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Old Dec 13, 2016, 1:47 am
  #2  
desi
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 1,203
In terms of tour vs individual, it depends on your travel lifestyle.

What do you do in other 3rd world countries?

Macchu Picchu is well visited by tourists from all over the world. So it is not really an off-the0beaten path. In fact, it is a well travelled path with plenty of desis doing this. You even find Hare-Krishna restaurant in Aguas Caliente.

Having said that, an intermediate option might be advisable *use an agency to arrange things for you but travel individually as per your custom likings)

Would strongly recommend NOT going to cusco first. At 11000 ft, altitude sickness is not something to ignore. If you are lucky and it doesnt hit you then it is good but better to be safe, take AZT tablets and visit cusco after visiting MP. It is bit of logistics pain as tourism industry in centered in Cusco.

Here is what I recommend:

Avoid arriving at Lima late at night and trying to catch first flight to CUS. Jus

If you can arrive in the afternoon, transfer to JW at Miraflores
Spend two nights there (half day walking in Miraflores and half day standard LIMA sightseeing tour)
Day 3, fly to CUS and GO DIRECTLY to AC.
Spend a night in AC.
Pre-arrnage two day visits to MC.
First day afternoon, have a guide show you around and then linger after crowd has left.
On second day hike up Huyana Picchu and return to CUsco in the evening.
Day 5.6 (Cusco and Sacred Valley via standard tour that goes to Pisac, lunch at Hacienda in Urubamba, OLT and Chinchero))
Day 7 return from cusco via Lima

The alternative is to stay in Ollantaytambo upon arrival from Cusco on day 3. Make day trip to MC on day 4. Hire a car to show you Salt flatss and then take you to Cusco via Pisac. (Note on Pisac: After seeing sites at OLT and MC, Pisac may not appeal to you and so-called market at Pisac is a big let down if you have seen any in desh or any other 3rd world country)

Transfer arranged by hotels are typically very expensive.
If you are fluent in spanish and used to 3rd world country ways of doing things then it is much cheaper to do it personally at the last minute.

For most people, a customized routing with meet-and-greet and station/airport, transfer to aairport/station/hotel, bookings at hotel, train tickets, MC entrance tickets, HP special ticket, Ac to MC bus tickets, box lunch at MC, guide at MC- all these prearranged take a lot of hassle and uncertainity out of the picture. It still has flexibility and independence that conducted tour does not allow and is not as expensive as conducted tour.

Visiting MC was almost as easy as visiting Chichen Itza and nothing like visiting Petra or Giza or even Badaling Wall.
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