Trek to Choquequirao

Arrive at any time. Arrive early and spend some time exploring the city before meet the group at the welcome meeting.

Included Experiences

• Arrival Day and Welcome Meeting with G Representative: The adventure begins today. Feel free to explore, but make sure you're back in time to meet the group. Your G Representative will pick you up from your hotel at 15:30h and take you to the local G Adventures office to review the details of your tour.

Optional Experiences

• Inka Museum: Get ready to explore the artifacts from the Inca Empire, including mummies, jewelry, skulls, and ceramics at this museum of archaeology.
• Cusco Tourist Ticket: This ticket allows admission at 16 sights of the city of Cusco including many popular museums and cathedrals, the ticket also provides entrance to Sacsayhuaman Archaeological Park, and sights in the South Valley of Cusco and the Sacred Valley of the Incas.
• Cusco City Tour: Enjoy a half-day tour of Cusco's main sights. Walk around the Plaza de Armas (main square) and explore this city steeped in one of the world's most alluring and ancient cultures. Visit Qenqo, Koricancha, the Cathedral, Puca Pucara, Tambomachay, and the archaeological site of Sacsaywaman.

Transfer from Cusco at 4am to San Pedro de Cachora where the group will eat breakfast. Travel 30 more minutes by car to the beginning of the trek in Capuliyoc. Walk as a group surrounded by breathtaking views of sweeping mountain scenery at every turn. Finish today's part of the trek at the Santa Rosa Campsite. The lost city of Choquequirao was discovered hundreds of years ago, but it still feels as though you may be the first to discover it. Encroaching jungle still covers some of the stonework as only roughly 40 percent of these ruins have been excavated. The trek to this remote Incan city although challenging, is well worth the effort. Winding trails take you through the Apurimac River canyon with circling condors up above and views of the snow-capped Salkantay mountains making a breathtaking backdrop.

Included Experiences

• Choquequirao Trek to Santa Rosa Campsite: Embark on the first part of the hike, a scenic route with an incredible view of the Apurimac River. Camp for the night at Santa Rosa (1,900m - 2,850m/ 5,700 - 9.400 ft). The trek today is 18 km long and will take around 7 hours.
• Handmade Biodegradable Soap Products: Enjoy G Adventures-supported handmade biodegradable soap products, for use on our treks. This G Adventures for Good project empowered local Cusqueña women to start their own business in order to reduce the environmental impact of treks in the region. Planeterra provided $10,000 of seed funding for two young entrepreneurs to register their biodegradable products in order to sell them to the tourism industry. "Esencia Andina" is now a successful business that produces biodegradable soaps, detergents, and natural products for travellers, guides, porters, and cooks on our treks.

Eat breakfast as a group at the Santa Rosa Camp and then walk 2 hours to Marampata where the group will later camp for the night. From there continue trekking through the Apurimac River canyon on the way to Choquequirao. Spot condors as you make your way up into the cloud forest. In the afternoon, take a guided tour of the ruins and marvel at your historical surroundings. Return to Marampata Camp in the early evening.

Included Experiences

• Choquequirao Trek to The Ruins: Depart Santa Rosa and follow the switch back trail up to Marampata. After 2 hours the group will stop for lunch before continuing upwards to the stunning ruins of Choquequirao (3,000m/9,842 ft). When the sun swings around onto the mountain face, it can get warm during the climb. Today has a very early start to hike while it's cool. Make sure to dress in layers and prepare for a strenuous trekking day. Minimum altitude: 1,550 m / 5,117 ft Maximum altitude: 3,150m / 10,397ft Distance: 14kms / 9 miles Difficulty: moderate / difficult. This day is 8 hours of walking.
• Choquequirao Main Square Guided Tour: Enjoy a fully guided tour of the main square of Choquequirao and the surrounding terraces. The ‘other Machu Picchu,’ Choquequirao is built at the top of an almost untouched mountain in the province of La Convención. Ancient stone walls adorned with white stone llamas protect its two-leveled palaces and temples, systems of fountains, canals and aqueducts that fed the fantastic terraces farmed by the Inca during the Pachacutec government (XV century). Visit the colcas, used for agricultural storage and learn about the cultivation practices during the Incan Empire.

Enjoy an early breakfast in Marampata. Then, the group will begin the return walk to Chiquisca. Once here, have some lunch together and enjoy the rest of the afternoon at your leisure.

Included Experiences

• Choquequirao Trek - Day 3: Leave Marampata behind and head down to Chiquisca (1,800m/5,900 ft), the camp for the night. Minimum Altitude: 1,550m / 5,117ft Maximum Altitude: 1,990m / 6,270ft Distance: 9 kms / 5.5 miles Difficulty: Moderate / Hard. This day is 7 hours of walking.

The group will have an early departure from Chiquisca. Walk back to San Pedro de Cachora and enjoy lunch together before transferring back to Cusco. The tour will end upon arrival.

Included Experiences

• Choquequirao Trek - Chiquisca to Cachora: Walk back to San Pedro de Cachora today and have lunch before transferring to Aguas Calientes. Distance: 7kms / 4 miles Difficulty: Moderate / Hard. This day is 3 hours of walking.