The Inca Trail is one of the most famous multi-day hikes on the planet. The four-day, three-night itinerary takes adventurers through the rugged landscapes of the Peruvian Andes and ends in the iconic ancient city of Machu Picchu, one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Anyone who hikes there will tell you that it is much more than just a hike: it is truly a unique experience and a journey through history and culture. If you have the opportunity, grab it with both hands!
Personally, it exceeded all my expectations, but I definitely learned some lessons along the way. So if you’re planning to hike the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, here’s everything you need to know to make the most of your time in the Peruvian mountains.
Preview
Distance: 42km. This is a point-to-point hike.
Duration: Usually four days and three nights. If you book a shorter trek, you will not complete the full Inca Trail.
Difficulty: Moderately difficult. The high altitude, steep climbs and long days of hiking mean you need to be strong, fit and resilient to complete this trek.
Time of year: The dry season from May to October. High season is from June to August. We went in May and avoided a lot of crowds, but still had wonderful weather.
How to do it: You must book well in advance with an approved tour operator in order to obtain one of the limited permits.
19 Things You Need to Know Before Hiking the Inca Trail:
It’s not an easy journey.
The Inca Trail is not a route I would recommend to someone who is not physically fit or has never hiked in the past. In short, it’s not for beginners. There are steep, difficult climbs at high altitudes, long days on your feet, and a distinct lack of home comforts. You’ll need physical strength and mental resilience to achieve this, but it’s the most rewarding when you do!
Yesyou must book well in advance and obtain a permit.
Since 2002, all hikers doing the Inca Trail must follow an approved, organized and approved circuit. Independent hikers are not permitted. I personally recommend Intrepid as they have excellent porter ethics. Only 500 people are allowed to walk the Inca Trail per day (around 200 tourists and 300 porters and guides), and permits to do so sell out very quickly. But don’t worry, your travel agent will take care of this for you, just make sure you book as early as possible. Once you have booked an Inca Trail hike, you cannot change the name or dates on the permit.
It is a 4 day itinerary.
This varies slightly by company, but here’s what our daily distances looked like:
Day 1: 11km. Elevation gain of 550 mm. An easy to moderate training day to help with acclimatization.
Day 2: 12km. 1200m of positive altitude difference. On the toughest day, you conquer some serious elevations as you tackle the famous Dead Woman’s Pass. The descent on the other side is also quite steep!
Day 3: 13km. 600m of positive altitude difference. Generally pretty easy. A spicy climb and a long descent of more than 1000 m in altitude, which can be hard on the knees. It’s a special day because you pass a whole series of Inca ruins.
Day 4: 5km. 170m difference in altitude. The shortest and easiest day to get to Machu Picchu.
If I have any advice, it’s to go very slowly. Altitude takes its toll on this hike, so take it as slowly as possible and take plenty of breaks. It can be very difficult to catch your breath once you’ve lost it.
The campsites are simple.
You will sleep in a tent, without access to electricity or hot water. This varies between tour operators depending on where they camp, but for us cold showers were available at campsites 2 and 3. However, it is so cool at night that a cold shower is not always a good idea. Most people simply washed using the small basin of lukewarm water given to us morning and evening. That, combined with some facial wipes, made me feel pretty fresh!
Toilets can be interesting.
On the first day you can access a fairly clean public toilet for a small fee, but after that the situation gets a bit worse. Public toilets become free from the second day, but they are questionable to say the least and to be honest, I preferred going out into nature rather than using them. The good news is that our tour company has installed pop-up chemical toilets at every lunch and camping spot. They were small but functional and did the job. Oh, and don’t forget to bring tissues with you!
You will be off-grid.
There’s no phone signal for most of the hike, so enjoy a little digital detox. There is also no electricity, so I highly recommend bringing a few portable chargers to keep your camera and phone charged.
You must have your passport with you.
They will check it when you start the Inca Trail and also when you arrive at Machu Picchu. If, like me, you have obtained a new passport since purchasing your license, then you must bring either a copy of your old passport or a photo of it.
The food is amazing.
I was absolutely amazed by the quality of the food we served on the Inca Trail! Our chefs have concocted a real feast. We had a cooked breakfast, a 3-course lunch, afternoon tea/snack and a 3-course dinner each day. The meals were delicious and well balanced with plenty of vegetables and all dietary needs were met. You just need to let them know about the trek in advance, as they plan and pack all the ingredients before leaving.
Bring snacks.
Your travel agency might offer a few snacks each day, but those didn’t really suit my personal taste. You can also buy a few (very expensive) snacks on the first and second day of the trek from local vendors, which are usually chocolate bars and Gatorade. If you want something else, I highly recommend bringing your own energy bars, protein bars, and electrolytes to stay fueled.
It’s very cold at night.
Although the days can be hot (we walked in shorts and vests every day), the evenings get very cold. I highly recommend bringing hats, gloves, thermals and layers. A good tip we used was to fill our water bags and bottles with warm water and then place them in our sleeping bags to warm them up before entering. The second night it’s especially cold, so I recommend sleeping with your technology (like phones and cameras) inside your sleeping bag to keep their batteries working.
There are early mornings and early evenings.
Most days, you’re awake at 5 a.m., start your hike at 6:30 p.m., and are in bed by 8 p.m. However, on the final morning, when you ascend to Machu Picchu itself, you will be awakened at 3 a.m., then wait in a shelter next to the entrance gates until 5:30 a.m. (sunrise), when which you will be allowed to enter. porters to catch an early train home, which is the least you can do after they have supported you throughout such a difficult journey!
It’s a busy trail, but you won’t experience it every day.
We had a peaceful experience on the Inca Trail, really only seeing other hikers at lunch and camping spots. The main time we really felt the crowds was the last morning, when we were all waiting at the shelter to start the hike to Machu Picchu. It was hit! And then on the trail itself, it was like everyone was rushing to try to get to the front.
We decided to leave this battle and walk slowly and steadily back, enjoying the views on our way to the ancient city. Ultimately, it doesn’t go anywhere and there’s no real reason to try to get there first! Even if you get there before everyone else, you’ll be joined by the rest of the crowd within minutes. So you might as well enjoy the trip and take the stress out of the situation.
Take money.
I took about 500 soles. This is mainly to tip the porters, chefs and guides at the end of the trek. You can ask the company for their tipping recommendations, as these vary. We ended up exceeding all recommendations because we couldn’t have hiked the Inca Trail without the amazing team and we want to show them our appreciation. In addition to tipping well, I also recommend making sure you book with a company that has strong ethics regarding the treatment of its porters and team members, like Intrepid.
What you wear matters.
Make sure you have well-worn, comfortable and practical equipment. This will make a huge difference in your comfort and experience on your hike. If you’re wondering what to pack, check out my guide here.
Machu Picchu is huge.
Once you get there, it can be a bit overwhelming. After spending four days off-grid in the mountains, you suddenly find yourself thrust into a crowd of thousands of clean people all exploring the same gigantic ancient city. There’s so much to see and do, with four different self-guided “tours” that tourists can follow. Your local guide can show you the best, take you on a walk through the ruins and tell you about Inca culture. Enjoy them, these moments are the fruit of your work!
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Travel safely,
Zanna x