Complete Inca Trail
Ten days from the Pacific to the Andes: Lima, the Inca capital at 11,150 ft, the Sacred Valley, and then four days on the Inca road. Almost everyone arrives at Machu Picchu from below, off the train. You arrive from above, on foot, through the Sun Gate, past stone towns that can still only be reached by walking to them.
The trip
Day by day
Day 1 · Lima
Arrive in Lima
Welcome at the airport and private transfer to your hotel. No agenda tonight; settle in at sea level before the highlands.
Overnight in Lima
Day 2 · Lima
Lima City Exploration, Larco Museum, and Water Circuit
A guided day through Lima's historic center, then the Larco Museum, an 18th-century mansion built on top of a pre-Columbian pyramid, holding five thousand years of Peru in one collection. The evening is the Magic Water Circuit, where the fountains in the old city park run to music after dark.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight in Lima
Day 3 · Lima › Cusco
Cusco City Tour and Sacsayhuaman Ruins Discovery
A morning flight into Cusco leaves a few hours to settle in before an early-afternoon tour of the old Inca capital and the ruins above it: Sacsayhuaman, the ceremonial fortress built as the head of the Inca's puma-shaped city, and the lookout fort at Puka Pukara, with Cusco spread out below.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight in Cusco
Day 4 · Cusco
Sacred Valley: Chinchero, Moray and Maras
A full day across the Sacred Valley: the weaving town of Chinchero, the ringed terraces of Moray where the Inca tested crops at a different climate on every level, and the salt pans of Maras stepping down the hillside.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Overnight in Cusco
Day 5 · Cusco › Inca Trail
Ollantaytambo to Wayllabamba
The trail starts at Km 82 (9,072 ft), where the railway meets the river and the porters are waiting. Past the checkpoint the road ends for four days. The climb up the valley runs under the ice face of Nevado Veronica to camp on a farming terrace at Wayllabamba (9,679 ft), the last inhabited village on the trail.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Overnight: Campsite
Day 6 · Inca Trail
Wayllabamba to Pacaymayu
The big climbing day, and the high point of the whole trek: a long ascent through polylepis forest to Warmiwañusca (13,750 ft), the pass the Quechua named Dead Woman for its shape on the skyline, with the Huayanay peaks east and the Vilcabamba range west from the top. The descent to camp at Pacaymayu (11,967 ft) gives back nearly 1,800 feet, and everything after this is lower.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight: Campsite
Day 7 · Inca Trail
Pacaymayu to Wiñayhuayna
The second pass, Runkuraqay at 13,100 ft, and then the trail turns to original Inca road and stays that way to Machu Picchu, white granite underfoot through cloud forest. It passes Sayaqmarka on its rock spur and Phuyupatamarca (12,460 ft), the town above the clouds, before a long descent by stone staircase to camp at Wiñayhuayna.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight: Campsite
Day 8 · Inca Trail › Machu Picchu
Wiñayhuayna - Machu Picchu
A start before first light, down through cloud forest into warmer air thick with orchids and hummingbirds, to reach Inti Punku, the Sun Gate, ahead of the day's first arrivals. Machu Picchu appears below all at once, and the last stretch is the Royal Road down into the city, entered on foot from above the way it was built to be entered.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight in Machu Picchu Town
Day 9 · Machu Picchu › Cusco
Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain hike
A self-guided climb, on whichever of the two peaks your dates allow. Huayna Picchu is the peak standing behind the ruins in every photograph of them: a steep hour of Inca stairs to 8,920 ft, looking straight down on the city. Machu Picchu Mountain is the longer, steadier climb to 10,111 ft, with the whole valley below. The afternoon is the train back to Cusco, running up the valley beside the river most of the way.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight in Cusco
Day 10 · Cusco › Lima
Departure
Transfer to the airport for the flight to your next destination and onward connection.
Meals: Breakfast
On the ground
Where you stay
- Lima (2 nights)
- Cusco (3 nights)
- Inca Trail · Campsite (3 nights)
- Machu Picchu Town (1 night)
4-star and 5-star hotel upgrades available on request.
The deal
What's included
- 9 nights accommodation
- Meals: 9 breakfasts, 3 lunches and 3 dinners
- All ground transfers
- Guided tours and excursions
- Entrance tickets and permits
Pricing
What moves the price
Season, hotel standard, and train class move the price most. Peak dates (Inti Raymi, Fiestas Patrias, Christmas and New Year) carry supplements.
Prices shown are for 2026. Inquire to check rates for future years.
Next step
Check my dates
Tell us your dates and who is travelling, and a trip specialist replies personally to confirm your dates and put the plan in writing.
- 1.A specialist checks your dates against the current access rules and what is still open: entry, train seats, and rooms.
- 2.You receive a written proposal with confirmed availability, your price, and payment timing.
- 3.A deposit reserves the trip and confirms your entry.