"Latest info about Machu P ..." a Machu Picchu Travel Page by kzapanta

Hello all.
There are tons of info. already posted by other VTers about Machu Picchu so there is no need to redo them.
I just want to post things that I thought would have been nice to know as an update to old information. Like costs, the new Agua Caliente, trains...

Update: You can now book train tickets online. Finally.
You cannot buy tickets as you 'walk up' at the gate. Only at the
Visitor center in Agua Caliente now.

Check each tip if you feel like its worth while. Especially if you are going for the first time.

In all: Its a great place to get to. Worth being in your list of things to visit and do. Do it now instead of later because its quickly becoming more tainted by the effect of tourism.

Though my tips and summary below look negative, my experience has been great. And I advise anyone reading this, obviously you are planning to go or reading up to plan to go, to make the trip and go. It will be amazing. I'm just writing what I wish someone would have wrote to prepare me for this part of my trip. So it will look negative but its just warnings.

If you are planninig your first trip to Machu Picchu here's the summary:

1. Inca trail hiking to Machu Picchu- mandatory to have a guide (pay a guide that a resonably experienced hiker can do on their own), expensive permit and guide costs. It was packed. Pros: you do it for the novelty of getting to hike the Inca trail like the Incans used to do. (but they didn't have porters or recently built buildings ON THE TRAIL for "tourists" to feel more civilized and comfortable.)

2. Entrance to Machu Picchu built by Incas not the Peruvian govt.- 119.50 soles. That is close to $40 dollars. Considerable cost increase from years ago. And you have to pay in cash, soles only! Get money in advance to get better exchange rate.

3. They make you buy the entrace fee in Agua Caliente in their "tourism office". Its next to the Cathedral on the right. Don't believe its the only way you can get tickets. You can buy entrance tickets up at the entrance directly, but the same price.

4. Town of Agua Caliente- Only reason this town boomed to its current size is because of the tourism traffic of Machu Picchu. Every street is stuffed of just three things: Restaurants with tourist prices, hotels/hostels with toursit prices, gift shops for tourists.

5. Marketplace in Agua Caliente- Yes you can get the same alpaca wool products for a few soles cheaper in Cuzco or Puno. It will be exactly the same wool caps, sweaters, scarfs, blankets. But, the selection is far better here since its such a tourist destination and its a one stop shop, (just like a Walmart, unfortunately). Honestly, Cusco and Puno will have the alpaca products also but all the other soveneirs and gifts you see in Agua Calients, it will be harder to find anywhere else. So if you find one you like, NEGOTIATE A LOWER PRICE, get it now instead of hoping somewhere will also have it.

6. Machu Picchu- Yes, of course its still worth it to get there!!! Duh. Do get a map if you don't want to pay for a tourguide or you were smart enough not to be duped to a tourist packaged bundle. Its not a very big compound. You can easily do it in one morning or one afternoon depending on your train schedule. And that's including Huayna Picchu if you want it.

7. Trains- We had the experience of being in both the backpacker train and the Vistadome train. Though each person has their unique and preferred way of traveling and expereincing the world, my friend and I hands down liked the backpacker train better. And not because it was cheaper. Read the tip.

8. Huayna Picchu- Great hike! It does require physical capabilities, more like stairs beside a cliff instead of a trail. Its posted the hike is 1 hour each way.

My thought is: its an unfortunate evolution, that as a visitor I was a part of, that this great archeological accomplishment has been turned into an "attraction" and tourist trap. Not inside the Machu Picchu compound itself, but how you get there- by the Inca trail or train, the "base camp" Agua Caliente and the fees imposed.

Get there now before it gets worse.