Originally Posted by
DGS822
I'd recommend heading to Aguas in the evening and spending one night there. I did this in October and it's great to be able to get in-line to go up to MP early in the morning (e.g., 4am) depending on how crowded things are.
I'd recommend looking around for a decent room in Aguas or just planning to sleep in a hostel-like environment (and only spend $10-20 for the room).
I'd suggest taking a mid-afternoon train back to Tambo so you have plenty of time to see MP early in the omrning, sunrise, walk around and then jump back on the train. I left my stuff at the Tambo and just took a backpack to Aguas Callientes.
I think this is what many people do at Machu Picchu, but I recommend NOT getting up at the crazy earlier hour. We got up at 7 am in Aguas, and thought it was very uncrowded when we arrived (we visited last year around the USA Labor Day). I do think an early evening train back is a good idea.
And hotel rooms are cheap in Aguas. No need for a hostel. I paid like $40 for a room for 2, and had a completely adequate hotel room with an OK free breakfast.