The perfect combination, the Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu in two days!

 

This two-day tour combines the Tour in the Sacred Valley on day one with a visit to Machu Picchu on day two. Since the Tour through the Sacred Valley also visits Ollantaytambo as a third stop, it is perfect to combine with Machu Picchu. The only difference is that at the Tour in the Sacred Valley you go back to Cusco via Chincheros and with this combination tour you go after the tour in Ollantaytambo by train to Aguas Calientes.

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On Day 1  you will be picked up around 07:50 – 08:10 and then we drive to the town of Pisac. On route we stop briefly at a Viewpoint where beautiful panoramic photos can be taken of the Sacred Valley. In Pisac we visit the archaeological site, just like Machu Picchu located on top of a mountain. Pisac looks a lot like Machu Picchu and is therefore often called 'The little Machu Picchu'. The name Pisac or Pisaq is derived from the word Pisaca since the shape of the city, at the time of the Incas, resembled a partridge bird (Pisaca).

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It is a beautiful site with beautiful agricultural terraces that are still used by the locals to this day. After this we visit the town of Pisac itself, which is known for its market. The pisac market is mainly visited on Sundays by the locals but is currently open seven days a week and is mainly geared to tourism. One finds many souvenirs that are often just a little cheaper than in the rest of Peru (Cusco and Lima). An ideal opportunity, if you wish to bring some souvenirs from Peru. After the visit to Pisac with its impressive ruins and market, we drive to Urubamba where we will have lunch (exclusive). You will be dropped off at a buffet restaurant that the guide works with, however, this is a suggestion from us but you can also choose a restaurant in the area yourself, as long as you are back at the bus in time.

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After lunch we drive further through the beautiful Sacred Valley to the town of Ollantaytambo. Ollantaytambo was built by the Inca Leader Pachacutec as a country house and before the conquest of the Spaniards lived here mainly the noble family of the Incas. Because of its strategic location, it was used during colonization as a fortified place by Manco Inca, who moved here the capital of the Inca Empire after Cusco had fallen and was occupied by the Spaniards. In the end, Ollantaytambo was also abandoned, when Manco Inca withdrew to the more defensible Vilcabamba. To this day it is still easy to see how the Incas lived centuries ago as many houses are built on old Inca walls and foundations. After the tour in Ollantaytambo, you walk on your own to the train station (5 minutes walk) and take the train from 16:36 to Aguas Calientes (if not yet available if not it will be the train from 19:00).

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The train ride is described by some as one of the most beautiful train rides in the world. One drives in about two hours to Aguas Calientes, along the banks of the Urubamba River through an increasingly narrow valley. During the route we see the vegetation change from fauna typical of a mountain climate to a more tropical fauna related to a rainforest climate. Upon arrival in Aguas Calientes you will be picked up by a hotel employee and you will go to the hotel on foot. The hotel is less than a 3-minute walk from the train station. The rest of the evening you are free in Aguas Calientes. In the evening our guide in Aguas Calientes will visit your hotel to personally and on the spot with you briefly close what time and where exactly you should be ready tomorrow.

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Overnight stay in Aguas Calientes: 3 star Hotel (Upgrade possible)

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On Day 2, we get up early and at the time indicated by the guide we go by bus to Machu Picchu. The return tickets for the bus will be given via the guide in Aguas Calientes and in about 25 minutes drive zigzagging up the mountain to Machu Picchu. After this you will go at 06:00, when the gates open with the guide through the access control and you will have a guided tour in group of about two hours in Machu Picchu. During the tour we will pass through all sectors of this Inca City.

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After this you are free and you have the opportunity to walk around yourself until a maximum of 12:00. With the tickets of the bus that you have received in the morning you go down again on your own or, if desired, it is also possible to walk downstairs. In Aguas Calientes you still have enough time to eat something before you go back to Ollantaytambo by train from 16:22. If you do not want to wait until 16:22, it is possible to book an earlier train at an additional cost. The train ride takes about two hours and from Ollantaytambo you can also go back to Cusco by bus in about two hours. As a rule, one is back in Cusco around 22:30. You will be dropped off in a central square in the center of Cusco. From here you will go back to your hotel on foot or by taxi on your own.

 

PLEASE NOTE: From January 2019 it is no longer possible to stay in Machu Picchu all day (maximum 4 hours) and in addition, there are per hour (06:00 / 07:00 / 08:00 / 09:00 / 10:00 / 11:00 / 12:00 / 13:00 and 14:00) but a limited number of tickets where the entrance tickets for the morning are sold out the fastest. If you wish to visit Machu Picchu in the morning, an early booking is therefore necessary.