Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu is the fifth New Wonder of the World that I get to see and one of the most beautiful. A hidden city in the middle of the Andes sounds as beautiful as it really is.

Earlier this week I hiked the Salkantay with a guide. In my case that means a private tour as I was the only one doing the four day Salkantay Trek. Guide Dario accompanies me as well on Machu Picchu and tells me in detail about this city: how it was never discovered by the Spanish, what the architecture consists of, what the most important buildings are and so much more. Since 2021 you can no longer move freely in Machu Picchu, but the site has been divided into circuits. I follow circuit one and that is perhaps the most complete circuit where you can view Machu Picchu from all angles.

That means that I first have to climb some stairs to get higher, but that way I get a nice overview of the citadel. Visit Machu Picchu as early as possible and the number of tourists is surprisingly good. I visited Machu Picchu at six in the morning and all my photos are surprisingly people-free. You certainly don't want to miss the sunrise at the Temple of the Sun! It may not be the Sun Gate, but it comes pretty close. The real star of this ensemble remains the impressive backdrop of mountains where mountains such as Huyana Picchu and Machu Picchu watch over the citadel.

I forgot to turn off my walk when I take the bus back down to Aguas Calientes which is reflected in the GPX. You can just as well walk this route if you still have enough energy, because the price of twelve us dollars to go down is - ironically - very steep.

Machu Picchu is deservedly one of the New Seven Wonders of the World and the concept of a lost city in the mountains defies imagination. The site itself is not very big, but big enough to wander around for a few hours. Too bad it works with circuits since 2021, but that's to let the masses of people go through as smoothly as possible. So do yourself a favour and get here as early as possible.