One of the least visited routes to the magical and mystical Machu Picchu is the Lares Trek 5 days. However, this does not make it less surprising. Lares Trek 5 days to Machu Picchu This ancestral place was occupied by ancient cultures, where today the Andeans guard and protect their mysteries and hidden traditions in the Andes through mountains, glaciers and spectacular lagoons.
On the third day of the Lares trek spiritual, we will enjoy our San Pedro ritual to connect with Pacha Mama (Mother Earth) in order to renew our physical, emotional and spiritual strength. The last day of the Lares spiritual walk to complete our therapy and knowledge, we will have a guided visit to one of the modern wonders of Machu Picchu.
You will start the real adventure today when we pick you up from your accommodation early in the morning and take you in our private transport to the starting point of the trek. We will drive for about an hour and a half to Huaran in the Sacred Valley at 2920 m/9580ft. Once we get there, we’ll put our luggage on the horses and start walking north. The trail ascends slightly as we follow the course of the Cancha Cancha River towards the community of the same name.
Along the way, you will see vast farm fields and mysterious forests. The vegetation of the area means that a wide variety of birds live here, something Peru is well known for. The valley is truly stunning and worth getting out your camera and taking some amazing photos. We will enjoy a delicious lunch in the middle of this walk.
In the afternoon, we will pass through the town of Cancha Cancha (3,950 m / 12,959ft) and head to our cozy camp. After hiking a total of around 7 hours today, we will arrive at our campsite at Acopata (4,200 m/13,780ft). You can relax and enjoy a tasty dinner prepared by our chefs before spending the night.
We will enjoy a nutritious breakfast that will give us the energy we need for the day before beginning our ascent to the highest point of the entire trek, Pachacutec Pass (4,700 m/15,420ft). We’ll take it easy and arrive after two and a half hours of walking. The views from this height are impressive, and you will see the snow-capped peaks of the sacred mountains Sahuasiray and Chicon right in front of you.
After enjoying the scenery and resting our legs, we will head downhill for two hours to the beautiful lunch spot by Lake Qoyalay (4,140 m/13,583ft). Once full and rested, we will descend for another hour and a half towards the valley. On this stretch you will see several amazing glacial lakes and herds of alpacas, llamas and sheep grazing peacefully. If you are lucky, you may also see deer, vizcachas, geese, falcons, and the immense Andean condor, the largest flying bird in the world.
We will arrive at our camp in the community of Quiswarani (3,850 m / 12,631 ft). This is a small and picturesque place with typical houses built in stone. You will enjoy another tasty dinner before going to sleep. For tomorrow continue the lares trek 5 days to Machu Picchu.
After a healthy breakfast, we will start the 1 hour and a half hike up the steep trail to reach the Q’allaqasa Pass (4,450 meters / 14,622 feet) and enjoy the impressive Cuncani Valley with colored lagoons and jagged mountains. On the descent, we will descend to the colored lagoon where we will perform our ritual invoking Pacha Mama or Mother Earth, and begging her to bless us. Then we will start with the infusion of Wachuma or San Pedro, to find our peace and tranquility from the depths of our interior. Then we will appreciate the fauna of the area full of chinchillas, geese, Andean gulls, hawks and hopefully some condors.
Our Cuncani camp is an hour away (3,900 meters / 12,795 feet), and at night looking up into the clear sky we can see the Milky Way and the Andean constellations.
We will wake up very refreshed after the incredible therapy, literally feeling as if we had been born again, our staff will pamper us with a hot drink in bed (coca tea, tea, coffee or hot chocolate, etc), after breakfast we continue downhill for about 2 hours to the medicinal thermal baths of Lares (3,120 meters / 10, 2660 feet) and as a reward we will get soaked enjoying the hot baths.
Our lunch will be in the same place. After being totally relaxed, we will travel in our private transport and travel for 3 hours back to the town of Ollantaytambo (2792 mt. / 9158 ft). We will have dinner in this town. After dinner, we will take the train to the town of Aguas Calientes for 1 hour 45 minutes. Upon arrival we will go to the hotel for our accommodation and rest.
Today we reach the long-awaited end of our trek, one of the New 7 Wonders of the World and a UNESCO World Heritage Site: Machu Picchu! We will wake up early after a refreshing night in our lodge to beat the crowds to the top of Machu Picchu and enjoy its serenity in the soft morning light. The entrance control to Machu Picchu is open from 06:00 AM to 17:00 PM. We will board the consettur bus for about 30 minutes and enter the hidden Royal Citadel of the Incas. Here we will have a 2-hour guided tour of this incredible ancient city to visit temples, terraces, palaces, priests’ houses, the sundial, the industrial sector and the farm fields. Be amazed at the engineering ingenuity of the Incas, which was way ahead of its time and is still partially a mystery today! Without having modern tools or even steel and iron to work with, the people who built this city were great at organizing this community in a sustainable and beautiful way on the side of a mountain, even carrying water in canals through its streets so that the people I can use. When a Peruvian guide showed Hiram Bingham this site, it was almost unrecognizable, overgrown and in disrepair. It has since been cleaned and restored and is now protected and treasured by the world at large!
After this tour, you can climb Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain (be sure to book in advance to get tickets for these!). Each mountain takes approximately 3 hours to go up and down. Another lower impact option for which you don’t need an additional ticket is to walk to Puerta del Sol, the main entrance to the Inca Trail (this takes around 2-2.5 hours round trip). Another option is to walk to see the Inca Bridge. You will be able to stay and enjoy this magical city for over 7 hours before walking back to Aguas Calientes for the 6:20pm train ride. m. (subject to availability) to Ollantaytambo. A private bus will pick up our group and drop them off at your hotel in Cusco at approximately 9:30 p.m. Rest your feet and body now, but we can assure you that your heart will keep beating for weeks and years to come! lares trek 5 days to Machu Picchu.
We did a five day hike on the Lares trail. Our tour guide Joel was absolutely amazing. The hike was tough, but he made sure to take care of us and struck a perfect balance between taking the trip seriously and having fun. He was extremely knowledgeable and engaging as a guide. Lastly, our cooks were amazing and the riders and they worked so hard and were so friendly.
Fair warning, be sure to follow the PERU TREK advice closely The trek is definitely difficult if you are not used to climbing high altitude mountains, but it is doable if you bring the right equipment and keep up.
It was an amazing experience, our guide was amazing, he and his team took care of us way beyond what they needed to be, the food was amazing, his team was amazing, all you have to do is walk and Alex and his great team make the break , beautiful views with even better people to share the experience with, I would 100% recommend perutrek.org to anyone seeking adventure in the safest and most comfortable way possible. It’s a must, thank you guys so much for an amazing experience that I won’t forget. .
Don’t miss this!!! 6 of us did the Lares hike. We didn’t see any other hikers during the entire trip. Our guide Juan was amazing. It was a challenging hike, I won’t lie! I was worried about going to the end a few times, but yeah, we’re done! One of the greatest achievements of my life. He was realistic but supportive, and now he’s a good friend. Our fucking rude team!!! She cooked us a lot of food, made us tea. He made us a cake (no oven). So hello to them!!! Chef Alejandro, his chef and his brother’s assistant. And the gentlemen José and always. Thank you!!!
