Lares Trek to Machu Picchu

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Peru Travel Insights

Lima, Cusco & Lares Trek to Machu Picchu - 6 Days
Map of Lima, Cusco & Lares Trek to Machu Picchu - 6 Days
Lima, Cusco & Lares Trek to Machu Picchu - 6 Days

A shorter alternative to the Inca Trail, the Lares Trek offers an experience just as stunning. Despite the high altitudes, this trek follows a less rigorous route through local communities, making it ideal for those who are looking for something accessible, unique, and immersive.

Beautiful Andean landscape
Map of Lares Lodge-to-Lodge Trek to Machu Picchu - 5 Days
Lares Lodge-to-Lodge Trek to Machu Picchu - 5 Days

The five-day Lares Trek takes you high up in the Andes, hiking during the day and overnighting in luxurious lodges along the way. Providing impressive views of snow-capped peaks and glacial lakes, it’s a relatively demanding hike that will test your fitness.

Girl walking home in the Lares Valley
Map of Lares Valley Trek & Short Inca Trail - 8 Days
Lares Valley Trek & Short Inca Trail - 8 Days

Trek through the Lares Valley, where you'll pass between glacier-capped mountains where llamas and alpacas graze in the surrounding hills. You'll visit the town of Lares, a colourful traditional town in the heart of the valley. Combined with the Short Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, this is a trek that combines two wonderful valleys & mountain ranges with very different ecologies & landscapes.

View from the Santa Cruz trek in Peru
Map of Best 10 Treks in Peru
Best 10 Treks in Peru

Peru — a nation with abundant natural diversity, from coast, to mountains, to jungle — has long attracted lovers of the Great Outdoors. The Peruvian Andes, running like a backbone down the centre of the country, contain mesmerizing variations in landscape that make for some of the best trekking in the world. Cloud forests, 5000m+ cordilleras (mountain ranges), the world’s deepest canyon and the striking remains of ancient civilizations all await.

Making a pilgrimage to Machu Picchu on one of these two treks makes your arrival even more spectacular
Salkantay Trek vs the Inca Trail: Which is Right for You?

Trekking to Machu Picchu is a dream for many travelers—but there's more than one way to get there. The classic Inca Trail lets trekkers walk in the steps of the Incas, while the more remote Salkantay route offers solitude and wildlife. Compare your options for getting to Peru's most famous place on foot, from distance and cost to overnight options.

Huchuy Qosqo
Map of Best Day Hikes in the Sacred Valley near Cusco
Best Day Hikes in the Sacred Valley near Cusco

Peru is famous for the Inca Trail and other multi-day hikes, but if you are short on time, there are plenty of excellent day hikes throughout the Sacred Valley. These hikes are a great way to visit some of the rural communities and lesser-visited ruins throughout the Valley.

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Meet our Local Travel Specialists

Experienced travel agents with a passion for Peru
Travel specialist Liz Karen L. Jihuallanca
active 5 hours ago

Liz Karen L. Jihuallanca

Peruvian food, culture, and history aren’t just things I love—they’re a part of who I am. As a proud Cusqueñian, I carry my roots with pride and love sharing my culture with others. I've lived...

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Travel specialist Jorge Ramirez
active 3 hours ago

Jorge Ramirez

I believe the best journeys start with truly listening. When I design a trip, my goal is for travelers to feel that every detail reflects who they are—their interests, their pace, and the kind of...

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Travel specialist Jimena Salazar
active 17 hours ago

Jimena Salazar

For me, traveling is about much more than just visiting places. It’s about opening new paths in your life—through the people you meet, the flavors you try, and the landscapes that take your breath...

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Travel specialist Eduardo Ponce
active 30 mins ago

Eduardo Ponce

I am a travel agent specialized in creating tailor-made travel experiences designed around each traveler’s needs, preferences, and expectations. I take the time to understand my clients, their...

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Trip Reviews for Peru

The latest reviews by travelers who booked their trip on kimkim

Highly recommended! Loved my Peru experience!
Peru | Sep 20 - Sep 25, 2026

Anne
Anne C.
Pittsburgh, PA, USA | Reviewed on Sep 30, 2026
Liz Karen was fantastic and thorough in planning out my itinerary, and all the guides and drivers were wonderful! They were reliable and helped me with every stage of my trip. Peru is truly beautiful and I loved my time in Cusco and Machu Picchu! I enjoyed seeing Pisac and Ollantaytambo -- the views and the history! I felt the altitude and breathlessness, so I highly recommend hiking preparation for all the steps, drinking lots of filtered water and coca tea, and taking altitude meds. I... Read more

Liz Karen was fantastic and thorough in planning out my itinerary, and all the guides and drivers were wonderful! They were reliable and helped me with every stage of my trip. Peru is truly beautiful and I loved my time in Cusco and Machu Picchu! I enjoyed seeing Pisac and Ollantaytambo -- the views and the history! I felt the altitude and breathlessness, so I highly recommend hiking preparation for all the steps, drinking lots of filtered water and coca tea, and taking altitude meds. I didn't have much time to acclimate so those helped. Javier was my guide for my circuit at Machu Picchu and provided a lot of interesting info about Incan culture. If you plan to hike Huayna Picchu, I suggest taking the 8 am slot because I took the 10 am slot and it was hotter and I got dehydrated from the intense climb. The guards also close the HP trail at 1 pm so you'll have more time to summit and not feel rushed if you take the first entrance. Pablo was our terrific guide at Palccoyo Rainbow Mountain and helped us with nose spray and trekking poles to adjust to the altitude. It was worth the views! I would've needed more time to acclimate so I'm glad I chose Palccoyo and not Vinicunca (but I'd love to visit there as well). Lastly, driver Dionicio was fantastic and took me around Cusco to the Inca Museum, Cristo Blanco, and an alpaca textile shop, as well as a restaurant where they served cuy and had a great view of the city. The hotel staff at Tika Wasi were very helpful and friendly and assisted me with ordering food delivery when I was tired after my day tours. Watch out for unauthorized taxi drivers at Lima Airport and only use the free shuttle to the hotel! From start to finish, Peru was magnificent and I'd love to return! Thank you to kimkim and Andean Travel for a great experience!

Hotel Reviews
Pucara Machu Picchu Hotel

Comfortable and clean for my one night there, and it's located very close to the train station! I walked from the hotel to the thermal baths, and that was very relaxing after a day at Machu Picchu!

Authenticity & Character
Nicely decorated.
Location
Close to the train station and a short walk to the thermal baths.
Staff
Friendly and helpful!
Cleanliness & Comfort
Tika Wasi Casa Boutique
Cusco

Tika Wasi was charming and comfortable, and the hotel staff were very friendly and helpful in assisting me with storing my luggage while I went on tours, and with ordering food delivery. Highly recommended!

Authenticity & Character
Charming view of the Cusco and a nice garden for relaxing.
Location
A hilly walk to the hotel but all of Cusco is! :)
Staff
Very friendly and helpful!
Cleanliness & Comfort
A comfortable room, nice morning breakfast, and a heater for my room to stay cozy :)
Local specialist: Liz Karen L. Jihuallanca
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Trip to Peru
Peru | Sep 11 - Sep 20, 2026

H.
H. N.
Huissen, Netherlands | Reviewed on Sep 27, 2026
Everything was amazing! We loved the trip Read more

Everything was amazing! We loved the trip

Hotel Reviews
Inkaterra Hacienda Concepción
Puerto Maldonado

Perfect hotel

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Sonesta Posadas del Inca Yucay
Urubamba

I love this hotel, beautiful en everything was good

Authenticity & Character
Beautiful
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Pullman Lima Miraflores
Miraflores, Lima

Nice hotel, breakfast was perfect

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Activity Reviews
Cusco Walking City Tour
Cusco Walking City Tour
Cusco
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Lunch at a local restaurant
Lunch at a local restaurant
Sacred Valley
Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Pisac Archaeological Site & Village Tour
Pisac Archaeological Site & Village Tour
Peru
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
A Final Evening with Peru’s History and Flavors
A Final Evening with Peru’s History and Flavors
Peru

We had a lunch/ no dine! We are at 19:30 on the airport, but the flight was 00:55 yet. We have to wait very long

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
First afternoon at Hacienda Concepcion
First afternoon at Hacienda Concepcion
Peru

Everything was perfect

Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Machu Picchu Exploration
Machu Picchu Exploration
Aguas Calientes/ Machu Picchu

Amazing so beautiful

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Maras Salt Ponds
Maras Salt Ponds
Peru
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Welcome to Cusco & The Sacred Valley!
Welcome to Cusco & The Sacred Valley!
Peru
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Time to depart from Hacienda Concepcion
Time to depart from Hacienda Concepcion
Tambopata
Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Third day at Hacienda Concepcion: Botanical Garden & Inland Collpa
Third day at Hacienda Concepcion: Botanical Garden & Inland Collpa
Tambopata

Amazing

Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Second day at Hacienda Concepción: Sandoval Lake & Canopy Walkway
Second day at Hacienda Concepción: Sandoval Lake & Canopy Walkway
Tambopata
Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Misminay Community, lunch and hike to Moray
Misminay Community, lunch and hike to Moray
Sacred Valley

Very nice

Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Morning Visit to Ollantaytambo
Morning Visit to Ollantaytambo
Peru
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Transfer to Cusco Airport
Transfer to Cusco Airport
Cusco
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Inca Megalithic stonework in Cusco and surroundings
Inca Megalithic stonework in Cusco and surroundings
Cusco
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Transfer to Lima Airport
Transfer to Lima Airport
Lima
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Lima: History, Culture & Local Gastronomy
Lima: History, Culture & Local Gastronomy
Lima
Quality of Experience
Food
Perfect
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Local specialist: Jimena Salazar
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I appreciated the very personalized trip plan...
Peru | Sep 15 - Sep 23, 2026

J
Julie V.
Newark, NJ | Reviewed on Sep 24, 2026
I appreciated the very personalized trip planned by Io. She is exceptionally responsive and understood the kind of trip we wanted....deeper immersion, fewer hotel stays and long car rides, some independent time to explore, great food and stellar accomodations. We absolutely loved every hotel: gorgeous Sol Y Luna, Belmond Sanctuary where we had the best food of our lives, and the warmth and location of Antigua Casona. Highly recommend all three. We loved the cultural immersion trips: Llama... Read more

I appreciated the very personalized trip planned by Io. She is exceptionally responsive and understood the kind of trip we wanted....deeper immersion, fewer hotel stays and long car rides, some independent time to explore, great food and stellar accomodations. We absolutely loved every hotel: gorgeous Sol Y Luna, Belmond Sanctuary where we had the best food of our lives, and the warmth and location of Antigua Casona. Highly recommend all three. We loved the cultural immersion trips: Llama trekking and the Potato experience were standouts. Machu Picchu was of course stunning. I appreciated the recommendations for our free days and restaurants. Jimy, our guide was fantastic,knowledgeable, fun and flexible. I also appreciated Lisbeth's efforts to retrieve and return a hat I left in MP.

Overall it was a great trip, however, we had some really basic logistical missteps that caused hassles that should have been avoided on a high end trip such as this. I shared that feedback and frustration directly and felt that they did their best to address it, and treated us to a dinner to offset some of the hassle. This is the second time we've booked with kimkim and the first time we have encountered logistical difficulty on the ground.

Hotel Reviews
Antigua Casona San Blas
Cusco

Beautiful, well located, exceptional service and food.

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Belmond Sanctuary Lodge
Machu Picchu

Absolutely beautiful, loved the ease of going the MP, exceptional service and among the best food we have every had, anywhere.

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Sol y Luna Hotel (Relais & Chateaux)
Urubamba

Exceptional, gorgeous and wonderful food.

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Activity Reviews
Flight to Cusco & Direct private transfer to the Sacred Valley w/assistance
Flight to Cusco & Direct private transfer to the Sacred Valley w/assistance
Peru

Flight from CUSCO to LIMA I had to ask repeatedly for the boarding passes. We never received them until around 6 pm before our departure at 4 am. As a result of the late check in, we were in a very late boarding group requiring us to check luggage (we always do carry on and always plan for that) and weren't seated together. I shouldn't have had to ask repeatedly for the boarding passes. It would have been easier to handle this myself.

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
The drivers were fine on both airport transfers. The driver on the transfer from Ollantaytambo to CUsco never said a single word to us, even through a terrible drive over roads that made us nearly sick to our stomachs.
Transport
The route taken between Ollayntambo to CUsco after our MP visit should not be allowed by your company. It was deeply unsettling and extremely uncomfortable.
Explore Machu Picchu & Return to Cusco (Private Guided tour in Machu Picchu) SV
Explore Machu Picchu & Return to Cusco (Private Guided tour in Machu Picchu) SV
Peru

The Belmond Sanctuary is well worth the price. We had two circuits on one day. Worth it, but it is alot so rest up!

Quality of Experience
Food
Best food of our lives.
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Extremely bad transport experience. We were booked for a private driver up to MP. Turns out that is not even possible, and we missed the last bus up trying to scramble to get bus tickets. Eventually made it. Big hassle. The next day it then took us 6 hours to get to Cusco: bus ride down, late train and an absolutely harrowing drive from the train to Cusco via extremely deserted roads, many with previous rock slides causing the road to become one lane and very, very rough dirt roads. I know there must have been a different route through the mountains. It was a terrible drive. I don't know why we couldn't have gone directly from MP to Cusco and had our luggage delivered. A six hour, extremely uncomfortable journey was competely unacceptable on a trip like this. We loved MP, but the travel hassle in both directions really impacted our impression of what was to be a highlight.
Potato Experience in the Sacred Valley
Potato Experience in the Sacred Valley
Sacred Valley

This was one of our top experiences. We learned so much and the warmth of the family and stunning scenery on the drive made it so memorable.

Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Private tour to The Salt Flats of Maras, Llama Trek, Shared Pachamanca Lunch & Self guided tour to Ollantaytambo town
Private tour to The Salt Flats of Maras, Llama Trek, Shared Pachamanca Lunch & Self guided tour to Ollantaytambo town
Sacred Valley

Loved this, especially the Llama Trek. We learned so much and our guide Jimy was fabulous. It is a very, very long day and the road to Ollantaytambo was really rough. The Pachamance lunch was delicious, but it was a long drive and we ended up there very late due to the road so we missed some of it. The food was excellent, though.

Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Local specialist: Io Gillhuber
Io
Io Gillhuber
Local specialist in Peru, Cusco | Replied on Sep 29, 2026
Dear Julie, Thank you so much for taking the time to share such a thoughtful and honest review. It truly means a lot to us, and I’m so happy to hear how much you enjoyed your time in Peru. It was a real pleasure planning your trip around the kind of experience you were looking for. I’m especially happy to hear how much you loved the hotels, the Llama Trekking and Potato Experience, and of course Machu Picchu. I’ll also be sure to share your kind words with Jimy and Lisbeth! At the same... Read more

Dear Julie,

Thank you so much for taking the time to share such a thoughtful and honest review. It truly means a lot to us, and I’m so happy to hear how much you enjoyed your time in Peru.

It was a real pleasure planning your trip around the kind of experience you were looking for. I’m especially happy to hear how much you loved the hotels, the Llama Trekking and Potato Experience, and of course Machu Picchu. I’ll also be sure to share your kind words with Jimy and Lisbeth!

At the same time, I’m truly sorry for the logistical issues you experienced. I completely understand your frustration, especially on a trip of this level. You shouldn’t have had to deal with those inconveniences, and I really appreciate you sharing your concerns with us directly. We’ve taken your feedback seriously and will continue working to make sure these details are handled more smoothly in the future.

I’m very grateful that, despite those bumps along the way, you were able to enjoy so many special moments.

Thank you again for trusting me with your journey. It was a pleasure having you in Peru!

I wish you all the best and send warmest greetings from Cusco to you and your family,
Io

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