Pass The Passport
Completed: Hike The Inca Trail

Bucket List / Adventure Travel Goals

Hike The Inca Trail

Ticked off in December 2015

Four days on stone paths the Incas laid, ending at dawn with Machu Picchu spread out below the Sun Gate.

Hike The Inca Trail

The adventure

The classic Inca Trail is the original way into Machu Picchu: around 42 kilometres of stone paths laid by the Incas themselves, winding over high passes and down through cloud forest past ruins you can't reach any other way. Porters jog ahead with tents and kitchens, and each day ends at a camp with mountains glowing in the last light.

Day two is the big one, a long climb to Dead Woman's Pass at 4,215 metres, where you look back down the valley you've just hauled yourself up. Then come orchid-filled forests, staircases of stone steps and the terraces of Wiñay Wayna. On the final morning you set off before dawn to reach Inti Punku, the Sun Gate, and watch the light spill over Machu Picchu on its ridge below. It's a view you'll know from a hundred photos, but this time you've earned it on foot.

Why it’s epic

  • Around 42 kilometres on original Inca paving, finishing at Machu Picchu.
  • Crossing Dead Woman's Pass, the highest point on the trail at 4,215 metres.
  • Ruins such as Runkurakay, Sayacmarca and Wiñay Wayna that you can only reach on foot.
  • Arriving through the Sun Gate for your first view of Machu Picchu.

What it is

The classic Inca Trail is a four-day hike through cloud forest and Inca ruins, arriving at Machu Picchu through the Sun Gate.

How to do it

Permits are limited and sell out months ahead. You must hike with a licensed tour operator.

Top tip

Spend a few days in Cusco first to adjust to the altitude.

Need to know

  • Daily permits are capped at 500 people including guides and porters, and peak months sell out months ahead.
  • You must book through a licensed operator and bring the passport you booked the permit with.
  • The trail closes every February for maintenance, and May to September is the dry season.
  • Spend two or three days in Cusco first to acclimatise.

Plan this trip

Rough cost
£750 to £2,000 per person, including flights from the UK
Time needed
4 days
Best time to go
May to September (closed February)
Fly into
CUZ airport

Permits, guides, porters and camping kit drive the cost, and a fair deal for porters is worth paying for.

Sample itinerary

  1. Days 1–2Fly into Cusco and acclimatise; explore the city and the Sacred Valley
  2. Day 3Start the trail at km 82 and walk to Wayllabamba
  3. Day 4Cross Dead Woman's Pass (4,215m), the highest point
  4. Day 5Pass the ruins of Runkurakay, Sayacmarca and Wiñay Wayna
  5. Day 6Sun Gate at dawn, a guided tour of Machu Picchu, then the train back to Cusco

Do it yourself

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My experience

Ticked off, but the full story is still to be written up.

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