Planning & preparing

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Getting ready for the trip       

In order to get well prepared, plan & organize your trip efficiently, consult this page.

Checklist of essential items to take

The list depends on a variety of factors. For those adventurers who want to take a hike on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, the list would be substantially different. For those who want to go the easy way (train & bus), the list below reflects most of the important items

Travel documents: passport, visa in passport (if you require for Peru), etc., as required for residents of your country.

Personal identification documents

Maps, schemes of zones to be visited

Large backpack: at least of  60 L, but no larger than 80 L is required. Try keeping the weight under 15 kg. Under 17 kg in worst case!

Small backpack: for city walks and short trips (shorter trips than 1 day).

Camera: never forget, because you must immortalize the special moments!

Raincoat: a must have in Peru, there are many rains.

Hat/cap: against strong sunlight, wind and rain.

Long trousers, long sleeved shirts: to avoid being bitten by insects and bruised by plants.

Good, comfortable hiking boots/shoes: make sure you've walked at least 2-3 months in those shoes for comfort.

Multiple pairs of socks: you'll change them faster than you might think!

Warm clothes for the evening

Medicine: for pain relief, stomach problems, treatment of possible wounds, etc. 

Insect repellant spray or crème

Sun block crème to protect from the strong rays at high altitudes.

Personal hygiene items: toilet paper, towel (are most important) and other items

Pocket knife

Physical preparation, health risks

It's good to have some hiking training. You don't have to be an experienced mountain climber, you just need some training and a good physical condition.

For advices on health risks, check out dedicated section, there you'll find detailed information about illnesses in Peru and measures of be taken for protection.

Other risks

Theft is common, assaults and kidnappings may occur rarely.

It's good to travel in group and not wonder on the streets at night. Make sure you don't walk around in the "favelas", the poor neighbourhoods at the edges of cities, towns.

Many people will approach you offering to sell your objects and services, say politely no, but don't stop for explanations and don't start arguing. Meanwhile watch your back.

Don't keep expensive items like camera in your hand. Don't "swing" anything valuable in your hands and don't put money and other valuables easily accessible in your bags. And, at one time, when shopping, don't take your whole wallet out filled with cash and credit cards, someone might grab it and the good trip is over!

What to eat in Peru?

It's good to stick to foods that you're used to.

You wouldn't want to taste everything. Most restaurants in Peru have hygienic problems, always make sure you eat at a reliable place. Also, make sure you know what you eat. Some local foods are made with human saliva (cooks spit into the food for fermentation) and many restaurants serve guinea pigs (which is sort of a hamster, rat, to those who don't know!) with French fries (that's "one hack of a combination"). When the hungry tourist sees the menu, recognizes the word "pig", he might order it immediately and will be in for a surprise when he receives it... By the way, in Quechuan, Guinea Pig is called "Cuy".

Stick to Pizza restaurants, there are some even in the small town of Aguas Calientes.

Drinking water

Tap water is a major source of waterborne diseases, avoid it.

Always drink bottled water or boil clean water and make tea out of it.

Where to stay?

Book hotels in advance, always, never travel without being insured that you have a place to stay.

Before you get to Machu Picchu, make sure you know where you want to stay. The best solution is to stay in Aguas Calientes, which is just a 20 minute bus ride away from the ruins. There, you can find hotels for as low as 20 USD a night, but most hotels are more expensive, often reaching 100 USD or more. Of course, if you're financial situation allows it, you can stay at the hotel that's located on top of the mountain, very close to the ruins. But rooms there cost over 700 USD and other services are more expensive as well.

Many travelers only travel through Aguas Calientes and after visiting the ruins, return to Cuzco, where most visitors start off on the trip. This is however, the worst choice. Cuzco is about 5 hours away by train. This makes a 10 hour round-trip + the 30-60 minute bus trip to and back from Machu Picchu + the walk and waiting... roughly, you loose a whole day and you will arrive to the ruins together with hundreds of other tourists and won't catch much of the city because of the crowd. A

Getting to the spot of Machu Picchu 

You have 3 alternatives:

Hike on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

Travel by train from Cuzco to Aguas Calientes and from there by bus

Travel by train from Cuzco to Aguas Calientes and from there on foot: you'll have to be strong to walk up the shortcut that locals show to tourists. They sometimes make jokes by waving goodbye to travelers when the bus leaves and saying hello up on the mountain, when the bus arrives there. Tourists wonder how the same guys whom they left behind got up there before the bus?

Travel alone or in group?

Due to various travel risks, it's always good to travel in group. At least 3 people is advised. Especially in the Urubamba region, it's not recommended to go alone. Certain diseases, altitude-related health problems and other difficulties (unexpected events, such as theft or illness), could ruin your trip or even put your life in danger.

Traveling in group is not just safe, but more fun too. It's cheaper too. With 2-3 friends, you can get a room for 2-3 people and it's cheaper for you than it were if you booked alone for 1. 

One more thing!

Have a nice trip! ...And remember us, we're trying to make the best Machu Picchu informative portal on the web, perhaps we've reach that goal and we were useful to you, whatever you were looking to find, however you have stumbled across our site!