton Coli was our tour guide throughout the 2 days and was amazing. Knowledgeable, calm, collected, and fit. Avid hiker. Even carried one small bag for us along with his own big backpack half the way up to lunch point and the all of our party’s trash. Didn’t break a sweat even through the hardest parts of the trek. We saw an amazing sunset over machupicchu and also a sunrise. Nilton did an amazing job on the second day timing our climb back up to MachuPicchu from Agua Calientes to make sure the cloud cover would be gone when we get there!! Overall a great once in a lifetime experience.
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Marcia
Jul 27, 2024
Wonderful and adrenaline-filled tour. - The Lima_Cusco_Puno tour was wonderful, it was shared with tourists from other countries, videos and photos were taken as a beautiful memory, I recommend you to follow this tour.
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Sandraandgraham
Jul 5, 2024
Nifilton gave us the most amazing family memories - We’re a family of 4. Parents in our 50’s and daughters of 21 & 18. We had a fantastic experience with our tour guide Nifilton. He was patient with the slowest of our group and passionate about the local people and their influence, past and present upon the Machu Picchu area. A once in a lifetime opportunity and we all thoroughly enjoyed both days. The lunch and dinner provided was good, the transport was on time and comfortable and the feeling of coming through the Sun gate to look upon the majestic Machu Picchu was emotional. The tour of the site was great, bringing it to life for us. 2 of our family undertook the Huayna Picchu climb also and thought at first it looked fairly formidable, but they reported back that it was fairly straightforward and really rewarding. Thank you Nifilton!
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Leethecanadianeh
Jun 12, 2024
What a great guide for our Machu Picchu tour - Walter was our Alpaca Expeditions guide for our 2 day/1 night Inca Trail hike and our tour of Machu Picchu. He guided us on the Inca Trail and in the evening, took us all out to a great restaurant in Aguas Calientes. The following morning, we joined him on a tour of Machu Picchu. He was very knowledgeable and passionate about the Inca culture and the ruins around Machu Picchu and was eager to share his knowledge with us. He showed and explained to us many facts that we would never have been aware of if we had done the tour on our own. He was able to answer all questions that the group had for him and he patiently took many many photos of us all and even forwarded several photos of us that he had taken during the 2 day tour. He was very attentive to all of our needs and even sent a follow-up message to us asking us if we had all of our belongings and hoping that we had a great experience with our visit to Machu Picchu. We highly recommend Walter and if we were to ever take a tour of Machu Picchu in the future, we would not hesitate to contact him again.
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Ritchiesaund
Jun 4, 2024
Amazing Experience! - We had the best time doing the short 2 day Inka trail tour of Machu Picchu. Our tour guide Lino was very informative, catered for our every need and was a great guy! The hotel and meals included were great and good value for money. We hope to do the longer tour with Action Peru Treks in the future!
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Maps52621105730
Jun 4, 2024
Inca 2 day trek - fantastic experience - We had a fantastic time on our two day Inca trek; we thoroughly enjoyed the hike, seeing Inca ruins, walking the Inca steps, learning about the history of the Incas, Cusco and Peru, and of course the amazing sights of Machu Pichu itself. Doing all of this with Action Peru Treks meant we didn’t have to think or stress about all the different logistics and tickets. We were booked into a lovely hotel (Hatun Inti) where we had a private double en suite room. I really appreciated that through all meals my dietary request (vegetarian) had been catered for; our packed lunch on the trek and dinner in Aguas Calientes were delicious with lots of fresh veg. Roxner was super clear with information beforehand and quick to answer queries. I can’t write a review without mentioning our fantastic guide (and photographer!) Lino. Lino really made our trip, he was super knowledgeable, kind and passionate - it was great to learn from and generally spend time with him. Thank you Lino and Action Peru Treks! We had an unforgettable experience and can’t think of a single aspect we would want to change.
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Priyanka
Jun 2, 2024
Best experience in Peru- Thanks to Action Peru - This was my first time to Peru and I’m so glad Action Peru had my back. Roxner was great about communicating and answering any questions we had before the trip and our guide Lino was hands down the best guide we could have had. We did the Inca trail hike with him and he was very helpful every step of the way. His knowledge and pride in Inca culture shone through our conversations. I highly recommend Action Peru to anyone visiting Peru. They offer many unique services.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Rdj258
Jun 2, 2024
Sacred Valley, Machu Pichu & Rainbow Mountain tour - My family, friends and I would like to thank Action Peru Treks for an amazing Peru trip that included the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu and the Rainbow mountain. The customer service from the team (especially Roxner) was outstanding, with clear communication and a genuine commitment to providing a wonderful experience. Roxner helped us create two itineraries that suited our friends and us as there were some things that we wanted to do independently. Our guides Lino and Christian were phenomenal. Both are passionate about the history of Peru and kept us well informed. They were attentive to our needs as we were traveling with a toddler and ensured we were comfortable at all times. Their professionalism, enthusiasm, and knowledge of the region made it a rich experience. We highly recommend Action Peru Treks for people looking to visit and explore the history and beauty of Peru!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Elegance_800
Jun 2, 2024
Best local company .. - We did the short inca trail and extended sacred valley tour with action Peru . I would highly recommend this company to anyone . Look no further than Action Peru. Lino- our tour guide for sacred valley and Inca trek was the best . He was extremely knowledgeable and always very informative about the Incan history at each site we passed along the way. He also took hundreds of amazing pictures for us and gave us several tips for our hike. Lino is very passionate about what he does and took care of us like his family throughout the trip. Roxner - the owner of this company was always available to answer all our questions and modify our tour as we needed . He also provided us with a complimentary airport drop off . Frank - our guide to rainbow mountain literally held our hands to come down the steep mountain slopes.. and we couldn’t have done this adventure without his help. All the van/ car drivers we came across during our trip were extremely skilled. Action peru is a local company who only takes small groups of about 4 to 6 people which is fantastic as most other American/ euro tour companies take too many people in one group . It’s one of the best local company who prides itself on the model of providing educational opportunities to children in the local villages in rainbow mountain and sacred valley .
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up to 15 guests
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September 2024
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