Cusco to Aguas Calientes
Replies: 7 - Last Post: Jan 24, 2013 12:40 AM Last Post By: polyglot25
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Cusco to Aguas Calientes
Hello, does anyone know of a way to get to Aguas Calientes from Cusco that doesn't involve taking a train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes? (Or spending the better part of a day trekking?) That's what is suggested everywhere I look. Do combis go between Ollantaytambo and Aguas Calientes, or is there not even a road that goes between those two towns?Any advice/past experiences would be much appreciated. Thanks.
1
There are signs all over Cusco advertising trips to AQ by car or van. Back in December some posted about his trip by van.2
You could as well walk along the railway tracks from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes which is of course forbidden.Or go to Santa Teresa and walk from de hydroelectrica to Aguas Calientes.
4
This is a synopsis of what Jort & Karen from Belgium posted some time ago. They did it like this:- 7am bus from Cusco (Santiago Terminal) to Santa María (dirección Quillabamba), 15 soles/person, 5-6 hours.
- Collectivo from Santa María to Santa Teresa, 30 soles for the car (4 persons), 50 minutes.
- Combi from Santa Teresa to Hydro-electric plant, 3 soles/person, 30 minutes.
- Walking from Hydro to Aguascalientes. 2-2h30m. Follow train tracks.
- Arrived in Aguascalientes at 17:15.
There are variations.
5
Since Aguas Calientes has no road access from the outside, the short answer is no! Unless you have an aversion to walking, or can't, a trek terminating in Aguas Calientes is a brilliant option. I walked the Salkantay trail which can be done in 3-4 days. If you need to get to Aguas Calientes quickly and painlessly, the train is the way to go!6
Only ways to get to Aguas Calientes are:Train from Cusco
Train from Ollantaytambo (took me a while to find the right spelling for this one, and some day I will be able to pronounce it)
Inca Trail
Walking along the railroad (no irony intended)
7
#6 leaves out Salkantay, which is increasingly popular.The advantage of taking the bus to Ollantaytambo (OY-ANT-AY-TAMBO, it's a great name) and then catching the train instead of catching it in "Cusco" (inverted commas because it leaves from Poroy which is not in the city itself but just outside) is that you can spend some time in Ollantaytambo itself, which is really interesting and extremely pleasant. It has some extremely significant and impressive Inca ruins overlooking the town. Then from there is a quick minivan ride to Urubamba, which you can use as a jumping point to explore the Sacred Valley (Písac, Moray, Salinas). Quite a lot of people visit Machu Picchu and totally ignore the Sacred Valley, which in my view is criminal - it's fascinating and beautiful!
Sacred Valley:
http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Cusco/Sacred-Valley/blog-739329.html
