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The Salkantay trek is around the main Apu area of the Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu in an area where there is a wide crossroads of Inca trails that connect Cusco with the citadel of Machu Picchu and Vilcabamba, as in the Choquequirao, considered the “sacred” sister of Machu Picchu. The Salkantay mountain is a sacred icon, deity of the territory, source of life, and protection in the Andean world.
The natural heritage is constituted by the elements that nature has created over thousands of years and is represented by the variety of geological formations that are part of the scenic beauty of the environment in which different ecosystems have developed, plant formations with a unique biodiversity of flora species, which in turn are the habitat of various species of fauna characteristic and endemic to the area, such as the Andean bear, the puma, and many other animals.
The Salkantay, sacred mountain or Apu of 6,272 m.a.s.l., is the most important mountain of the Vilcabamba mountain range and the second highest and most majestic mountain in the Cusco region, located south of Machu Picchu. Its name probably comes from the Quechua word “salcca” (salqa), which means savage and has been the object of great veneration since immemorial times.
For the inhabitants of the Andes, the adoration of the Apus, sacred mountains considered entities, has not gone unnoticed over time, and mountains such as Salkantay and Humantay, among others, assume a significant spiritual role in the Andean worldview.
We can recommend the following acclimatization hikes:
DEPARTURE – DAY 1
05:00 am – Pick up at home to go to the community of Mollepata.
08:00 am – Arrival in Challacancha.
ARRIVAL – DAY 3
13:00 am – Hidroeléctrica, Central Machu Picchu.
04:00 pm – Aguas Calientes.
VISIT MACHU PICCHU – DAY 4
Prices are per person in USD, depending on the group size. We do not have group outings with fixed dates. If you don’t want to book a private tour, check out our upcoming open groups within your dates.
For group rates of less than four people, consult an advisor.
All our trips include IGV with legislative compliance and tax responsibility.
Price: From USD 250. Book with USD 100.
| Salkantay x4 days. | |
|---|---|
| 4 – 5 per | 250USD |
| 6 – 7 per | 230 USD |
| 8 – 10 per | 215 USD |
We will start our tour by picking you up by private transportation at your home at 5:00 am. We will head to the town of Challacancha, where the first part will take about two hours to reach Soraypampa. Our first day is considered acclimatization, with two short and light hikes near our lodge. After lunch in Soraypampa, we head to the Humantay Lagoon, a tour of about three hours to appreciate the impressive lagoon, the high mountain landscape, and some of the myths and legends of the area. We return to Soraypampa.
After breakfast, we will start the tour to the Salkantay Pass (4620m), the highest point of the entire trek. When we reach the pass, we will have the opportunity to see the Nevado Salkantay up close, take some photos, and enjoy the scenery of this beautiful place. The second day is considered the most physically demanding, but we will have the opportunity to enjoy a unique change of scenery, going from the high mountains to the jungle in a few hours. Afterward, we will stop in the village of Huayracmachay, where we will share a moment for lunch before starting about two hours to our lodge in the town of Challuay, where Noémie and her husband will receive us.
Very early in the morning, we say goodbye to our local family to enter a segment of the Inca Trail to the community of Wiñaypocco to taste a wide variety of fruits typical of this region, continuing our walk to pass the river through the Oroya and at this point our private driver will await us. Here, we will move for another half hour approximately to Playa Sawayaco, where we can enjoy a tasting of local coffee produced by a family of exporters in the area. After lunch at Hidroeléctrica, we head to Aguas Calientes on a beautiful hike along the tourist train tracks. In the afternoon, we can visit the tourist town of Machu Picchu and enjoy the thermal baths of Aguas Calientes.
On this last day, we will visit the lost citadel of the Incas, MACHU PICCHU, discovered in 1911 by Hiram Bingham and listed as the discovery of the century. Guided tour of the main buildings of the citadel, such as the viewpoint of the main square, the temple of the three windows, and the Intiwatana, among others. Lunch (not included). Return to Cusco by train in the late afternoon for a spectacular view of the Andean nature.
