"Magical Machu Picchu in Rainy Season" Top 5 Page for this destination Machu Picchu by AKtravelers

Machu Picchu Travel Guide: 647 reviews and 1,786 photos

Flowers brighten Machu Picchu despite the clouds

Beautiful in all weather

Machu Picchu is everything we thought it would be, even in the rainy season. You can look at pictures of this iconic destination for years, but you will still be in awe when you see the real ruins spread out before you from the first Inca guardhouse. What an amazing and beautiful place.
And the rainy season just added to that. Because we were warned that February was a very wet month, we planned three days at the ruins in order to improve our odds of enough dry exploring time. This proved to be prescient, as our first day was almost a total washout. But the rain stopped for day 2 and we even had bits of sun for our climb of Huayno Picchu on day 3. Meanwhile, the clouds added to the wonderful setting of this pre-conquest city.

Seeing the Big Picture...

A classic view of Mach Picchu from the guardhouse

Of course, if you want to see the famous views that you've always dreamed about since you first saw photos as a child, you have to come when there is no rain and the clouds are high. With three days at Machu Picchu, we had two such visits. When you enter the city by the first guard house, you are immediately impressed at the beautiful setting and the symetric layout of the urban areas.
The location of Machu Picchu is stupendous. It sits on a ridge between Machu Picchu Mountain and Huayno Picchu Mountain, and this ridge forms a high peninsula that is flanked on three sides by the angry Urubamba River 1500 meters below. In turn, the site is surrounded by mountains on all sides. Finally, it sits on a fault that provided a natural spring for the Incas, giving them the necessary water source to base their city on. From both a pre- and post-Columbian perspective, this place is perfect.

...Without Missing the Small Stuff

A centipede uses all its legs to climb the steps

One advantage of the low clouds and constant rain on the first day is that it forced us to pay attention to the details of Machu Picchu. The grand vistas were hidden, so the smaller delights were brought to the forefront. First of all, we got an appreciation for Incan water management, both how they handled the water they did want (aqueducts) and the water they didn't want (drainage). We learned first hand that thatched roofs can be quite effective. Looking past the man-made, we also noticed that this lush semi-tropical environment has interesting insects.
Finally, the rain gave us time to appreciate Aguas Calientes, the town at the base of Machu Picchu, and our wonderful hotel, the Machu Picchu Pueblo Inn. We got a chance to chat with the locals, though our Spanish often confused them: "Machu Picchu es bonito. Hoy tengo muchos heuevos (Machu Picchu is beautiful. Today we have a lot of eggs)". Yes, I kept confusing heuvos with luvia (rain).

Pros and Cons

Pros:A beautiful place, the climb of Huayno Picchu
Cons:Tour groups in the morning, the hike to Temple of the Moon

Last visit to Machu Picchu: Feb 2005
Intro Updated Feb 25, 2005
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Reviews (33)

Andrea passes through a Machu Picchu doorway - Machu Picchu

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Nightlife (2)
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Temple of the Moon = Temple of Blues
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See All Your "GOODBYE!!" from Machu Picchu
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Comments (12)

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Kristymamoo Jul 16, 2007 at 6:33 AM

Hi there! I felt I wanted to stop by your pages again - I didn't visit this one last time. Machu Picchu looks fascinating - fabulous pictures too!! Hope all is well in Kailua. Kristy :-)
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staindesign Oct 26, 2006 at 7:56 AM

A fantastic page! Great information! All of your photos are really beautiful, so i guess it is right that every picture taken at MP is beautiful!
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blaird Sep 6, 2006 at 8:06 AM

excellent tips, you have done a great job...I get quite excited reading about Machu Pichu!
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shadan Jun 24, 2006 at 11:57 PM

Thank you so much for sharing info n pics about MP. I would love to go there some day.
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kimberbakos Apr 26, 2006 at 6:03 PM

I"ve dreamed of visiting MP since I was little - thanks for taking me one step closer with your wonderful pictures (and you are right about it looking like the mtns of China in your pics)
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chodearm Jul 19, 2005 at 6:02 AM

I have to go here, but keep myself in one piece.
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Robdaz Jul 10, 2005 at 6:31 PM

Amazing photos of MP. It is on top of my wish lists..thanks for sharing! Rob
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JetlagCity May 20, 2005 at 1:42 PM

Your hummingbird travelogue is spectacular! You've convinced me it will be worth it to spurge on this hotel for the one night we'll be at Machu Picchu : )
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ana_21 Mar 26, 2005 at 12:19 PM

really interesting page and pictures!
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butterfly_girl Mar 22, 2005 at 6:31 AM

Wonderful page on Machu Picchu...thank you for the info...I can't wait to go there.