Machupicchu

The enigmatic mp is quite easy to reach. Well at least once you know about it. You either hike up  as part of a trek that ends in Machupicchu or bus it up from this dingy little base town called Aguas Calientes. No bonus for guessing that it has hot water springs (for language nerds alone!)

The toughest part of Machupicchu - getting hold of the bloody entry tickets: There are a total of 4000 tickets reserved for the site of Machupicchu each day. In addition to this there are another 200 tickets each to Waynapichu and Machupicchu mountains from where you get stunning views to Machupicchu on a clear day. If you are anything like us, paranoid about doing all the main bookings in advance, you are better off booking tickets to the site at least 4-5 months in advance and 6-8 months if you also want to hike up one of the peaks during high season. Don't kill yourself even if you do just the site. It is still mind numbingly good (better with peaks, of course). In the low season your planning cycle can be as low as 1-1.5 months in advance. We did just that.

Alpaca in action!

The slopes at Machupicchu

To trek to Machupicchu, the most famous one is the Inca trail (closed on February for maintenance) and is a 3 day trek which ends in MP. There are other alternate treks such as Salkantay and Ausangate which are also popular. Most treks usually start from the town of Ollantaytambo. The Inca trail only has 400 tickets a day and gets booked out quickly (needs booking 5-6 months in advance)

The easiest and hassle free way to do MP is to go through a local travel agency. We chose Golden Treks Peru and were very happy with their service. If you go for a different agency, keep in mind the inclusions and exclusions as they tend to squeeze you there. If you do the math of total costs, what most of them charge is quite reasonable as it is a very competitive market.

Machupicchu in all its glory!

Costs of Machupicchu: stay overnight in AC
and get to mp in the morning
MP entrance ticket: $50
Bus between mp and Aguascalientes (return): $24 (you can also hike up and down but best to save your energy for the top - you are gonna need it)
Overnight stay and dinner in AC: $25-35
Collectivo from Ollantaytambo to AC: $10 (train optional)
Journey back to cusco by local transport: $15

Optionals:

Waynapichu: $10

Train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes (one way): $50

Guide: $15-20 for a private one and $2 if you manage to find a shared one. Can usually be found at the entrance. You don't need a guide to get into mp but I strongly recommend it.

I would recommend that you don't bother about individual bookings, but just suck it up and book through an agency. Doing each of the individual bookings from outside Peru is a nightmare as Machupicchu's official website and the train websites do not accept non-Peruvian cards. Note that we had seen a day trip to MP from Cusco at as low as $100 or less which are mostly last minute cancellations. But don't bank on it if you are going all the way from India.