+51 918 885 164 info@happygringotours.com
+51 918 885 164 info@happygringotours.com

Salkantay Inca Trail Trek – Inca Trail Salkantay Trek

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From$1180 USD
From$1180 USD
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Tour Details

Salkantay Inca Trail Trek to Machu Picchu is the best of the both iconic treks to Machu Picchu from Cusco. The seven day Inca Trail Salkantay Trek offers an insight to the Inca ruins along the Inca trail and a closer contact with nature on the section of Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu. It also takes you to the famous Humantay Lake, a colorful lagoon hidden in the middle of the Andes.

The high altitude experience begins at the Incachiriaska pass “frozen inca’s pass”. This is a main point of Salkantay Trek. It then takes you through the original paved Inca pathways. Here you will get to see  a variety of fascinating ancient ruins, beautiful sceneries before entering Machu Picchu

With smaller groups you get the full attention of our staff and with each traveler having a personal porter to carry your personal items, so that you can enjoy your Machu Picchu hike.

The region is a part of the Peruvian Andes. It is subject to two seasons, dry season and rainy season. The best time to experience the trek is during the dry season – between March and November. 

Please note that Inca Trail is closed for maintenance in February every year. 

Why Happy Gringo Tours?

Happy Gringo Tours is a local tour operating company founded by a local guide who has hiked the Inca Trail over 500 times. All our guides are locals and passionate hikers. We have years of experience in tourism. Our guides have extensive training in providing aid to altitude sickness. 

Do take a moment to check our reviews on Tripadvisor

Check out our post on What to expect on Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu. Also take a view at our Ultimate Salkantay Trek Packing List.

Departure & Return Location

Cusco Hotel Transfer

Departure Time

05:00 AM

Price Includes

  • Professional English Speaking Tour Guide
  • Mules / Porters to carry cooking and camping equipment
  • 6 Breakfasts, 6 Lunches, 6 Afternoon Snacks and 6 Dinners. If you have a dietary request such as vegetarian food please let us know
  • 4 man tents for every 2 trekkers
  • Oxygen bottle and first aid kit.
  • Entrance to the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu

Price Excludes

  • Sleeping Bag (Can be hired from us)
  • Breakfast on Day 1 and lunch and dinner on Day 7
  • Entrance to Huayna Picchu and Machu Picchu Mountain
  • Tips
  • Travel Insurance - you are strongly recommended to take out travel insurance for the duration of your trip

Recommended to carry

  • Original Passport
  • Walking boots
  • Personal medication
  • Torch with spare batteries
  • Sun cream (factor 35 or higher) & Insect repellent
Inca Trail Permits

Happy Gringo offer daily departures on the Inca Trail “excluding February when Inca trail is closed”.
It is strongly recommended to reserve your Inca Trek at least 4 months in advance as permits can quickly sell out. Therefore, the Inca Trail Peru is available to book from March 01st to January 31st every year.

Inca Trail Campsites, 2021

Campsites may change depending on booking, availability, weather conditions or on restrictions undertaken for safety reasons by the Peruvian Government.For more details let us know.

  • Happy Gringo Tours is territory of organic food
  • A Locally owned company
  • Hiking the inca trail with us, you only hike, eat and sleep
  • Our porters have health insurnace
  • 100% official Inca Trail operator
  • Certificate of excellence from TRIPADVISOR with 5 star REVIEWS
Itinerary

Day 1Cusco - Challa Cancha - Humantay Lake - Soraypampa

We will be picking you up from your hotel in Cusco and embark on a two hours drive to Mollepata. Here we will be stopping for breakfast. 

After breakfast, we will be driving further to Challacancha.Here we will start hiking to the base camp Soraypampa. 

We will then visit The Humantay Lake and return to the campsite for lunch.  

Day 2Soraypampa - Pampa Japonesa - Sisay Pampa

After relishing a typical breakfast, we will begin with a 4 hours hike to Pampa Japonesa. This is where we will be stopping for lunch before hiking up to Salkantay pass. 

We will then descend to Sisay Pampa where we will be camping for the night. 

Day 3Sisay Pampa – Paucarcancha

We will begin the day after relishing a delicious breakfast. We will be hiking up the hill to the highest point of the trek. This is the point from where you will get a closer peek at the mighty Salkantay Mountain. 

After immersing in the tranquility of the Sacred Andean Mountain, we will be hiking for six hours, down the hill to Paucar Cancha. Here we will be stopping for lunch. After lunch, we will be bidding goodbye to our muleteers as mules are not allowed on the Classic Inca Trail.

Day 4Paucarcancha – Llulluchapampa

We will begin the day with a guided tour of Paucar Cancha complex. After the tour, we will be hiking on the Inca Trail. We will begin at Wayllabamba village. Our team of porters will be joining the expedition here. 

The campsite for the night will be at Llulluchapampa 3800m / 12460 ft. It is the closest campsite to Dead Woman’s Pass. Climbing up to the campsite we’ll pass through various microclimates and it is the second coldest campsite.

Day 5Llulluchapampa – Dead Woman's Pass - Chaquicocha

We will begin the day with an organic breakfast. Then we will be hiking up the hill for five hours to the highest point of the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, Dead Woman’s pass locally known as Warmi Wanusca at (4215 meters/13779 feet).

This is the most challenging part of the Inca Trail. We will have a short break here so you can rest and rejuvenate. 

We will then start hiking for two hours down the hill through original Inca steps amidst the cloud forest. These are quite steep steps. We will then reach our campsite for lunch. 

After lunch, we will be hiking for another two hours up the hill. On our way, we will be stopping at different Inca sites. 

The popular ones are Runkurakay and Sayamarca. From Sayamarca it’s a 30 minutes hike to our exclusive campsite in Chaquicocha.

Day 6Chaquicocha - Phuyupatamarca - Wiñaywayna

After relishing a typical breakfast, we will begin the third day of this 4 Day Inca Trail Hike to Machu Picchu by hiking to the last mountain pass, Phuyupatamarca. This is the best area to witness the highland flora and fauna. 

In Quechua, Phuyupatamarca means  “City in the Clouds” and IntiPata ” Sun above the terraces” . 

We will then stop for lunch at our campsite. After lunch we will hike to the iconic site, Winay Wayña “Forever Young”. This is one of the interesting sites on the Inca Trail. After a guided tour of the ruins we will walk back to our campsite for dinner.

After dinner, we will be bidding goodbye to our porters. 

Day 7Wiñay Wayna - Machu Picchu - Cusco

The highlight of the Salkantay Inca Trail Trek. We will be leaving the campsite early in the morning to Inti Punku or Sun gate. You will get the first sight of Machu Picchu citadel from here. 

We will then hike down to the citadel. We will be giving you a two hours guided tour. After the tour, you will have some free time to explore the citadel on your own. If you have booked to hike Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu mountains, our guide will be directing you to the trail head. 

After exploring Machu Picchu, you will be taking a bus back to Aguas Calientes. Here we will be serving lunch at a local restaurant. At around 04:00 PM, we will be taking a train back to Ollantaytambo in Sacred Valley

Our representative will be meeting you on arrival and will be transferring you back to your hotel in Cusco. We will be returning to Cusco by 09:30 PM.

Photos

What Our Customers Say About Us

Each review from our users is important to continue growing and offering the best service to each of our clients. Our priority will always be that you enjoy your trip to the fullest while our professional team works to fulfill it.

  • star rating  The 1-day trip to Machu Picchu was very well organized!
    Our vacation was great to the land of the Incas in Perú with Gringo Tours.

    We strongly recommend traveling... read more

    avatar thumb 986nayelliv
    February 5, 2023

    star rating  We had a dream of hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu and were unable to get permit so ended up doing thjis. This is genuinely the best alternative as... read more

    avatar thumb nelsonj820
    February 3, 2023

    star rating  We booked Machu Picchu tour 1 day from Cusco with Happy Gringo. The tour was very well organized, our pick up was on time, the train had good panoramic views,... read more

    avatar thumb Benitha10
    January 23, 2023

    star rating  The views and history were amazing and the guide (Rubens) was incredibly passionate and knowledgeable. It was great to learn about the culture and history from his eyes.... read more

    avatar thumb 396matthewe
    January 11, 2023
  • star rating  Great Experience with Happy Gringos!

    My family had difficulty to find a travel agent to book the Machu Picchu tour, however the workers of Gringo Tours were very helpful... read more

    avatar thumb Atomk2044
    January 11, 2023

    star rating  I bought the service at the very last minute, when other big tours could not provide the service due to insufficient participants (most people canceled for the political unrest that... read more

    avatar thumb Gofar T
    December 31, 2022

    star rating  We booked the tour at the last minute. But we are still able to make it to Machu Picchu. Our guide Eder is interesting and knowledgeable. Highly recommend this tour!... read more

    avatar thumb Nora a
    December 22, 2022

    star rating  An unforgettable, majestic experience to one of the Seven Wonders of the World - Despite the distances involved, from beginning to end, the trip was very well-organized and everything happened according to plan. The tour guide at the destination was very insightful and answered... read more

    avatar thumb Derick L
    December 22, 2022
  • star rating  An unforgettable, majestic experience to one of the Seven Wonders of the World - Despite the distances involved, from beginning to end, the trip was very well-organized and everything happened according to plan. The tour guide at the destination was very insightful and answered... read more

    123derickl
    December 22, 2022

    star rating  Highly recommended - We booked the tour at the last minute. But we are still able to make it to Machu Picchu. Our guide Eder is interesting and knowledgeable. Highly recommend this tour!... read more

    noraaM4722CJ
    December 22, 2022

    star rating  Even though we had news that the train may not be in operation to Picchu, we would have expected the local operator to contact us and give us updates. We... read more

    avatar thumb Mike D
    December 19, 2022

    star rating  An Impressive 2-day trail to Machu Picchu :)(: - We booked the Inca trail to Machu Picchu 2 days with Gringo Tours!

    The communication was great, the pick up was on time, the box lunch was very delicious,... read more

    Olgha098
    December 19, 2022
  • star rating  We highly recommend traveling to Machupichu with Gringo tours in Peru!
    We booked the 2 days tour to Machu Picchu. The service was very well organised from Cusco, the Communication... read more

    avatar thumb humberth01
    December 15, 2022

    star rating  The trip was amazing. The views were out of this world. I want to give a specially shoutout and thanks to Mauro. He did an amazing job. Explained the history... read more

    avatar thumb Lxrsd
    December 10, 2022

    star rating  Was really worried about this tour because the night before I found out I’d be the only one going BUR the tour company made me feel super safe and my... read more

    avatar thumb Billie N
    December 2, 2022

    star rating  Lifetime Experience with Gringo Tours - We book the Machu Picchu tour with gringo tours. We strongly recommend how they work and did their best to find our Machu Picchu ticket when all the travel agencies... read more

    Wilbert0122
    November 26, 2022