The Inca Jungle tour Machu Picchu - is a breathtaking and exciting tour express’s the impressive authority of Machu Picchu and combines it with an array of sports and incredible hiking to deliver an adventure full of activities and excitement. Also known as the Tropical Inca Trail or the Inca Jungle Trail, this tour is getting more and more in demand, especially the exciting downhill mountain bike ride and then a route that takes you through delightful countryside with dramatic sweeping vistas and a wide range of plant and animal life. The Inka Jungle Tour is suggested for people that want something different. This is an excellent back door entry to the important city of Machu Picchu. Enjoy a trip with the best company for Inca Jungle trek, cycling, and trekking in the Peruvian jungle, four days of travel, which ends with the sunrise scenes in the Inka city of Machu Picchu. The trip includes a guided tour to the Inca city of Machu Picchu.
Crew: A Inca Trail Machu Representative in Cusco and a professional bilingual Tour Guide.
Accommodation: Camping (2 nights), Hotel with a private room and a private bathroom (1 night).
Meals: 3x breakfast, 3x lunch, 3x dinner, 2x afternoon tea.
Transportation: Transportation by private van.
Rafting in Santa Maria: USD 45
Zip Line in Santa Teresa: USD 40
Do I need to book it in advance? The Inca Jungle tour of Machu Picchu has departures guaranteed, but train tickets and entrance to Huayna Picchu mountain are subject to availability. For that reason, we HIGHLY recommend booking in advance to ensure you receive exactly what you want!
PLEASE NOTE! May, June, and July are peak months of a HIGH TOURIST SEASON in Cusco. It means that train tickets ARE SELL OUT QUICKLY!! Please be aware that the Inka jungle tour leaves daily; however, return train tickets may not be available if you like to book at the last moment. To avoid this inconvenience, please book several weeks in advance!
We pick you up from your hotel at 6am. We drive for about three hours through the beautiful Sacred Valley of the Incas, admiring the scenery of the Peruvian Andes, till we get to the Abra Malaga Pass to an altitude of 4350m/14,357ft above sea level. Here you choose your bike, put on your riding gear. The guide will give a quick briefing to start the best inca jungle trek and then we bike downhill through a cloud forest, passing small villages, abundant fields, rivers, bumpy hills and glacial topped peaks of the Vilcanota Mountain Range on the way to the small high jungle pueblo of Santa Maria (1,500m/4,950ft). The van tags along at the back for security and to make sure the group doesn’t get separated. The guide leads the way and you can marvel at and take in the astonishing mountain landscape around you. The memorable 3 hour bike ride is breathtaking and calming simultaneously. If you get tired you can just hop on the van. The road is paved all the way down so it’s easy riding though because of the smoothness of the road allows you to go pretty fast, which is fun! After a heart lunch we will get ready for our next adventure. In this Inca Jungle tour Machu Picchu you can enjoy rafting in the sacred Vilcanota River! (optional). During this excursion you will enjoy delightful scenery, rapids class 2 and 3, energetic and exhilarating!
You will wake up in the morning and find yourself in the filmy atmosphere of the jungle. After a filling breakfast you kick off the day with a short but severe ascension on an original Inca Trail. As you bend around the steep cliffs over beautiful valleys your guide will talk to you about the Incas, revealing the little that is known about this age-old and fascinating civilization. We can see the districts native animals like hummingbirds, parrot’s, eagles, etc. Also we see and taste wild fruits and medicine like avocadoes, yucca, oranges, tangerines, pacay, mango, cacao, coca shrubs, etc. The path descends to Qellomayo, where we have a rest and lunch. We then continue walking along the riverbank for about 2 hours to get to the hot springs of Colcamayu near the town of Santa Teresa, where we can have a splash and soothe our muscles. Finally we arrive to the town of Santa Teresa where we can unwind and have dinner.
You will wake up to have breakfast, not too early today. Then take private transport to Lucmabamba town, where we view a beautiful sunrise above charming scenery with Machu Picchu at its center. We descend down through bamboo groves and a cloud forest with increasingly thick plant life and high trees, where we have the chance to do some bird watching. Later in the afternoon we arrive to the Hydroelectric Station, from there we follow the path to Aguas Calientes Town. We spend the night in a comfortable hostel where we can get a hot shower!
Optional Tour: Zip-line in the morning in Santa Teresa for an extra USD 40.
Last day of the inka jungle tour, you begin your ascension to Machu Picchu before the sun comes up. Climb up the Inca staircase, 1 to 2 hour s to the previously hidden refuge of Machu Picchu. A one and a half hour guided tour discloses some of Machu Picchu’s secrets yet presents more queries about how the Inca lived and how they achieved such amazing engineering accomplishments. You then have free time to investigate the ruins on your own and take some classic pictures. Try to visit the Temple of the Moon and the wonderful Inca Bridge. We return to Cusco in the afternoon and are met by the driver at Ollantaytambo who will transfer you back to Cusco.
Solo Traveler: Please note that if you have booked the "Solo Traveler" option for this trek, you receive your own single room for all nights.
Local flights: No local flights are included in the trek´s price!
The best time to do the inca jungle trek is dry season, which is important in the excursion, is from mid-April to October. The tourist station when the place is full of tourists is from June to August. We prefer the seasons of April, May, September and October when visits are few and dry. The rainy season is from December to May. Sometimes the precipitations are strong for two or three hours each afternoon, as well as the possibility of light rains that continue for long periods. In this period, the conditions of the trek become difficult and the water currents become impassable. Make sure your equipment and tent are waterproof.
in the low season (October - February) you can probably make the reservation normally up to three weeks before the required date. The maximum size of the group should not exceed 16 people.
For this trek is recommended to be able to walk for more than 6 continuous hours. Likewise, having a practice in bicycle handling (downhill) is the minimum recommended. In the case that you do not have experience driving a bike you can coordinate with the guide so that you avoid doing this sport and you can accompany the group from the bus that accompanies that first section. You can also request to cycle only the last part of the route (more secure)
Your packing list for the Inca Jungle tour Machu Picchu depends on the season. For the high season (April-November) there is a lot of heat during the day, so we recommend bringing light clothes for some sections of the tour. Also bring some clothing to shelter during the beginning and end of the tour (Cusco city) as Cusco is higher and it is cold in the mornings and at night. On the other hand, after the first hours and towards the jungle, you can feel a warm climate and it is recommended to wear light clothes but cover most of the body to avoid insect bites. Waterproof clothes for rainy season (December-March) or a windbreaker are essential.
Good trekking shoes that allow many hours of continuous walking without damaging the feet and protect your feet during some wet and difficult stretches (Goretex).
Before heading to your trip you need to know about the climate in the jungle of Cusco. The jungle of Cusco has a tropical climate with high temperatures and a lot of humidity, rains are common especially on the summer season. We recommend traveling between the months of May and September.
When preparing your luggage you must bear the intense heat of the jungle, it is important to choose light clothes, preferably cotton and light-colored clothing. Dark tones catch the insect’s attention.
As a preventive measure is recommended to be vaccinated against the yellow fever if you travel to jungle areas with a lower altitude at 2,300 MAMSL. We recommend to get vaccinated 10 days before the trip. You can do it in the International Vaccination Centre in Lima on the Av. Del Ejército, block 17 in San Isidro.
Moisture can seriously affect your electronic equipment which is why we recommend to store them in plastic bags that are sealed hermetically to prevent damage. It is also very common that the camera’s objective fogs from on the inside, and there is nothing to do, just be patience.
During the trips to the jungle the frequently consumption of liquids is important. The tropical heat makes us dehydrate quickly and we cannot stop sweating. It is fundamental to make sure that the liquids that we drink are prepared from drinking water. A good option is to take some purifying pills with you on the trip. Prevention is better than cure.
According to the season in which you visit Peru you must bring clothing and items that make your visit pleasant. We suggest that you consider the following items in your list:
You can also find them in stores in Peru when you arrive in Lima or major cities. If you want clothes especially for your taste or your measurements, it is much more advisable that you bring them with you.
The best time for any tourist activity in Cusco is from late March until the end of November. This is the high season of tourism (absence of rains) and therefore it is recommended to book on average three (3) months in advance.
The Sacred Valley of the Incas is located 35 kilometers from Cusco, and about 600 meters below the level of Cusco. It covers the part of the basin of the Vilcanota river between the towns of Pisac and Ollantaytambo.
South American travelers can book with and ID and must present it at the time of entering to Mahcu Picchu. Tourist from other countries will need to book and present their passport to access to tourist attractions. It is important to mention that they must submit the same document that they made their reservation.
