Peru/Machu Picchu

[OffToDWD]

For the Machu Picchu portion of the trip, do you have the opportunity to hike or explore the ruins? Did you feel rushed or felt the time given was sufficient? We are interested in visiting Machu Picchu and trying to determine best travel itinerary/company options! It'd be 2 adults. Many thanks!

 

[Bobo912]

Personally I felt rushed. If I were choosing a tour company today, I would choose one that stays at the Sanctuary Lodge or nearby at Aguas Calientes. My trip report is here if you're interested: https://www.disboards.com/threads/peru-3-23-13-trip-report.3097441/
We did this trip in 2013, but the activities are still the same. They have changed the hotels in Lima and Cusco since we took the trip. I'm surprised to see my photos still show up in the report, but they now have a Photobucket watermark on them, since I'm not a subscriber.

 

[cedricandsophie]

We were at Machu Picchu years ago with a different travel group. We stayed in Cusco and drove to MP for the day. It was incredible but we might have had 2 or 3 hours there total. If you want more time or want to hike I’m sure you could build your own trip or hire a private tour guide. We do know some people who spent 3 days hiking in and camping. Definitely not for us but If you google MP lots of groups come up. Or look on Trip Advisor for MP recommendations. The tours will vary considerably by cost and length. Just remember with the altitude you need to be prepared either with medication, which we took, or other methods that might work for you. The air is so thin you don’t want to be cocky and just assume because you are very fit that you can work your way through it. We had people on our trip who didn’t take altitude sickness medication and they got very sick. We loved Peru. Beautiful country and lovely people.

 

[Cousin Orville]

@cedricandsophie , what meds did you take? We’re headed to Peru and Bolivia next Spring (not with ABD). Any other overall recommendations?

 

[lovetotravel]

OffToDWD:
We went to Peru with ABD this summer. One of our best trips. The food, guides, hotels, and excursions were outstanding. Although time was limited in Machu Picchu and was what we were looking forward to the most, the food, culture and people was what really stood out in the end for us. You are given 2 choices to do an easy or harder hike of about 2 hours and then meet up with the rest of the group for a tour with an expert who guides you to the ruins upclose. We felt it was enough time, but you could definitely spend endless amount of time hiking trails. If your goal is to do several longer hikes, I would suggest another company that spends more than a day there. We did not feel rushed and felt that the full day was enough as we saw many other ruins during the trip.

Cousin Orville:
Consult your physician for advice. Check guidelines from CDC:
https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/traveler/none/peruhttps://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/travel-to-high-altitudes
I commend ABD for doing an amazing job with the water safety issue providing ample bottled water and carefully chosen dining throughout the entire trip. The guides were prepared for everything.

 

[Grifdog22]

We did ABD Peru some years back. They had an early train from Cusco to get us there near opening time and had an amazing time.

Remember - they limit the number of visitors per day to 2500 and 500 for the Inca Trail, which requires a Peruvian guide, and there are essentially only two entrance times. Tickets are required and sell out. ABD made the most of the time for us, with some guided time, a meeting with an expert who walked us through the main sections with more information than I thought was possible, and then led those who wanted to hike to the Inca gate. We did that, and also had time to explore on our own. On our own we were repeatedly told by M/P staff that the areas we wanted to explore were "off limits" even though there were no such signs. We were on time, but the last of our group to depart. We chose a high point and laid in the sun for awhile. Remarkable. We felt the added surprises and expertise of the guide/director made every minute worthwhile, and we did not feel rushed. Comparing notes with friends who did this several years later and had a little more time than we did, they were totally unaware of about half of what we did and knew. Quality v. Quantity. You decide.

 

[OffToDWD]

We were at Machu Picchu years ago with a different travel group. We stayed in Cusco and drove to MP for the day. It was incredible but we might have had 2 or 3 hours there total. If you want more time or want to hike I’m sure you could build your own trip or hire a private tour guide. We do know some people who spent 3 days hiking in and camping. Definitely not for us but If you google MP lots of groups come up. Or look on Trip Advisor for MP recommendations. The tours will vary considerably by cost and length. Just remember with the altitude you need to be prepared either with medication, which we took, or other methods that might work for you. The air is so thin you don’t want to be cocky and just assume because you are very fit that you can work your way through it. We had people on our trip who didn’t take altitude sickness medication and they got very sick. We loved Peru. Beautiful country and lovely people.

Thanks for the tip on the altitude!

 

[OffToDWD]

We did ABD Peru some years back. They had an early train from Cusco to get us there near opening time and had an amazing time.

Remember - they limit the number of visitors per day to 2500 and 500 for the Inca Trail, which requires a Peruvian guide, and there are essentially only two entrance times. Tickets are required and sell out. ABD made the most of the time for us, with some guided time, a meeting with an expert who walked us through the main sections with more information than I thought was possible, and then led those who wanted to hike to the Inca gate. We did that, and also had time to explore on our own. On our own we were repeatedly told by M/P staff that the areas we wanted to explore were "off limits" even though there were no such signs. We were on time, but the last of our group to depart. We chose a high point and laid in the sun for awhile. Remarkable. We felt the added surprises and expertise of the guide/director made every minute worthwhile, and we did not feel rushed. Comparing notes with friends who did this several years later and had a little more time than we did, they were totally unaware of about half of what we did and knew. Quality v. Quantity. You decide.

Thank you! Yah, like a balance of time to explore and to know what we are seeing!

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

@cedricandsophie , what meds did you take? We’re headed to Peru and Bolivia next Spring (not with ABD). Any other overall recommendations?

DD20 and I did the REI Salkantay Trek to Macchu Picchu. She took Diamox and was fine. We went over 15,200 feet on the hike.