Salkantay Trek with Short Inca Trail 5D/4N
So, anyone who knows anything about Peru knows about the Inca Trail, and with good reason. It is an amazing way to get to Machu Picchu, while making the most of what this ancient path has to offer: fascinating Inca ruins, cloud forests, subtropical jungle, not to mention the amazing llamas and alpacas you will meet on the way and the local flora you will marvel at. As far as Salkantay goes, it used to be only an alternative to the Inca Trail when this was sold out, but nowadays it has become a choice in itself. And so, it should be, as it has been classified as one of the top 20 treks in the world. And because we know it would be a hard choice between these too, we have carefully designed an amazing trekking tour, that gets you the best parts of both: the 5-day, 4-night Salkantay Trek with Short Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.
With this trek, you will enjoy the stunning scenery offered by the Salkantay trek the first 2 days, and on the third day you will get off the beaten track, on a path that will connect you with the Inca Trail, which you will then follow on the fourth day, in order to reach one of the Seven Wonders of the World, Machu Picchu, on foot.
The Salkatanay part of the trek comes with the whole package: stunning glaciers, crystal clear lakes, cloud forest and rain forest, which on the last part transforms into rich vegetation and enigmatic ruins, this way giving you the best of nature and culture. With this trek, only offered by Action Peru Treks, you get to camp in the middle of nature, surrounded by the majesty of the mountains, for 2 nights, while on the other 2 you will sleep in hotels, in Ollantaytambo and Aguas Calientes, respectively. You also get a very pleasant train ride, on day 4, from Ollantaytambo to km 104, dinner in a nice restaurant on the fourth day in Aguas Calientes, horses that carry 8kg of your personal belongings, the permit to hike the short Inca Trail and much more.
- Day 1:Cusco – Soraypampa – Ichupata
- Day 2:Ichupata – Incachiriasca – Pampacahuana
- Day 3:Pampacahuana – Paucarcancha – Huayllabamba – KM 82 – Ollantaytambo
- Day 4:Ollantaytambo – Chachabamba – WiñayWayna – Machu Picchu – Aguas Calientes
- DAY 2:Aguas Calientes – Machu Picchu – Cusco
- DistanceTrekked:55 km/ 37 miles
- Beginning altitude:3,800 m/12,467 ft
- Maximum altitude:4,850m / 15,908 ft
- Overall trek Difficulty: Challenging
Pre-trek briefing: We provide a full pre-trek briefing at our office in Cusco. This gives you the chance to ask questions about the trek itinerary and you will also be given your duffle bag so that you can pack your gear for the trek. Briefings are generally scheduled for the morning or afternoon of the day before your trek starts. If your trek begins on a Monday then the briefing will be scheduled for the Saturday before. Please take this into consideration when booking your travel plans to Cusco, ensuring you arrive in time for the briefing.
What is Included?
- Pre-Departure Briefing at our office
- Pick up from your hotel and transportation to Sorayapampa (start of trek)
- Bilingual English-speaking tour guide (additional tour guide for groups of nine people or more)
- High quality, 4-person tent for every 2 people
- Mattress and pillow
- Kitchen tent
- Dining tent with tables and chairs
- Eco-Friendly portable toilet and toilet tent
- Professional Chef and assistant chef
- Wranglers and horses to carry all equipment
- Horse to transport up to 8 kg of your personal gear
- Duffle bag for your personal gear
- Emergency horse (¡in case we need it!)
- 5 breakfasts, 4 lunches, and 4 dinners
- Hot water for washing twice daily
- Daily morning boiled and cold water to fill the water bottles.
- Emergency oxygen bottle and medical kit.
- Train ticket from Ollantaytambo to KM 104
- Train ticket from Aguas Calientes to Ollantaytambo or Poroy
- Private van transportation from Ollantaytambo or Poroy to your Cusco hotel
- 1-night hotel accommodation in Ollantaytambo (double occupancy)
- 1-night hotel accommodation in Aguas Calientes (double occupancy)
- Round trip bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu
- Entrance to Machu Picchu
What is not included?
- Sleeping bag (can be rented from us)
- Trekking poles (can be rented from us
- Ticket for Huayna Picchu mountain (can be purchased for an extra US $75 per person)
- Day 5 Lunch in Aguas Calientes
- Tips for the trek crew (tipping optional and guidelines provided)
- Travel /Health / Emergency insurance
We recommend that you bring?
- Original passport (nb. if you have acquired a new one after you made your booking you MUST bring both)
- Down or synthetic feather sleeping bag (can be rented from us)
- Clothes (trekking boots, warm fleece jacket, tops, a few t-shirts, socks, sun hat, thermal underwear, light long pants, gloves, poncho, rain jacket)
- Toiletries (toilet paper, wet wipes, personal towel)
- Sun block (factor 35+ recommended), Head lamp and batteries*
- Sunglasses, sun hat, Binoculars, Camera + batteries*
- Trekking poles (recommended especially for the steep descents, can be rented from us) MUST have rubber tips
- Insect repellent – 15% DEET
- Snacks (while your crew will prepare the most amazing meals, everyone’s energy needs are different, particularly at altitude, and so you should pack some suitable snacks to make sure you are always fully energised)
* nb. batteries run down faster at high altitudes
Optional
Rentals:
- Hiking poles – US $20.00 (pair)
- Sleeping bag – US $25.00
Upgrades:
-
- Hotel Upgrades
- Belmond Sanctuary Lodge (5-star hotel) – US $490 per person per night (double occupancy)
- Sumaq Machu Picchu hotel (5-star hotel) – US $245 per person per night (double occupancy)
- Tierra Viva Machu Picchu (3+ star hotel) – US $50 per person per night (double occupancy)
- Train Upgrades
- Vistadome train -US $50 for trip from Aguas Calientes to Poroy
- Hiram Bingham train – US $380 for trip from Aguas Calientes to Poroy
- Private lodging
- Private hotel room in Aguas Calientes – US $45 (nb. prices for upgraded hotels will be higher)
- Private tent – US $30
- Machu Picchu
- Buffet lunch at the Tinkuy restaurant in the Belmond Sanctuary Lodge in Machu Picchu – US $45 per person.
- Hotel Upgrades
-
Departure/Return Location
Lima, Perú -
Included
Professional licensed guide fluent in English -
Not Included
private van to trailhead at km 82
Tour Plan
Day 1: Cusco – Soraypampa – Ichupata
- Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner
- Accommodations: Camping
- Distance Covered: 12 km / 7 ½ miles
- Approximate Walking Time: 6 – 7 hours
- Lowest elevation: 3,800 m/12,467 ft
- Highest elevation: 4,300 m / 14,104 ft
- Difficulty: Challenging
Day 2: Ichupata – Incachiriasca – Pampacahuana
- Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner
- Accommodations: Camping
- Distance Covered: 14 km / 8 ½ miles
- Approximate Walking Time: 8 – 9 hours
- Lowest elevation: 3,700 m / 12,136 ft
- Highest elevation: 4,850 m / 15,908 ft
- Difficulty: Challenging
Day 3:Pampacahuana – Paucarcancha – Huayllabamba – KM 82 – Ollantaytambo
- Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner
- Accommodations: Hotel
- Distance Covered: 16 km/ 10 miles
- Approximate Walking Time: 6 to 8 hours
- Lowest Elevation: 2,792 m/9,158 ft
- Highest Elevation: 3,700 m / 12,136 ft
- Difficulty: Moderate
DAY 4:Ollantaytambo – Chachabamba – WiñayWayna – Machu Picchu – Aguas Calientes
- Meals: Box Lunch / Dinner
- Accommodations: Hotel
- Distance Covered: 13 km / 8 miles
- Approximate walking time: 5-6 hours
- Minimum Altitude: 2,040 m / 6,691 ft
- Maximum altitude: 2,720 m / 8,920 ft
- Difficulty: Moderate
DAY 5: Aguas Calientes – Machu Picchu – Cusco
- Meals: Breakfast
- Lowest Elevation: 2,040 m/ 6,691 ft
- Highest Elevation: 2,440 m/ 8,052 ft
Tour Review Scores And Score Breakdown