Llactapata Trek, 3 Days
The Inca road to Llactapata, without ever going above Cusco
- 3 days
- 2,700 m max
- Challenging
- Cusco to Cusco
Ziplines and hot springs on day one, then twenty-four kilometres on an original Inca path to the Llactapata ruins and their view of Machu Picchu across the valley. The highest point is 2,700 m — seven hundred metres below Cusco.
Every route to Machu Picchu asks something of you. Most of them ask for altitude — a pass at 4,630 m on Salkantay, 4,215 m on the Inca Trail, and two or three days of acclimatising in Cusco before you can safely attempt either.
This one does not. The highest point of the whole trek is Llactapata at 2,700 m, which is lower than the hotel you slept in on your first night in Peru. What it asks for instead is one honest day’s walking — twenty-four kilometres, eight or nine hours, with three hours of Inca staircase at the start of it.
That trade suits more people than it sounds like it would. If you are fit enough for a long day on the hills at home but have been reading about soroche with some alarm, this is the trek that removes the part you are worried about and keeps the part you came for.
What you'll see
No altitude to speak of
The highest you walk is 2,700 m at Llactapata, and you sleep at 1,500 m and 2,000 m. For anyone who has read about soroche and would rather not find out, this is the trek that sidesteps it entirely.
Llactapata
An Inca site on the ridge facing Machu Picchu, reached on twelve kilometres of original Inca paving. You see the citadel from across the valley, from a viewpoint most visitors never hear of.
Five cables and a suspension bridge
The Lucmabamba zipline on the first afternoon, with a 300 m rope bridge hanging around 500 m above the ground.
Cocalmayo before dinner
Two hours in the thermal pools at Santa Teresa on day one, which is an unusual way to begin a trek and a very good one.
A dome, not a tent
Night one is a Sky Star dome at Lucmabamba, with glass walls and ceiling, a mattress, a pillow and a sleeping bag already in it. Night two is a hotel with a hot shower.
Small groups
Usually six to eight people, never more than twelve, with one guide who stays with you from the office in Cusco to the gate at Machu Picchu.
Llactapata Trek, 3 Days: day by day
Times are what we actually aim for, not a best case. Traffic into Cusco and the train timetable move them by a little.
Day 1
Cusco to Lucmabamba, by road, zipline and hot spring
A long drive and then an afternoon of things you did not expect to do on a trek. No walking to speak of, which is the point — day two needs your legs.
- 06:30Meet your guide and the group at our office by the Plaza Regocijo in Cusco, one block from the Plaza de Armas.
- 06:45The drive to Santa Teresa, about five hours through a remarkable sequence of landscapes.
- 13:00Santa Teresa at 1,500 m, and lunch at a local restaurant.
- 14:30Thirty minutes to Lucmabamba and the zipline — five cables strung between the mountainsides and a 300 m suspension bridge. An hour and a half to two hours.
- 16:30Thirty minutes to the Cocalmayo hot springs, and a couple of hours in the thermal pools. Entry is about 10 soles, paid there.
- 19:00Forty-five minutes to the Sky Star Domes, then dinner and a night under the glass.
- Meals
- Lunch and dinner
- Night
- Glass dome at the Lucmabamba lodge
Day 2
Coffee, the Inca road to Llactapata, and the railway into Aguas Calientes
The whole trek happens today — twenty-four kilometres and eight to nine hours, with three hours of climbing at the start and three flat hours beside the rails at the end.
- 06:00Breakfast at the lodge after a half past five alarm.
- 07:00Coffee with a local family, half an hour to forty-five minutes from the tree to the cup. Lucmabamba grows some of the best coffee in the region.
- 08:00The Llactapata Inca trail begins — twelve kilometres of original path, and about three hours of it uphill.
- 11:00The Llactapata ruins, with Machu Picchu across the valley and your guide explaining why a site was built to look at it from here.
- 12:00Two hours downhill to Hidroeléctrica, and a substantial lunch waiting at the bottom.
- 15:00Three hours beside the railway to Aguas Calientes, flat the whole way, through thick green.
- 18:00Into town at 2,000 m. Your guide walks you to the hotel and you get the shower you have earned.
- 19:00Dinner at a local restaurant and the briefing for the citadel.
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Night
- Hotel in Aguas Calientes
Day 3
Machu Picchu, then back to Cusco
Up to the gate for the hour on your ticket, around two hours inside with your guide, and a journey home that is short by rail or long by road.
- 04:00Breakfast at the hotel, timed against your entry hour.
- 04:30On foot — half an hour to the Puente Ruinas checkpoint, where they check your passport and ticket, then an hour and about 1,700 stone steps to the gate. The bus takes half an hour instead, for about £12 one way, running from 05:30 on a first-come basis.
- 06:00Through the gate at the time printed on your ticket.
- 06:15Guided tour of the citadel, roughly two hours depending on which circuit you were given, with time for photographs from the viewpoints your route allows.
- 08:30Your optional peak, if you booked one, or the start of the journey back.
- 15:00By rail — the afternoon train to Ollantaytambo and a transfer to Cusco. By road — you must leave the citadel by 11:00 to walk the three hours to Hidroeléctrica for the 15:00 vehicle.
- 18:30Dropped at our office by the Plaza Regocijo by train, or around 22:00 by road.
- Meals
- Breakfast
- Night
- Not included — you are back in Cusco
What the price covers
Before you set off
- Briefing at 18:30 the evening before, at our office in central Cusco, where you meet your guide and the group
- Your printed Machu Picchu ticket and train tickets, handed over at the briefing
- Your duffel bag for 7 kg of belongings, carried for you throughout
- Free storage of your main luggage in Cusco, available daily from 04:00 to 22:00
Transport
- Private transport from Cusco to Santa Teresa
- Transfers to the zipline, the hot springs and the lodge
- Your chosen return to Cusco, by train via Ollantaytambo or by road from Hidroeléctrica
Guiding and safety
- One certified guide, English and Spanish, from the office in Cusco to the gate at Machu Picchu
- A first-aid kit and an oxygen cylinder carried throughout
- Groups of six to eight as a rule, and never more than twelve
The activities
- The Lucmabamba zipline — five cables and the suspension bridge
- The coffee tour with a local family
- Guided walk of the Llactapata archaeological site
Where you sleep and what you eat
- One night in a Sky Star glass dome, with a mattress, pillow and sleeping bag provided
- One night in a hotel in Aguas Calientes, with private bathroom, hot shower, wifi and towels
- Two breakfasts, two lunches and two dinners, cooked by chefs travelling with the group
- Vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free at no extra cost, given notice
Machu Picchu
- Your entrance ticket, with Circuit 2 Route 2-A asked for first and Route 2-B next
- Guided tour of the citadel, whatever circuit and hour you are given
Not included
- Lunch on day three, after the citadel
- The bus up to the citadel gate, about £12 one way, unless you add it
- The Cocalmayo hot springs, about 10 soles at the gate
- Trekking poles, which you can hire from us
- Drinking water — hot and cold drinks come with every meal, but bottles are yours to buy
- Travel insurance
- Tips, which are genuinely optional
Llactapata Trek, 3 Days: prices and options
Add-ons
- +£50
Return by train instead of the road
The afternoon train to Ollantaytambo and a transfer. Cusco by half past six rather than ten at night.
- +£12
Bus up to the citadel gate
Half an hour instead of 1,700 steps at half past four in the morning. One way.
- +£10
Trekking poles
A pair for the whole trek. Day two's descent is where they earn it.
- +£45
Vistadome train, one leg
Panoramic glass roof from Machu Picchu Pueblo to Ollantaytambo. Train return only.
- +£60
Huayna Picchu
The peak behind the citadel, on day three. Train return required.
- +£60
Machu Picchu Mountain
Higher and longer than Huayna Picchu. Also requires the train return.
What to bring
Papers and money
- Your original passport, checked at Puente Ruinas and at the gate
- Your student card, if you are claiming the reduced rate
- Cash in soles for the hot springs, water and tips
- Your medication and any personal first aid
On your back
- A daypack — everything else goes in the duffel bag
- A refillable water bottle, and a filter or purification tablets if you would rather not buy bottles
- A head torch for the last morning
- A camera and a power bank
Clothes
- Walking boots or trail shoes with grip, already worn in
- Light, quick-drying clothes — this is a hot, humid trek, not a cold one
- A light waterproof jacket or a poncho
- A swimming costume and a quick-dry towel for Cocalmayo
- Something dry to change into at the lodge
Sun and skin
- High-factor sun cream
- Sunglasses with UV protection and a sun hat
- Insect repellent, and more of it than you think
- Lip balm
Questions we get asked
Why does the altitude matter so much here?
Because this is the only multi-day route to Machu Picchu we sell where altitude is essentially a non-issue. The highest ground you stand on is Llactapata at 2,700 m, which is about seven hundred metres below Cusco. You sleep at 1,500 m and then 2,000 m. Salkantay tops out at 4,630 m and the Inca Trail at 4,215 m. If altitude sickness is the thing putting you off a trek, this is the answer to it.
If the altitude is easy, why is it graded Challenging?
Because day two is twenty-four kilometres and eight to nine hours — three hours climbing on Inca stone, two hours down, and three more along the railway. It is all of the walking in one day. Days one and three ask almost nothing of you. It is a harder single day than anything on our Inca Trail trips, at a much friendlier altitude.
How is this different from your Salkantay treks?
It is the back half of Salkantay without the front half. You get Lucmabamba, the coffee, the zipline, Llactapata and the railway walk, but not the Humantay Lake morning and not the 4,630 m pass. Three days instead of four or five, no camping above the treeline, and no altitude. If the glaciers are what you came for, take Salkantay. If it is the cloud forest and the Inca road, take this.
How is it different from the Inca Jungle?
No bike and no rafting. Both trips zipline at Lucmabamba, bathe at Cocalmayo and walk the railway into town, but the Inca Jungle spends its first day riding sixty kilometres down from Abra Málaga and rafting the Urubamba, while this one drives straight to Santa Teresa and puts its effort into the Llactapata Inca path instead.
What is Llactapata, exactly?
An Inca settlement on the ridge across the valley from Machu Picchu, on the old road between them. Its interest is partly the ruins and mostly the position — it was built where it was so that the citadel could be seen from it, and that is still the reason to walk up there. Do not confuse it with the Patallacta on the Classic Inca Trail, which is a different site with a similar name.
Do I have to walk up to the citadel on the last morning?
Only if you do not add the bus. On foot it is half an hour to the checkpoint and then about 1,700 stone steps, leaving the hotel around half past four. The bus takes thirty minutes. After day two, most people take the bus, and we would not argue with them.
Which return should I choose?
The train, unless the budget says otherwise. It has you in Cusco by half past six in the evening. The road means leaving the citadel by eleven in the morning to walk three hours back to Hidroeléctrica, then six or seven hours in a vehicle, arriving about ten at night. There is a real catch as well — the road return only works if your Machu Picchu entry time is between 06:00 and 09:00. With a later slot there is not enough day, and you would have to pay for another night in Aguas Calientes. We will tell you your entry hour before you commit.
Which circuit at Machu Picchu will I get?
We ask for Circuit 2, Route 2-A, which takes in the classic panoramic viewpoint and about seventy per cent of the citadel, then Route 2-B, which has the same viewpoint and around sixty per cent. If neither is available we book the best remaining route and tell you which. Booking three to four months ahead is what improves the odds.
How much do I carry?
A daypack. Up to 7 kg goes in the duffel bag we give you at the briefing, and that is moved for you. Your main luggage stays in our Cusco office, stored free.
Is there a reduced rate for students or children?
Yes. Children aged 8 to 17 and university students pay about £20 less per person. The student rate needs an original university card meeting the Ministry of Culture's requirements, and you must be 25 or under — send us a photograph of both sides when you book.
Can I come on my own?
Yes, and departures run daily. Groups are small and international, and there is no single supplement to walk.
When is the best time to come?
May to September is driest and firmest underfoot. April and October are quieter and usually fine. Between December and March the cloud forest is at its greenest and its wettest, and the Inca paving on day two gets slippery — good boots stop being advice and start being necessary.
Ask us about Llactapata Trek, 3 Days
Tell us your dates and we'll come back with availability, the circuit we'd recommend, and a firm price. No deposit to ask, and we answer within one working day.