Train – Maldo Travels https://www.maldotravels.com Travel - Learn - Share Fri, 29 Apr 2022 12:18:38 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 https://www.maldotravels.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Favicon-Black.png Train – Maldo Travels https://www.maldotravels.com 32 32 World Wonder of Machu Picchu https://www.maldotravels.com/south-america/machu-picchu/ https://www.maldotravels.com/south-america/machu-picchu/#respond Sat, 08 Sep 2018 21:21:00 +0000 http://54.211.235.180/?p=3794

There are many ways to visit Machu Picchu from multi-day hikes to one-day trips all with different budgets. Since it’s quite remote and I likely won’t be going back any time soon, I chose to plan a 2 day trip with a stay in Aguas Calientes. Unlike the other activities in South America which you can pretty much turn up in town and look for tours, Machu Picchu is one that should be planned. Tickets to the mountain sell out well in advance as do the train tickets to Aguas Calientes. 

Planning A 2-Day Trip

Although I would have loved to do a multi-day hike along the Inca trail, it wasn’t an option for me since I had another itinerary to stick to for the rest of South America. Out of the other options, the cheaper one is a bus to the hydroelectric power station and then a hike to Aguas Calientes. This journey, however, seemed to take quite long and it would be better to spend that time at Machu Picchu. So that left me with the train to Aguas Calientes. We were staying in Cusco, but all the train tickets were sold out from that station. The next closest departure was from Poroy which cost 55 USD1 leaving at 7.35 AM and reaching Aguas Calientes at around 11 AM. This arrival time meant we could get a Machu Picchu afternoon entry ticket from 12 PM to 5.30 PM for 64 PEN2 plus tax (total 66.58 PEN). Then for the following day, I planned to get a Machu Picchu + Mountain morning ticket for 112 PEN plus tax (total 116.52 PEN). The return train from Aguas Calientes to Poroy departed at 3.20 PM and arrived at around 7 PM which cost 65 PEN. All these tickets can be bought online.

Day 1 - Cusco To Machu Picchu

With my train departing from Poroy at 7.35 AM, the ticket specified being at the station at 7.05 AM. With that in mind, I didn’t want to risk an Uber3 not being available so I got my hostel to schedule a taxi for me. It cost 26 PEN and took about 40 minutes to get there. The train station is small but well kept with lots of seating areas. There are some stalls to buy food and also street vendors outside the station if you want to grab some breakfast. When it’s time to board the train, the staff at the doors put up signs with coach letters. You can find which coach you are in on your tickets and queue up accordingly to board the train. The train seats are quite comfortable and you get a table between 4 people. Throughout the 3 hour journey, there were recorded announcements of any sites we went by providing information on them. There were great landscape views and lunch was also provided towards the end of the journey. We reached Aguas Calientes at around 11 AM. The Train Station is practically in the middle of the town next to the arts and crafts market. The town is very small so you can easily walk everywhere. We headed to the hotel to drop off our bags before heading up to Machu Picchu.

We chose to hike up on this day. The route is well signposted so it’s pretty straightforward to follow and it took us about an hour. Despite getting some shade from the trees, it was still very hot and a tiring hike. Make sure you take sunblock and a hat to protect yourself from the potent sun. The tropical climate and environment also meant there were lots of insects and mosquitos around, so you’ll need to put on repellent to keep them away. Once at the top, there was a long queue for the entry, and several guides offering their services. I’d recommend getting a guide since there’s so much history in this place. They tend to have fixed prices so it’s cheaper if you’re in larger groups. We queued up for about 15 minutes which wasn’t too bad. Once inside, we first went up to the main viewpoints on the Machu Picchu mountainside. You get great views from here of the whole site and Huayna Picchu Mountain.

Next, we followed signs for the Inca Bridge. It takes about 30 minutes to get there, and you have to sign in at a control point. Access is free and the control point just ensures all visitors sign in and out once they return. The trail becomes quite narrow in some parts and can be vertigo-inducing. They’ve put a gate up so that people don’t attempt to cross the bridge as it’s very narrow and dangerous. We then headed back along the trail and back to the viewpoint area. We found a spot there to have some snacks and wait for the sunset. Although the ticket states the time slot is until 5.30 PM, the site officials start asking people to leave at around 5 PM. I managed to stick around until 5.25 PM to capture a time-lapse of the sun setting behind one of the mountains. After this, we headed to the exit. Make sure to look for the Machu Picchu stamp at the exit to put on your passport. The easiest way to locate it is to look for a group of people clustered in a small area. Once we got our stamp, we walked back down to Aguas Calientes.

Having walked all day, our legs we extremely sore so we rested for a bit before heading out for dinner. We stayed on the north side of the river and there are several restaurant options there. Since we were hungry and it was close by, we went to one of these tourist restaurants. The food was OK and quite pricey. After dinner, we stopped by the bus ticket stall to get a ticket for the next day. The bus ticket prices are extortionately expensive. They only accept cash or Visa cards for an extra fee. We only got a one-way ticket to the mountain for 40 PEN each. We then went for a quick walk south of the river to explore. This is when we found that restaurants were cheaper south of the river with several street food stalls there too. We then headed back and clocked out early to for our morning start the next day.

Day 2 - Machu Picchu Mountain

The first buses up to Machu Picchu depart at 5.30 AM. So we got up at 5 AM to start queuing up. The local market was opening in those early hours so we could pick up some snacks on the way. There are some street vendors selling sandwiches on the way as well but the market is cheaper. There was already quite a long queue by the time we arrived but there is also a queue of buses waiting to board people. It’s a little chilly in the early hours of the morning before the sun comes up, so take a sweater to keep warm while waiting in the queue. We got on the second or third bus and then it was about a 30-minute ride up to Machu Picchu. There was less of a queue this time so we got in a little quicker than the day before. We had entry tickets for the time-slot 7-8 AM for the Machu Picchu Mountain. However, I confused the mountains and we were waiting at Huayna Picchu until 7 AM. So when the site official told us, we had to rush to Machu Picchu which is about a 25-minute walk at the other end. By the time we got there, a queue had formed so we had to wait about 15 minutes to sign in at the control point. Now that the sun was up, it was starting to get hot. It took us about an hour to complete the hike which was quite exhausting. You get some great views along the way and from the final viewpoint, you’ll get to see Machu Picchu in the distance among a landscape of green mountains. We spent about 30 minutes at the top before heading back down.

We then proceeded to complete a circuit of all the ruins at the site. We found that most of the site seems to be rubble that has been assembled back together. However, there are a couple of places where you’ll see the perfectly cut stones joined together like a jigsaw puzzle. It’s truly amazing how the Inca were able to construct such an immense complex in such a remote place. We completed the circuit around noon and headed to the exit. It took us about 45 minutes to walk back down to Aguas Calientes. We then spent some time walking around the arts and crafts market and getting some lunch. After that, we picked up our bags from the hotel and headed to the train station which was scheduled to depart at 3.20 PM. The cheaper train back to Poroy was quite similar to the one we took to Aguas Calientes. The only difference was that there wasn’t any food/snacks included with the ticket. We reached Poroy at around 7 PM and although there are no Ubers in Poroy, we had the phone number of the taxi who dropped us off. However, we found that several taxis are waiting outside the station. We enquired with one and he quoted us a 30 PEN fixed rate to Cusco, so we went with him. We reached Cusco at around 8 PM. By this point, we were exhausted so we just grabbed some quick food from one of the street vendors and went straight back to the hotel.

Final Thoughts

A 2-day trip is required if you plan to hike up Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain. Otherwise, if you just plan to walk around the site, you can make do with a day trip. Machu Picchu Mountain is probably not worth the additional day, but Huayna Picchu seems to be more interesting and more challenging. Tickets for Huayna Picchu sell out well in advance though, so make sure you look early. Everything in the town is more expensive than any other tourist destination I’ve been to in South America. So many people visit the site which means they can pretty much charge whatever they want. It’s still worth a once in a lifetime visit where you get to experience history, culture, and unique magical views. But if you ask me whether I’d go back, I’d probably say no; but simply because it’s unjustifiably expensive.

]]> https://www.maldotravels.com/south-america/machu-picchu/feed/ 0 Alausi – Tren Nariz del Diablo https://www.maldotravels.com/south-america/alausi-tren-nariz-del-diablo/ https://www.maldotravels.com/south-america/alausi-tren-nariz-del-diablo/#respond Wed, 15 Aug 2018 10:48:45 +0000 http://3.8.116.40/?p=2381

Tren Ecuador is the restored tourist railway service between the capital Andean city of Quito and the coastal city of Guayaquil. Fully completed by 1908, it was considered an audacious project at the time due to the treacherous geological terrain of the Andes. La Nariz del Diablo (Devil’s Nose), is the highlight of the trip where the train traverses a 500-meter vertical rock face. The mountain was thought to be cursed by the devil who didn’t want the railway built, hence the name. Construction of the tracks at La Nariz del Diablo ended up taking the lives of over 2000 workers. The 1-way tour between Guayaquil and Quito and vice versa is a 4-day trip and costs 1000 USD4. If you can afford it, then its probably a great experience on an award-winning luxury train. If not, then it’s still possible to experience the train ride through La Nariz del Diablo via the town of Alausi.

From Quito, it is approximately a 6-hour scenic drive through volcano avenue to Alausi. A strategic stop is Ambato which is a beautiful city for a quick visit; well known for their bread and rabbit dish. Alausi is a very well kept town which has recently been built up for tourism. Its people are very welcoming and friendly and the town has many local cafes, restaurants, and souvenir craft stores. There is a beautiful plaza in the town center and also a viewpoint with a statue of St. Peter overlooking the town. Another highlight is the picturesque iron bridge at the end of the town. The train enters Alausi via this iron bridge when coming from Quito and stops at the train station in the middle of the town. It’s possible to buy tickets on site, however, I’d advise booking online since you’d likely arrive in the evening/night when the ticket office is closed. The prices are also the same (33 USD) and the tour is quite popular so you risk it being sold out. Note that this price is for a return ticket despite it not being made very clear on the website. The best seats are on the right side of the train since it looks out towards the landscape whereas the left mainly faces the mountainside. However, if you get vertigo or are afraid of heights, the right side is probably not for you. There are several departure slots and its best to check their website in case times change.

We chose the 8 AM departure to get back before the midday sun. The journey takes about 45 minutes and the views are breathtaking. The landscape changes a number of times from traversing the adrenaline-inducing heights of ravines to cruising alongside the river Chanchán. The river produces a strong smell from the volcanic minerals it carries. You’ll also notice vertical railway tracks connected with cables. These were used for communicating signals between stations. When the train gets to the section of La Nariz del Diablo, the 500-meter descent begins. A pioneering method was used to achieve this making it one of the greatest engineering accomplishments at the time. The train travels across and when it approaches the end, an operator gets off and switches the tracks. The train then reverses in the other direction and the operator once again switches the track when it gets to the other side. This process is repeated which effectively sees the train zigzag to the bottom of La Nariz del Diablo. As the train approaches the town of Sibambe, you’ll go past some of the original carriages which are now in a decaying state. The train then goes just past Sibambe and stops at a viewpoint for pictures of La Nariz del Diablo. Despite getting backlight due to the sun being behind the mountain, the view was impressive. For better lighting, it’s better to take an afternoon departure.

The group is given about 15 minutes to take pictures before heading back to the town of Sibambe. In this town, the locals put on a folkloric dance show. At the end of their performance, they invite visitors to dance with them and show you a couple of dance steps. The group is then given around 30 minutes to buy souvenirs and visit the small museum outlining the history of the railway. There is also a cafe there to get some snacks and drinks. In the meantime, the locomotive makes a U-turn and is then attached at the other end of the train. So on the way back, if you were seated on the mountain side of the carriage, you’ll be seated there again. The journey back up to Alausi takes a little longer at around 1-hour.

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