2 Day Inca Trail to Machu Picchu (private tour)

One day Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

We used Andean Great Treks for the Short Inca Trail to Machu Picchu (1 day). First Andean Great Treks was amazing, I did so much research for the Short Inca Trail (1 and 2 day) from various outfitters and Andean seemed to be the most reasonable and provided many extra’s that the others didn’t (namely a porter to carry your lunch / bottle of water and the return ticket on the Vistadome train). I found some reviews, but still was unsure. Luckily, they were Amazing! From the minute I did the checkin with Elmer to the whole day on the trail, my family was amazed at the level of service we received and the thoroughness of how organized they were for the whole tour along with answering any questions we had. In short if you are looking to do the Inca trail and are reading this review, just stop looking and book with this company, you will get amazing service and more than other operators are offering. ! More details of our trip, our guide was Geraldo and our porter was Alex. Geraldo was extremely knowledgeable about Machu Picchu, the Inca trail, along with the history and area (wildlife, traditions etc). He was very patient and just a really genuine good person). Alex was also very kind and took up an amazing box lunch and water for our family. We started the hike on the first train (which I would recommend as you have more time to spend on the trail and take pictures at top of Machu Picchu, but more importantly you get further up the trail before the heat really intensifies. (Geraldo confirmed it gets very hot). After the hike to oversee Machu Picchu we got to tour inside the actual ruins. From there we had dinner with Geraldo and took the train back to Ollantaytambo, with a driver waiting for us to give us a ride to Cusco. What we did learn about Andean Great Treks is Elmer used to be a guide and started this company, thus he really knows the ins and outs of what makes a great experience (which is not the case for every operator). Secondly Geraldo said he really enjoys working for Andean and fills it is a great company which I also really appreciate. Tidbits: We stayed the night before in Ollantaytambo so that we could wake up 2 hours later and catch the train instead of Cusco (you have to get up super early if you are in Cusco). The 1 day Inca Short Trek was amazing, and it was nice to be able to see inside Machu Picchu when it was sunny (morning is usually overcast), I would recommend that, but the town of Aquas Calientes is really cool, thus the 2 day would also be really cool (just know that you will go back up to Machu Picchu in the morning of the second day when 80% of the tourists are there. If you want to still stay the night in Aquas Calientes (I really recommend) Maybe work out something with Elmer to see if they can book your return ticket on train and taxi the following day. I fully recommend Andean Great Treks and feel you will be more than ecstatic working with them.

via Tripadvisor

Great service and great experience

Great service from Elmer in setting up and organising the trip - very responsive over WhatsApp and email and all my questions were answered quickly. On the day, he got us on the train, with our lunch and the Inca Rail staff made sure we got off at the 104km mark. Javier guided us on the hike to Machu Picchu and was very knowledgeable and made sure we got up in good time to do the tour of Machu Picchu on the same day. Lunch was both generous and good - 5 fruits, a chicken empanada, quinoa bowl with chicken and rice, a salad and a snack bar. I’d highly recommend Andean Great Treks

Response from the operator: Thank you very much for having enjoyed your trip along the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu with us. The entire Andean Great Treks team is happy with your comments, which inspire us to continue providing unique experiences to our travelers.

via Tripadvisor

Tracking and Machu Picchu

Everything was perfect, from the office to the super Guide, Juve he was very careful with us ! Thank you! Raccomandatet!

via Tripadvisor

Good and Bad

Let me start with the good. Guide The experience we had with our tour guide Osman was awesome! He was very knowledgeable of all the plants, spoke great English and was friendly and accomodating. He even had visual aids to help us understand the history of the Inca Empire. I didn't see any other tour guides with this. Hands down, 5 stars for him! Trail The trail is breathtakingly beautiful. You will not be disappointed with your views. That being said, it was HARD. I picked this tour because it was only 1 day of the Inca trail and it was marked as easy on their website. For reference, I work out 4 days a week and I'm a relatively fit 29 year old and I hike quite often. I was not prepared for the altitude to affect me as much as it did. I struggled harddddd. I had to stop quite a bit because I just couldn't breathe. I was hyperventilating pretty much the entire time. I live at sea level in Houston so I'm sure I'm probably the worst case scenario. It was a lot of steps up, up, up and then down, down, and then back up. For like 7 hours.... For me, it was strenuous! If you're accustomed to high altitude I would say its probably more of a medium level. It's definitely not easy. Machu Picchu wow... this place was just so much bigger than I imagined it would be. Ive seen pictures but I was still blown away. Absolutely worth the trip. *pro tip: bring an apple for the llamas. The Bad The hotel we got set up with in Aguas Calientes, Sun Palace Inn, after our grueling hike was the absolute worst hotel I've ever stayed in. And I'm not a fancy hotel girl. The 2 other couples with us had the same thoughts. The staff was unhelpful and not friendly. It was loud and there was no hot water. Ill write a separate review of that place. There was also a lot of confusion with the tour company. We went to the office the day before our hike and paid our remaining balance and re-confirmed everything. We got our bus tickets but were told our tour guide would have tickets for the inca trail / machu picchu. When we arrived, he did not... there was a moment of panic before we found out that another couple in our tour had ours. Thankfully they didnt throw it or anything. Another situation we had was we had arranged for the machu picchu portion of our tour to be with the 2 other couples we were traveling with (they didnt do the hike). We were told this was no problem but it caused a lot of stress. we went back and forth with 3 tour guides before they figured it out. All in all, we had a great trip but portions of it could have been better. I would recommend asking about the hotel they're putting you at prior to booking.

Response from the operator: Hello Dear friends, thank you very much for your expressed opinion. First of all we want to value your visit to our beautiful land of Cusco and have done the Inca Trail tour. In truth, we are very sad because of the little attention shown to you by the hostel staff, who did not put much effort into carrying out their work, efficiently. It is also good to establish that sometimes some particular aspects in Aguas Calientes town (availability and water pressure, size of the city that is not very spacious to dissipate the noise of the locomotives when making their transit), which can alter their Stay at Machu Picchu. We express our apologies.

via Tripadvisor

An experience of a lifetime!

Our family of two adults and two teenagers (12 and 16) started our adventure by having Elmer giving us a good explanation of the tour while we were in Cusco. His instructions were very accurate and allowed us to be well prepared for the challenge. We picked the Short Inca Trail as it promised a good balance of trekking and adventure, but we expected it to be doable with kids. We want to thank Osman for an experience of a lifetime. Osman was absolutely the BEST tour guide we ever had (kids say it was fun eating Dorito Dust with you!). Osman was very committed and diligent, making sure we were safe and entertained during the entire walk. He taught us about flora and fauna, about Incas and their heritage, a bit of Quechua (Wawqui!!). We were fortunate to have someone authentic, genuine, and fun like Osman. Thanks goes to the Eco Path Trek for having such a good guide.

Response from the operator: Dear friends, thank you very much for sharing your good experience in your visit to our beautiful city of Cusco. Our operations and reservations team feels very happy for your good stay with us. Greetings from the Eco Path Trek Team.

via Tripadvisor