Travel by the Calendar

It’s impossible to go to Peru without a tour of Machu Picchu. It would be like going to Paris without seeing the Eiffel tower, or flying all the way to Cambodia without paying a visit to the mighty Angkor Wat But like these other monuments, it’s easy to get caught up with a whole lot of other tourists and not see very much of what you’ve come to see. This is especially true if you want to do a traditional hike in to Machu Picchu. Since June and July provide the best weather for trekking, with the least chance of rain, they are the most popular months. If you want to hike to Machu Picchu in peak trekking season, you have to be very organised, or be a bit flexible.

The organised option is to book an Inca trail permit a year in advance, and then book your Inca trail trek. The advantage of this is you’ll be hiking the best known trail (for bragging rights back home) and the many many stairs will eventually lead you to the Sun Gate and the entrance of Machu Picchu. But, be aware you’ll be trekking in big groups, staying at even bigger campsites, which may or may not have sufficient food, tents or toilet facilities and you’ll be paying a premium because it’s the Inca Trail.

The alternative option is to realise that the Inca were all over this area five hundred odd years ago (and many of their descendants still are). And there may well be an alternative Inca trail that suits you better. Perhaps the Lares Trek which takes you through high Andean villages and snow covered passes. This trail starts at high altitude and stays there until descending to Ollantaytambo on the last day of trekking. Or the Salkentay trail which starts low but pushes you to higher and higher peaks (4850 metres!). Both are amazing life-enhancing treks, which will cost you a fraction of the cost of the Inca trail.

The downside of these alternate treks is that you do not pass through the Sun gate to reach Machu Picchu. Instead, you leave from Aguas Calientes, very very early if you are hoping to climb up Huayna Picchu on arrival. If you are keen, you’ll still arrive in plenty of time to see Machu Picchu before the tour buses arrive, and if your legs aren’t too tired, you can climb up to the Sun Gate in the opposite direction. It may be enough just to get to the Caretaker’s Hut. Turn around, and you’ll see Machu Picchu as you’ve seen it on all those pictures before, but this time, it’s right there in front of you.

As an aside, these photos were all taken while on the Lares trek, proof that the alternative treks are not by any means inferior treks.
Got the trekking bug? Other hiking to consider in Peru includes
- The Colca Canyon, the deepest in the world and also the home of spectacular condors.
- The Cordillera Blanca, part of the Andes, and extremely popular with climbers although slowly making a name for itself in trekking also and
The Cordillera Huayhuash, where the Huayhuash circuit is described by Gadling as one of the premier treks on the planet