Can I Do a Machu Picchu One Day Hike?
James Bustamante is Native to New York but born to Peruvian parents. He has been traveling throughout Latin America since early 2003 and finally made his home in Peru. James has made his way by eating and traveling through almost every country in Central and South America.
Last Updated on July 5, 2021 by James Bustamante
There are a couple of ways to take a Machu Picchu one day hike. There are several types of travelers that usually show up in Cusco. Many arrive for a long 7-10 day trip that includes the important Machu Picchu hike as well as many day tours like the Rainbow Mountain or a trip to the Sacred Valley.
There are also travelers that have a very short period of time, they usually want to see Machu Picchu as soon as possible to then get back to either Lima or fly out of the country. Below are two possibilities for the second type of tourist. The Machu Picchu day trip from Cusco and the 2 Day Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.
What is a Machu Picchu One Day Hike?
A Machu Picchu one day hike can be the Machu Picchu express tour or the 2 day Inca trail that takes you into the Inca citadel. Both include a one day hike to Machu Picchu, the return to Cusco is done that very afternoon. Both of these routes are the shortest that get you to Aguas Calientes, up to Machu Picchu, and on the train back to Cusco that very afternoon.
The Machu Picchu Day Trip or Express Tour
The absolutely fastest route to reach Machu Picchu is the Machu Picchu day trip from Cusco. This one day expedition starts in the city of Cusco, to then have private transportation to the Ollantaytambo train station. At Ollantaytambo, we board a train to the small town of Aguas Calientes right at the foothills of Machu Picchu. The itinerary is called the Machu Picchu express tour and it is detailed below.
Cusco to Ollantaytambo Train Station 4:30 AM
This itinerary starts with having one of the guides and driver pick you up at your hotel in Cusco at 4:30 am. Make sure to have your day pack ready the night before so you don’t have to rush so early in the morning. If your hotel does not have breakfast ready before the transport reaches your hotel don’t worry since we’ll be able to get something in Ollantaytambo.
The drive will take around an hour and a half depending on how much traffic there is in Cusco. Once we leave the city it will be a pleasant drive through the valley to Ollantaytambo.
Ollantaytambo Train Station – Train Departure 7:00 AM
Once we arrive at the village of Ollantaytambo you will have a few minutes to get breakfast at any of the small restaurants surrounding the station. There is also a small snack bar inside the train station and a cafe on the boarding platform. The train also provides snacks and if you opted for the Vistadome version you will also receive breakfast.
The train ride will take around two hours before we reach the small town of Aguas Calientes. Enjoy the gentle journey down the valley as we near the cloud forest and our destination of Machu Picchu Pueblo, also known as Aguas Calientes.
Arrival at Aguas Calientes 8:30 AM
We will arrive at the Aguas Calientes train station. You will right away notice how different the landscape and surroundings are in comparison to Cusco. Aguas Calientes is a much greener town due to its location, the cloud forest, nestled between the Amazon rainforest and the Peruvian highlands.
As we leave the train station we walk through the small alleys in Aguas Calientes. You’ll notice how small this town actually is. In fact, this town exists merely to accommodate the thousands of travelers that arrive every year. The town is full of travelers aiming to take their Machu Picchu tour.
We walk for 10 minutes and head to the bus station in order to wait for our transport to take us up to Machu Picchu.
Arrival at The Machu Picchu Main Entrance 8:55
We board the bus and take a 20 minute trip up the mountain until we reach the Machu Picchu main entrance. Once we walk to the door our guide will make sure your ticket gets stamped and we enter the Inca citadel in an orderly fashion.
Machu Picchu Tour 9:00 AM
We enter The Inca citadel and begin the guided tour of Machu Picchu. This thorough hike of the complex will go over all the different temples and important locations along with detailed presentations by our guides. Some of the locations will be:
- The Temple of The Sun
- The Temple of The Condor
- Inti Punku
- The Temple of The Three Windows
- The Machu Picchu Mirrors
We end the Tour by 11:00 am, at this time you can enter the additional hikes of either Huayna Picchu or Mount Machu Picchu. Each will take an additional hour and a half to two hours to complete. If you do not have intentions of taking the additional hikes, then you are free to wander around Machu Picchu on your own for a couple of hours and take more pictures.
We end the hike through the complex at 12:45 pm and exit Machu Picchu. We board the bus and ride back down to Aguas Calientes in time for a well-deserved lunch.
Return to Cusco 3:30 PM
We board our train back to Cusco by 3:45 pm and arrive at our destination by 6:00 pm in the Poroy station. We returned to the hotel in Cusco. End of Tour
The Express 2 Day Inca Trail
The next option is the quickest route if you are looking for a full day of hiking. The express or 2 day Inca trail will have a day of hiking through the majestic Andean landscape before arriving at Aguas Calientes where you will spend the night. The following day we have a Machu Picchu one day hike that starts at 7:00 am and ends by noon. The itinerary is below:
Cusco Pick Up 4:30 AM – Chachabamba
This Machu Picchu day hike starts with an early pick-up at 4:30 am. We head to Ollantaytambo to take a train to Chachabamba, the starting point of the Inca trail. Once we reach the checkpoint we can begin the short Inca trail hike to Aguas Calientes.
Ascent Through The Andes 7:00 AM
We depart the Chachabamba ruins and head upwards through the Andes. As we continue on the one day hike there will be many opportunities to get great shots of the valley and waterfall below.
We continue the hike until we reach the Wiñay Wayna ruins to then pass through other sites such as the Inca bathhouse. The route will have the group traversing greener landscapes as we near Aguas Calientes.
We reach the small cloud forest town by 6:00 pm, at this point we check into the hotel, have dinner and then rest for the night.
Machu Picchu Day Tour 7:00 AM
On our second day of the express Inca trail, we will head up to Machu Picchu on the bus by 6:30 am. We arrive by 6:50 am and go ahead and get our tickets stamped before entering the Inca citadel.
We begin the Machu Picchu day hike with a magnificent view of the entire stone city as we enter the main area. The guided tour will have us going through the major destinations in Machu Picchu like the Temple of the three windows or the famous Temple of the Sun. The guided one-day hike will take around 2 hours to complete. Afterward, you are free to hike through the complex on your own or join one of the additional hikes.
Huayna Picchu and The Temple of The Moon
If you choose to take the additional Huayna Picchu hike make sure to take some time to also visit the temple of the moon on your way back down. It is located halfway down the return path and will only take a few minutes to explore.
Conclusion
There are two routes that will have you doing a Machu Picchu one day hike. One is the Machu Picchu express tour that will take you to Machu Picchu and back within the same day. The second approach is the 2 day Inca trail, it has a full day of hiking and the following morning you visit Machu Picchu before heading back to Cusco. Both routes will have impressive views along the way.
For more information on the Machu Picchu one day hike or Peru tour packages that include additional days and tours contact our travel advisors today.
Resources: Header Photo by Mercedes Schulz
