Short Salkantay Trek 4 Days: 4-Day Full-Service Salkantay Trek To Machu Picchu: Scenic Adventure
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Short Salkantay Trek 4 Days: 4-Day Full-Service Salkantay Trek To Machu Picchu: Scenic Adventure
If you are interested in doing the Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu in the Peruvian Andes, Refugios Salkantay offers a complete service from start to finish to ensure an unforgettable experience. It also includes a professional guide during the hike.
The service starts with pick up from your hotel in the city of Cusco on the first day and drop off back at the hotel at the end of the fourth day. During the hike, you only need to carry a light backpack with your essentials, while your belongings will be transported by horses.
In the Salkantay Trek, it is common to suffer from altitude sickness and fatigue, but the local families of Refugios Salkantay provide support by offering saddle horses and transportation in specific stretches at no additional cost. In addition, the private rooms with bathrooms provided by local families ensure the comfort and relaxation of hikers.
The experience with Refugios Salkantay also includes the opportunity to experience traditional Inca cuisine, including dishes such as pachamanca, an ancestral cooking technique that uses hot stones to cook meats and vegetables.
Refugios Salkantay and the local families cater to all dietary needs and preferences, ensuring a comfortable and enjoyable hike to Machu Picchu. And if you have any special needs, the Refugios Salkantay team will be happy to tailor their service to your needs.
In addition, entrance tickets to Machu Picchu are included in the package, as well as the return train to the city of Cusco on the fourth day. This means that you won't have to worry about organizing logistical details, as everything will be managed by the Refugios Salkantay team.
In summary, if you are looking for an authentic experience on the Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu, the complete service of Refugios Salkantay is the best option. With accommodation in private rooms, local assistance, and adaptation to dietary needs, all you need to do is enjoy the beautiful hike and local culture on the way to Machu Picchu.
Tour Price Per Person
$620USD
4 Days / 3 Nights
Short Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu
Trip Details Salkantay Trek
Humantay Lake 4,200 m. / 13,779 ft.
Humantay Lake 4,200 m. / 13,779 ft.
Soraypampa 3,850 m. / 12,631 ft.
Salkantay Pampa 4,154 m. / 13,625 ft.
Salkantay Pass 4,638 m. / 15,213 ft.
Lucmabamba Coffe 2,135 n. / 7,003 ft.
Coffe time, Lucmabamba 2,420 m. / 7,938 ft.
Llactapata camp 2,736 m. / 8,974 ft.
Hidroelectric hike 1,771 m. / 5,809 ft.
Machu Picchu 7,872 m. / 2,400 ft.
Salkantay Trek, Hike to Machu Picchu
4 DAYS - 03 NIGHTSWe will give you an authentic experience that goes beyond an incredible trek through the Andes that takes you to Machu Picchu. At Salkantay Refuges, each family that will attend you has a lot of Andean history and culture to share and try delicious Peruvian food.
This condensed itinerary showcases the highlights of the 5-Day Salkantay Trek, taking you on a journey through diverse landscapes, from majestic mountains to stunning lagoons and glaciers.
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DAY 01
Cusco - Challacancha - Soraypampa (Laguna Humantay)
Start your exciting adventure to Machu Picchu in our private vehicle, which will pick you up from your hotel between 4:50 and 5:00 am. After a journey of approximately 2.5 hours, you will arrive in the community of Mollepata, where my family will welcome you at the "La Casona" restaurant. There, you will have the pleasure of meeting the founder of "Refugios Salkantay", Mercedes Sotelo, who will serve you a delicious breakfast with her personal touch. After breakfast, we will take you in our comfortable van to Challacancha, a picturesque village just one hour away.
Your professional guide will greet you and accompany you throughout the journey to ensure a safe and enriching experience.
We will start our exciting hike to our first lodge in Soraypampa, which will take us approximately 2 hours. During the first section of the hike, your expert guide will accompany you to explain the mountains surrounding the trail and show you an ancient aqueduct that still supplies water to nearby valleys and agricultural areas (7 kilometers - 4.35 miles).
Upon arriving at the lodge, you will be welcomed with a hot coca tea and accompanied to your private room with a private bathroom. After settling in, you will enjoy an authentic Inca culinary experience using ancestral cooking techniques with hot stones, where delicious and nutritious meats and vegetables are cooked (we cater to all dietary needs and preferences).
After a hearty lunch, we will take a short acclimatization hike to the spectacular Laguna de Tukarhuay, which will take us approximately 3 hours. You will enjoy stunning views of the Tukarhuay Glacier, also known as the Humantay Glacier, with the majestic Salkantay Glacier as a backdrop, one of the most sacred mountains in Inca mythology (the "Apu" Salkantay), reaching a height of 6200 meters / 20,341 feet. After returning to the lodge, we will enjoy a snack and a delicious dinner. This exciting journey will allow you to acclimatize for the rest of the hike. Rest up and get ready for what's to come on the next day!Starting elevation: 3,380 metres / 11,089 feet.Highest elevation (humantay lake ): 4,300 metres /14,107 feet.OVERNIGHT: Refugios Salkantay: 3,850 metres /12,631 feet.Approximate night-time (outside) temperature at the lodge: 0 - 5°C.
Food (Lunch - Dinner)WifiHot showerCell phone chargingBedModerate (10 km / 6,20mil)Towels5 hours -
DAY 02
Soraypampa - Salkantay Pass - Lucmabamba (Homestay)
We'll wake you up at 5:00 am with a coca tea, followed by a delicious breakfast waiting for you in our dining area at 5:30 am.
We'll begin our hike at 6:00 am, climbing up the highest point of the trail, Salkantay Pass (4650 m/15255 ft). It's a 7 km (4.34 miles) steep ascent that will take approximately 3 hours from the rocky valley base to the magnificent Salkantay mountain (6271 m / 20574 ft). You only need to carry a small daypack, as the families of Refugios will take care of the rest of the luggage. If you feel the effects of altitude or fatigue during the climb, don't worry, we'll have a saddle horse available for you at no extra cost. (The horse comes with a complete first aid kit and an oxygen tank).
Your guide will also have a satellite radio for any emergency communication needed. Once we reach the summit, we can catch our breath and enjoy the stunning views of the surrounding valleys and towering snow-capped peaks of Salkantay, Humantay, and Tucarhuay. Salkantay mountain is the second-highest peak in the Cusco region.
After reaching the highest point of the trek, we'll descend for approximately 2 hours to the town of Huayracmachay, where we'll have a delicious lunch and a short rest.
In the afternoon, we'll continue walking with our guide into the high Amazon cloud forest. It's a downhill hike of approximately 10 km (6.2 miles) that will take about 3 hours. This is a wide trail that passes through an area of dense vegetation with plenty of tree cover. It's an incredibly beautiful part of the trek, with a diverse flora and fauna, panoramic views, and native plants and flowers. The forests are typically warm and tropical throughout the year, with high temperatures at certain times of the year. We'll arrive at the town of Chalway (2900 meters / 9514 ft).
Upon arrival at Chalway, our private vehicle will be waiting to take us to the Lucmabamba Refuge, approximately 1 hour away. The local family will warmly welcome us and show us our rooms before enjoying a family dinner with local ingredients.Starting elevation: 3850m /12631 feet.Max elevation: 4660m / 15,288 feet.OVERNIGHT: Lucmabamba Lodge: 2400 metres / 7874 feet.We include an emergency horse if altitude sickness affects you or if you are very tired, during the most difficult section (soraypampa - Salkantay Pass)Weather: Cold
Food (Breakfast - Lunch - Dinner)WifiHot showerCell phone chargingBedChallenging (22 km / 13,67mil)Towels9 hours -
DAY 03
Lucmabamba (Homestay) - Llactapata - Hydroelectric Station - Aguas Calientes
Our local family will wake you up early with a cup of hot coffee, followed by an interactive cultural experience. You'll have the opportunity to process your own organic coffee and taste one of the best coffees in the world. The families will teach us traditional methods for roasting and grinding coffee beans. Then we'll continue through the banana, granadilla, yucca, and avocado plantations.
Start of the trail
We'll have a 2 to 3-hour ascent with our guide, who will keep us informed about the culture, traditions, and landscapes surrounding us, with spectacular views over the Santa Teresa valley, until we reach the Llactapata Pass and descend for a few minutes to the ruins of Llactapata... right in front of Machu Picchu!
This will be the first archaeological site on the way to the mysterious lost city of the Incas. After visiting the Llactapata ruins, we'll continue our hike on a descent of approximately 2 hours. During this part of the descent, we'll have a continuous view of Machu Picchu until we reach the Hydroelectric Station, where we'll have lunch.
After lunch, we'll head to the "Intiwatana" or sun clock, a famous and ancient rock that was used as a clock during the Inca era. According to history, this "Intiwatana" worked in conjunction with the famous sundial inside the Machu Picchu site.
The people used these 2 stones to estimate the times of the winter solstice, which is when the new agricultural cycle began, a very important time of year for the Incas. After visiting this Inca site, we'll arrive at the train tracks that lead to the town of Aguas Calientes.
Here, we'll have 2 options: 1: If you're tired, you can take the train to Aguas Calientes ($31.00 USD extra) which is a 30-minute ride. 2: We'll have a 3-hour hike to Aguas Calientes. Our designated hotel will be waiting for us to check in and enjoy a hot shower. Our large luggage will be waiting for us as well.
Starting Elevation – 2450 m / 8038 feetAguas Calientes Elevation – 2000 m / 6561 feet
Food (Breakfast - Lunch)WifiHot showerCell phone chargingHotel BedChallenging (25 km / 15,53mil)Towels9 hours -
DAY 04
Machu Picchu – Return to Cusco
We'll have an early breakfast to make the most of the day. Your guide will come to your hotel to take the shuttle bus to Machu Picchu, which takes about 30 minutes. Once inside Machu Picchu, you can visit the main lookout point. Here you can take your idyllic postcard photos of Machu Picchu.
After watching the sunrise (if weather permits), we'll begin our guided tour that will last approximately 3 hours. You'll visit the most important sites and temples within the archaeological site, and during your tour, you'll learn more about the history and culture of the Incas and the Inca empire. At the end of the tour, you'll have time to take photos, or if you have booked a permit to climb Huayna Picchu/ Machu Picchu Mountain, to climb your respective mountain. These permits must be booked in advance. After climbing the mountain, you can walk to the Sun Gate (approximately 1.5 hours) or even to the Inca Bridge (45 minutes).
We suggest that you return to Aguas Calientes 2 hours before your train's departure time. The train ride is approximately 2 hours to get to Ollantaytambo. We reserve train schedules for our clients between 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm.
In Ollantaytambo, our driver will be waiting for you at the train station's exit to take you on a 2-hour car ride to your hotel in the city of Cusco, We'll drop you off at the door of your hotel. Note: The Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain tickets are subject to availability. Please consult your Refugios Salkantay specialist for more details when making your reservation.Approximately 4 hours.Machu Picchu: Easy to moderate.
Food (Breakfast)EasyStore Luggage at Hotel
Tour Price Per Person
$620USD
4 Days / 3 Nights
Short Salkantay Trek (Full Service)
