Put your best foot forward on an Inca Trail tour
As travel experiences go, Peru’s Inca Trail is up there with the best (it’s literally up there too - the altitude at Machu Picchu is 2,430 metres above sea level). However you don’t need to be a fitness fanatic or mountain climber to experience South America’s most famous trek. Numerous travel companies arrange Inca Trail tours and daily excursions to Machu Picchu. Some tackle the whole 26-mile hike over several spectacular days, and others (like Titan) take an easier but no less thrilling route into the high Peruvian Andes by train. But however you get there - tour, train or trek – the reward at the end of the Inca Trail is jaw-dropping: Machu Picchu, Peru’s signature archaeological site.
What and where is the Inca Trail?
The Inca Trail is the most famous walking route in South America, and it’s trodden by thousands of walkers, hikers and travellers every year. Linking the Sacred Valley near Cuzco to the ancient Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, it was constructed in the 15th century as a route for pilgrims, supplies and nobles to the royal estate. Today the Inca Trail offers the quintessential South American travel experience and view: stone terraced slopes, mist-shrouded mountains, orchid-strewn cloud forests and mysterious Inca ruins.
Why is this Inca Trail so important?
The ancient Incas built trails - extensive roads and pathways - across the whole of Peru and Ecuador, with buildings along the way where travellers (and their llamas) could stop to rest, refresh and restock for the journey ahead. But of all the trails in Peru, the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu is the one you’ll read about in the guidebooks. This is quite simply because Machu Picchu is so impressive: the scale of the site and the skill and ingenuity required to build it is beyond the wildest dreams of most mortals.
What makes Machu Picchu so special?
It’s not just the setting that makes Machu Picchu special. Perfectly crafted into and around the steep mountainous terrain, the citadel was built when the Inca had no iron, steel or wheels. Every stone is so precisely cut they fit together without mortar, and the terraces were designed and engineered in such a way as to preserve soil, promote agriculture, aid irrigation and limit erosion on the surrounding slopes. The site is a mind-blowing testament to the power and skill of the Inca Empire.
How long does the Inca Trail take and what are the highlights?
For travellers choosing to hike the Inca Trail, it usually takes four or five days. You’ll walk for about six hours every day, sometimes at considerably higher altitude than Machu Picchu itself, and temperatures can vary - up to 26o on warm days down to -2 o in the early morning. But there are other, easier ways to experience the magic of the Inca Trail. The train journey tracing the Urubamba River through the Sacred Valley of the Incas before ascending slowly, thrillingly, into the Peruvian Andes is truly magical. And while Machu Picchu is undoubtedly the mega-star of the show, the scenery along the way makes a very worthy supporting cast.
When’s the best time of year to visit Machu Picchu and the Inca Trail?
The best time of year to visit Machu Picchu on a tour, or to hike the Inca Trail, is in the months before and after the rainy season, so during April and May or between September and mid-December. The dry season months are June, July and August but it can be busy at these times. The Inca Trail is closed throughout February every year for maintenance.
Can I see Machu Picchu and the Inca Trail on a Titan tour?
Absolutely, you can. Footsteps of the Incas explores coastal Lima, mythical Lake Titicaca and the gargantuan Colca Canyon, home to soaring Andean condors, before travelling by Pullman-style train to Cuzco, from where your journey continues through Sacred Valley and up into the mountains to Machu Picchu. Footsteps of the Incas with Quito and the Galapagos adds a thrilling extra chapter to the end of the tour, heading to Ecuador to spend time in vibrant Quito before encountering marine iguanas, blue-footed boobies, turtles and giant tortoises on a 4-night Galapagos cruise.
Titan offers a range of escorted tours and holidays throughout South America from itineraries focused on things like Mexico's Mayan Trail and the wildlife of Costa Rica to a Grand Tour highlighting Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Peru. Several of our Cruise & Tour itineraries showcase this spectacular continent too.
Call us today to discuss your travel plans and ideas, or order our latest Worldwide brochure and choose from our full range of South America tours.
Although Sophie’s most memorable travel experiences include swimming with horses in the sea off Cape Tribulation, nearly driving off the edge of the Grand Canyon and bungee jumping out of a helicopter over Queenstown, her holidays are a little less adrenalin-fuelled now, often revolving around dog walks and surfing with her family and two dachshunds in Cornwall.
Sophie | About the author
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Why choose a Titan tour?
Titan Travel have always been about seeing more and doing more – which is why we meticulously plan our award-winning escorted tours so that our expertly crafted itineraries make sure that so much is included. Once you book your holiday, you can relax knowing that every element has been taken care of. Choose the tour that gives you more.
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From excursions to hotels, entry tickets and dining packages, we include more than any other tour.
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Feel free to amend or extend your travel plans, up until final payment, and enjoy free time on your tour with us too.
