Our trek today takes us along the most impressive stretch of the Inca Trail. We'll visit beautiful Inca sites , see a variety of flora and fauna and get to take in the fantastic panoramas of the Andes mountains. Covering 16km of the trail our journey begins in the Sacred Valley and works it's way up along an original Inca Trail to the Inca site of Winay Wayna before continuing on to Machu Picchu via the Sun Gate (Inti Punku). As we make our way to Machu Picchu we'll pass through the lush and verdant cloud forest that covers the mountain and get to see a variety of plants, flowers and birds along the way. We may also see some larger mammals such as Viscachas (rabbit-like Chinchillas) and Spectacled Bears (if we are very lucky). After a full days trekking we'll arrive to the Sun Gate (Inti Punku) in the late afternoon and get our first views of Machu Picchu spread out on the mountain below. The light at this time of day is great for photos and with fewer tourists in the site it's a perfect time to take some pictures of the site. After we've passed through the Sun Gate we'll carry on along the trail a little way before taking a side trail that leads us to Aguas Calientes in the valley below where we'll check in to our hotel.

Waking up early (04:00am) we'll take one of the first buses back up to Machu Picchu to enter the site as soon as it opens (06:00am) We'll have a 2 hour guided tour of the site during which you'll learn about the Incas and visit all the most important areas of the citadel. After your tour you'll have free time to explore the site by yourself and if you have permits to climb either Huayna Picchu (2 hours round trip) or Machu Picchu mountain (3 hours round trip). In the afternoon you will take the train back to Ollantaytambo (2 hours) from where you will carry on by bus back to Cusco (2 more hours).