Tips Visiting Machu Picchu and Huayna Picchu

To get to Machu Picchu, we hopped on a train from Cusco to Aguas Calientes, which is located at the base of the mountain where Machu Picchu sits. The train ride there was peaceful with views of the Urubamba River and beautiful green mountains.

When you reach Aguas Calientes, you notice restaurants lining the streets with people trying to lure you in. We quickly figured out that most of the restaurants have the same menu, so it didn’t really matter where you ate. I’d recommend picking one where you can sit upstairs by a window or terrace and enjoy the views.

Keep in mind it rains a lot there so have a rain jacket ready! We stayed in Terraza De Luna hotel (click pic above). It was peaceful and offered breakfast on the rooftop in the mornings. Breakfast included eggs and bread, nothing too fancy but got the job done. The rooms were quiet and included comfy beds and a nice bathroom. Warning…there’s no hot water in the mornings because it seems like everyone in the hotel showers at that time. Your best bet is to take a shower before you go to bed….if you want hot water anyway.

Paul was by far the most enthusiastic guide we encountered during our trip to Peru! We first met him in Cusco and asked him to come along for Machu Picchu. If you’re traveling to the Cusco area, you need Paul to take you around and tell you about all the sites! Click Paul's pic to get in touch! He joined us in Aguas Calientes to take us on a tour of Machu Picchu. We purchased the Circuit 4 tickets so we could also hike Huayna Picchu (click map below). With his help, he got us in line for the bus tickets to ride up to Machu Picchu. My advice would be to get your bus tickets about an hour or two before your ticket time into Machu Picchu. We didn’t realize how long the line could get, thankfully Paul was on it for us! We hopped on the bus and were off to the top of Machu Picchu.

Circuit 4 Map:

During Inca times, the winter solstice was known as the Festival of the Sun. At dawn, when first light rises over the distant mountains, it shines through one of the two windows of the Temple of the Sun and illuminates the ceremonial stone within. The second window illuminates with sun rays during Summer Solstice. The Temple of the Sun was used to honor the Inca deity. During our tour, Paul pointed out many of the important sites such as the Temple of the Sun, the Water Mirrors, and the Temple of 3 Windows.

We wandered through the ruins and made our way to the Huayna Picchu entrance. You sign a book before you begin the trek. It's good to make sure you have shoes on with some sort of grip, sneakers or hiking boots. It took our group about an hour or more to get all the way to the top. It was not easy but worth the climb! The view looking down on Machu Picchu was astounding! We stayed at the top for a while snapping pictures. Oddly enough there are a lot of flies at the top…..I mean a lot! Bring bug spray and expect to maybe inhale one.

After we got our fill of views, we headed back down. It rained a little on our way up, so it was a little slippery going down. The Inca steps steps into the mountain; however, a lot of them are narrow so you must take it easy down. Going down wasn’t as hard since we were no longer climbing in an altitude we weren’t adjusted to but we made it down in much less time than it took to go up. When you reach the exit back to Machu Picchu, you sign the book to show you exited the area....this way a search party won't be looking for you after hours.

It’s worth noting that there are control points all throughout the site with guides (chewing coca leaves) telling you which section is open to visit. If you’ve seen pictures of Machu Picchu from years ago, chances are you saw a million people piled on top of each other. Since COVID, that’s not the case. We were the only ones in large sections of the ruins, and it was so quiet! You can get much better pictures without a million raincoats in them now!

When we completed our tour, we returned to our hotel to pick up our luggage and head back to the train station. The train ride back was the most entertaining train ride we've had! There was a fashion show and a band playing in the front car. We had fun with the music and danced around. The ride went by so fast with all the entertainment.

We went back to Cusco and toured around the city for a few more days. Stay tuned to learn more about Cusco sites!