The train journey from Cuzco to Machu Picchu takes 3 to 4.5 hours depending mainly on the specific train service used. Either way, the landscape is dramatic and the journey is a lot of fun. Most people plan an early start so that they maximize their time that day at the destination.
But the route is winding with some steep gradients. Also, the track space is often so narrow that train seems about to scrap a gorge wall or slip into the adjacent Urubamba (meaning Sacred) River. These constraining features all make for a slow journey, but also a stunning one that will be long remembered.
The trek begins with a short bus or taxi ride to the train station at Poroy, about 20 minutes away from central Cuzco. Poroy is the departure point for the train operated by PeruRail. It offers various standards of service including Basic Backpacker, Vistadome, Expedition and the ultra luxurious Higham Bingham. All of them are world class and make for a comfortable, pleasurable trip.
The rail journey travels in a northeast direction with the towering Andes lying to the west. It may be divided into two parts. The first part stretches from Poroy to Ollantaytambo. The second pat runs from Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu.
Past Ollantaytambo, a complex known as The Fortress can be seen to the west high above an earthen slope. That ramp was originally used to drag its large stone blocks up from the valley floor. The fortress was completed by the Inca during the 15th century to honor their gods and to act as a sentry point to guard habitations located deeper in the Sacred Valley.
Once the train reaches Huarocondo, the terrain quickly narrows into a high deep gorge carved by the fast flowing Pomatales River. The railway follows that river until it meets the Urubamba River near the village of Pisac is 33 kilometers from Cuzco, and is considered the gateway to the Sacred Valley. It is famous for its craft fairs and markets held every Sunday Tuesday and Thursday which attract large tourist crowds from nearby twns and villages.
The Machu Picchu citadel is, naturally, the focus of the journey. But the rail journey to get from Cuzco to Machu Picchu is also a lot of fun and a real adventure. It features many important points of real historical significance, critical to an understanding of Machu Picchu.
cuzco to machu picchu
But the route is winding with some steep gradients. Also, the track space is often so narrow that train seems about to scrap a gorge wall or slip into the adjacent Urubamba (meaning Sacred) River. These constraining features all make for a slow journey, but also a stunning one that will be long remembered.
The trek begins with a short bus or taxi ride to the train station at Poroy, about 20 minutes away from central Cuzco. Poroy is the departure point for the train operated by PeruRail. It offers various standards of service including Basic Backpacker, Vistadome, Expedition and the ultra luxurious Higham Bingham. All of them are world class and make for a comfortable, pleasurable trip.
The rail journey travels in a northeast direction with the towering Andes lying to the west. It may be divided into two parts. The first part stretches from Poroy to Ollantaytambo. The second pat runs from Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu.
Past Ollantaytambo, a complex known as The Fortress can be seen to the west high above an earthen slope. That ramp was originally used to drag its large stone blocks up from the valley floor. The fortress was completed by the Inca during the 15th century to honor their gods and to act as a sentry point to guard habitations located deeper in the Sacred Valley.
Once the train reaches Huarocondo, the terrain quickly narrows into a high deep gorge carved by the fast flowing Pomatales River. The railway follows that river until it meets the Urubamba River near the village of Pisac is 33 kilometers from Cuzco, and is considered the gateway to the Sacred Valley. It is famous for its craft fairs and markets held every Sunday Tuesday and Thursday which attract large tourist crowds from nearby twns and villages.
The Machu Picchu citadel is, naturally, the focus of the journey. But the rail journey to get from Cuzco to Machu Picchu is also a lot of fun and a real adventure. It features many important points of real historical significance, critical to an understanding of Machu Picchu.
cuzco to machu picchu
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