Machu Picchu Travel
Machu Picchu has become a very popular destination in recent years. Do you know the site was declared as one of the new seven wonders of the worl this year. About eight hundred thousand tourists have visited Machu Picchu this year. And it is expected that about one million travelers will visit this fantastic city in 2008. Is not it a wonderful place to visit. But you can visit on your own? Or do you have to enlist the help of tour operators? Lots of people asked me this question. I'll try to answer that question in this article. Well, some of you need to tour, some of you do not. If you plan to visit Machu Picchu, staying in Aguas Calientes (I wrote down about Aguas Calientes in detail below) one or two nights, you do not need a tour. But if you plan to hike the Inca Trail, you need a tour. Per new law, only licensed tour operators operating in the Inca Trail. There are exceptions for those who want to walk independently, but they must carry their own equipment, luggage, food and tents, so it is not practical to move to hike the Inca Trail without a tour. Even if you plan to visit Machu Picchu in one day and want to come back the same day, and you have children, then you may need to enlist the help of tour operators. So if you're not in a hurry (and will not be hiking the Inca Trail), so you do not need any tour. You can save money and spend it in other ways. There is also a challenge, to know new things and make them work. You'll like it. Just a few ideas from the home page, note the important information, and begin. Reach Peru To reach Peru first factor is the Show, but good thing is that you do not need a visa if you are a citizen of one of the following countries - EU countries, Australia, Canada, USA and Japan, Andorra, Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Brunei, Chile, Colombia, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Fiji, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, Indonesia, Israel, Jamaica, Kiribati, Korea (Rep. of), Liechtenstein, Malaysia, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Micronesia (FS), Monaco, Nauru, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Philippines, St. Kitts & Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Suriname, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Tonga, Trinidad, Tobago, Tuvalu, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Vatican City and Venezuela. If you are not from one of the above countries still allow you to get a visa, but you have to apply, and the processing time is 24 hours. Enter city Lima If you are from outside Peru, you will surely land on Jorge Chavez International Airport in Lima. This airport is very close to the busy city area. You can reach the city center within half an hour away. Also you can reach most of the cheap hotels in half an hour from the airport. If you reach the Peru road, you will enter Peru from Tumbes, Ecuador, Bolivia and Puno in Tacna in Chile. If you choose to travel by car and you want to drive yourself, so you will know that traffic congestion is very common in Lima and even driving is very tough there. Bo Peru is cheap. With $ 25.00 per day, you can easily send your days in Peru and yet you can get good food and comfortable hotels. Check Web sites for hotels. Stay around either the Plaza de Armas or in Miraflores. Plaza de Armas is the Central Square or Central Square. Miraflores is the center of this city, which is southwest of Lima. Miraflores is the business area of Lima. Lima to Cusco, you can stay one night in Lima and transfer to Cusco city. To reach Machu Picchu, you must first reach Cusco by plane or road. Then from Cusco, you can travel to Machu Picchu by train. You can reach Cuzco from Lima, by air, which is less than an hour (50 minutes, to be exact). You can reach Cusco by bus. But it will take about 24 hours (!). There are four main companies operating domestic flights between Lima and Cuzco. They are Lanperu, TACA, Aero Condor and Star Peru. Lanperu and TACA are more reliable. You can buy tickets from the website Lanperu. But remember Lanperu and TACA are expensive. Aero Condor is comparatively much cheaper. There are two companies (if you want bus travel) - Cruz del Sur and Ormeno. The first thing you can buy tickets. Ormeno have a website, too, but only in Spanish. Staying in Cusco in Cusco you may have to stay at least one night, because the train to Machu Picchu begins early in the morning and they come back from Machu Picchu in the evening. You can check Web sites for hotels. Stay around the Plaza de Armas is the heart of the city. Buy train tickets a day before departure. You can get help on the tickets from your hotel desk, too. Cusco to Machu Picchu check the train schedule for LAN Peru in their website and choose a trip. Peru Rail offers three train from Cuzco to Machu Picchu. Right now Peru Rail is the sole operator. So you have to choose between one of these three. These three trains are -1. Hiram Bingham 2.Vistadome third Backpacker Of these three services Hiram Bingham is a very luxurious one. It is very expensive too. Vistadome has windows on both sides and the roof. As the train passes the mountain and through the ups and downs, you can enjoy the scenery of the surroundings. Backpacker is the cheapest. Still, service is good. There is an alternative route service. There is no direct road service between Cuzco and Machu Picchu. But you can take a combination of bus / taxi from Cusco and Ollantaytambo and then train between Ollantaytambo and Machu Picchu. Aguas Calientes train from Cusco stop at a small town, Aguas Calientes. From here you can take bus to Machu Picchu, which is located a few kilometers away. You must pay an entrance fee to enter the city of Machu Picchu. Buy this ticket from Aguas Calientes. Ask anyone and they will show you from where you have to buy the ticket. If you want to stay at Machu Picchu, one or more nights, you can stay either in Machupicchu or in Aguas Calientes. Actually, Machu Picchu is not a city, there are only ruins. There is only one hotel just before the entrance to Machu Picchu, Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge. This hotel is of very high standard thus very expensive, more than $ 600.00 per night. But you can stay at Aguas Calientes (which most tourists do). In Aguas Calientes, you hotels in every standard. You can choose a hotel from $ 10.00 to $ 300.00 per night. In Aguas Calientes you will find plenty of restaurants to get your lunch or dinner. They have some hot springs at Aguas Calientes, you can visit there. One more thing, do not forget to buy your train ticket from Aguas Calientes to Cusco when you reach Aguas Calientes. Try to buy tickets as early as possible, or might not come back at the desired time. So you see, it is not difficult to tour Machu Picchu on your own. You can visit some sites and just get enough information and make your plan. I hope you will enjoy.
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