Destination Machu Pichu

Recently  took a break from the daily grind and went for a backpacking trip to Machu Pichu. 

Although the trip was fantabulous, there were those few oddments I wish someone had told me before  I went for the trip. Jotting them here lest others may find it useful. 

Classic Inca Trail hike to Machu Pichu:

Esther & Jacob and Peter West Carey have put up excellent blogs on what to pack for the hike and have a most comprehensive packing list. 

The one thing I missed was a thin scarf to protect against the dust (I went in the dry season) and the one lifesaver was my faithful hot water bag for the cold in the night.

Special shout out to Llamapath  who took us on the Inca trail. Our experience with them couldn't have been better. 

Altitude Sickness:

Bought some preventive meds from a local store in cusco. Coco tea and candies also helped (I think).  Did spend a few days in Cusco before going for the hike. The real eyeopener was when people way fitter than I was were being affected a lot more. 

Lan Airlines:

For flying in and out of Cusco, it's better to take LAN Airlines  (I learned this the hard way). LAN are the only guys that can land in the fog (apparently they are the only ones with the necessary radar to do that).It's worth shelling out those extra bucks for LAN unless you would prefer to spend your day at the airport waiting for the fog to clear. 

Shopping in Cusco:

And now for the shopaholics like me, Cusco had some really cozy markets and we pretty much did all our shopping there. Unfortunately  we didn't plan any time for Agua Caliente (where you take the train to and from Machu Pichu). The markets there seemed prettier and of better quality. 

Hope that helps and you have a great Machu Pichu experience like I did!