Vilcabamba Trek to Machupicchu 5 Days – 4 Nights

Santa Maria  Village – Huancacalle – Vitcos

For this great adventure to the Vilcabamba, our private transport will pick you up early from your hotel in Cusco and then we will make our way for several hours through the beautiful mountains to Huancacalle. We stop and enjoy breakfast and visit a variety of farmland along the way. You will see coffee, cocoa, achiote, bananas, oranges, mangoes, pineapples, papaya, and coca ‘the green gold’ of the Inkas.

In Huancacalle (2900 msnm) after pass through several villages, we meet our arrieros (horsemen) and they will pack our gear to be taken to camp. At approximately 1:30 pm., we will share lunch with our trekking team- guides and porters. After lunch in Vilcabamba, we will continue our Vilcabamba Trek, we walk one hour to the Last Capital of the Inkas. It’s an incredible site and once here you will see why Manco Inka and his army chose this place in refuge. We take time to tour here and take photos. Afterwards, we walk 30 minutes to the religious center which was named by the Spaniards as Ñustac Hispanan. This Inka site also holds an amazing carved rock that mystifies archaeologists, as they still haven’t discovered the significance.

Tonight, we going to camp very close to the Capital of The Inkas. After extensively exploring and touring, we hike 25 minutes from the mystical white rock until we arrive at our campsite (3100 msnm) at approximately 5.30 p.m. Your tents will already be set up and we’ll enjoy a happy hour plus dinner.

Vitcos – Raccachaca

You will wake up with a hot cup of coca tea brought to your tent and then we enjoy an early breakfast at 6:30. Then we will start the real hike, gradually making our way up the ancient Inca trail. The Vilcabamba trail has yet to be restored by the National Park, so you are able to experience this path in its original form. Along the way, you will see Andean grass which grows wild, giving you an experience similar to the Inkas who walked this same path thousands of years ago.

The difference between the Classic Inka Trail and the Vilcabamba trek is that you walk along original Inka made paths without any other trekkers. This provides for an experience surrounded by wild nature and culture. On the Vilcabamba trail today, we will see gorgeous glaciers, such as POMATA at 5,500 msnm. We will arrive at our lunch spot around 12:00, which rests at an altitude of 4,000 msnm. We take a moment here to soak in the surrounding views. Then, we will hike to the first pass of our Vilcabamba trek at 4,200 msnm. This is an incredible vantage point and a perfect photo opportunity, with mountains surrounding us from all directions and the possibility of seeing falcons and Andean geese.

As we come down the pass, we will pass a couple of lakes and then arrive at Wasichayoc (3,400 msnm). At this point, we will meet the Pacchanta river, where we will stop and take more spectacular photos. We will journey through farmlands with crops of Andean potatoes and grains and herds of llamas and sheep.

Once we arrive to the river bank, we will follow the river to our campsite at Raccachaca which rests at 3,600 msnm. At 5:30, we will be at camp in a quaint Quechua speaking village of only about 10 families who still live by Inca customs and tradition. In the evening, we’ll enjoy dinner and rest for the next day’s adventure in Vilcabamba Peru.

Raccachaca – Pumaccasa – Mojon – Mutuaypata.

After enjoying an early breakfast, we will visit a traditional house in Vilcabamba to see how the people of Raccachaca live 3,600 meters high above sea level. We will have the opportunity to feed grass to some of the cuy (guinea pigs) and give some of the children gifts. Here we will have the unique chance to ask questions and learn about the traditions and customs.

After our farewells and thanks, we continue on our Vilcabamba trek. From the village, it is a steady incline that leads us over 3 passes, the first being Pumaccasa which stands at 4,500 meters. We will spend some time here and have the opportunity to see Andean Condors soaring through the mountain tops. Condors are sacred birds to the Inca, ‘the messengers’ as they say. The condor’s wingspan can reach up to 10 feet, incredible!

After our rest, we will continue our Vilcabamba Trek to the Andean flat and along the way we will see two lakes perched near the second pass at 4,440 msnm. At this point, we are on the border of Vilcabamba and Santa Teresa, providing spectacular 360-degree views.

We continue on the Vilcabamba Tour Flat, where we will be surrounded by a various wildlife and plant life. Some of the native wildlife we may encounter are: Andean geese, falcons, condors, and the Andean gull. Upon arriving to the third pass, if weather permits, we have a view of Machupicchu mountain located at the bottom of the mountains. On the right side, we will have the view of Pumasillo (puma’s cloud) mountain, resting at 5,800 msnm. Of course, we will take a break here to soak in the view and take advantage of these incredible photo opportunity.

The entirety of the day we will have worked our way across the Vilcabamba Peru Mountain Range, quite the feat! After the third pass, we descend for 30 minutes to our lunch spot at Mojon which is at a crystal-clear high-altitude lake. We then descend for 6 hours and along the way we have the possibilities of spotting variant bird species, as well as, Andean rodents, chinchillas, and hopefully a black bear or spectacled bear. By 5:30 we will arrive at our campsite for the night at Mutuypata (2,900 msnm), in the lush and vibrant high jungle. Once we relax, we will have dinner and then rest after a long and beautiful day.

Mutuy Pata – Aguas Calientes

This day in our Vilcabamba Trek begins at 6:30 and after breakfast we continue for a day with mostly declines. We will be walking downhill through the high jungle and tropical forest, painted with fascinating flora and fauna. Along the way, we learn a bit about the nature that surrounds us. Also, this area is free of trekkers (aside from us), which makes for a richer experience as the wildlife tends be more visible and less disturbed.

Throughout our Vilcabamba trek today we are surrounded by unbelievable flowers and many species of orchids, including the Forever Young orchid, begonias, bromelias, strawberries and the oldest trees in the cloud forest. As for fauna, we will see parrots, quetzals, tanagers and many others which your guide will point out to you.

As we come down the mountain, we immediately pass through some plantations growing bananas, coffee, passion fruits, and avocados. We even get to pick some fruits for lunch. Finally, as we hear the sound of the Sacsara River, we reach the end of the vilcabamba trek at Punta Carretera at 2.000 msnm. Here, we’ll say goodbye to our horsemen with a small ceremony and board a van to drive for one hour leading us to incredibly beautiful hot springs.

These are the best and hottest hot springs in the Cusco region, called Cocalmayo (1300 msnm). While you are enjoying your soak in the medicinal waters, our porters will prepare the last lunch and we will share our last meal together. In total, we will have two hours at the hot springs, which will be plenty of time to relax your muscles after an exhilarating few days of hiking. At 2.30 pm, we will have lunch and say our goodbyes to our porters. We will then take a van to the Hydroelectric station where we can catch the train.

The last train is at 4.30 pm and takes about 45 minutes to get to Machupicchu Town. The train ride is beautiful taking you through the lush jungle until we reach Machu Picchu Town. Once we arrive, we will take you to your comfortable hotel, where you can relax and take a hot shower.  In the evening, we will have dinner at a delicious restaurant in town and go to bed early to be well rested for our big day to Machu Picchu.

Machupicchu!

We begin early and after having breakfast at the hotel, we will take the first bus up to Machupicchu. We will arrive just in time to see the sunrise and after snapping some incredible photos we will begin a 2 hour guided tour. On our Vilcabamba Trek and Machupicchu tour, your professional guide will take you to all the most significant areas of the ancient city. You will learn extensively about the history and culture of the Inka, while visiting temples, fountains, ceremonial sites, and much more!

After, you will have ample time to visit the many more sites that Machupicchu holds and if you choose, you can hike Waynapicchu or Machupicchu mountains. Both provide incredible vantage points of the city below, ideal in capturing the perfect photo.

In the afternoon, we will head back down the mountain and board the train to Ollantaytambo. The train takes us from jungle and through the massive mountains to the Sacred Valley of the Inkas. Once we arrive, a Mountain Gods Peru member will be waiting to drive you back to your hotel in Cusco.