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Hi,
Thank you for your very informative site.
We will be in Peru around March 2017. We are driving down the panamericana by car and it is hard to book an exact date in advance, because we don´t know when we will be there exactly. Does the permit have to be for a specific date?
Thanks for your information,
Kind Regards,
Kai
ReplyHi Kai, Unfortunatley Inca Trail permit regulation is really strict. You can only secure a permit for a specific day and the permit is tied to the name in your passport and passport number, therefore they are not transferable or refundable. The sales process is really convoluted as well. There are only 500 permits a day and they only officially go on sale in January of the year you want to trek. So in your case the permits go on sale in January 2017. Registered tour operators are the only ones who can secure permits. Tours are pre-sold by these companies before the permits are released so their is no guarantee that they will be able to get you a permit until they are released and availability for any given day is made transparent. March usually sells out very quickly, within a few days of permits being released in January, March will sell out. I recommend pre-booking with a company, but if they don’t manage to secure your permit you can always do the Lares or Salkantay treks – which in my opinion or just as nice, especially the latter. Hope this helps!
ReplyHello! I’m looking to do a 4D/3N trek to Machu Picchu at some point in late March or early April. I understand that there are a limited number of permits, so I was wondering how I should go about booking this? I took a look at the website referenced above but am not sure what the numbers under availability mean. Could you help me out? I’d also be happy to speak over the phone. Thank you!
ReplyHi Katie, it’s best to chat with a tour operator as they have access to the permit booking system and can give you accurate numbers on permits available for any day, at any given time. You can use our tour recommendation service to get in touch with our preferred operator: https://www.machupicchutrek.net/go/
ReplyThanks for the excellent blog. I am planning to go to MP in december. Would I need permit to go to MP if I hike by myself? What is the shortest trek (how many days) with guided tour? Do I need permit for that short trek in December too?
Thanks,
Sam
H Sam, any trek on the classic Inca Trail requires a permit. There may still be permits available for December. I recommend getting in touch with a tour operator asap, use our recommendation service to get a quick quote: https://www.machupicchutrek.net/go/. Alternative routes don’t require permits, the shortest is probably the Huchuy Qosco: https://www.machupicchutrek.net/hike-to-machu-picchu/huchuy-qosqo-trek/
ReplyHi,
My daughter and I are planning to trek the 4 day MP in the middle of May 2019, can you firstly let me know if there are any permits available please and how much this would be for a group trek.
Many Thanks
Lisa
Hi Lisa, You will need to contact a registered tour operator to check permit availability. Use our tour referral service to get in touch with our recommended tour operator: https://www.machupicchutrek.net/go/
ReplyHi mark. Thank you for such a great overview of machu picchu. I was overwhelmed by choice and your article helped me a lot. We are planning a cruise to the galapogos not
Sept 26 2020 and we hope to do machu pitching before or after. Do you have a recommendable? I am an avid hiker and have hiked day trips to 10,400ft in palm springs. My husband is very fit but not as avid a hiker. I am thinking of the classic Inca trail. What are the accommodations? Tent? Do we pack our own gear or does our guide help? I also see that the permits are not issued until kauai
January. Do you think we will have an issue? Thanks for your input. Kate
Hi Kate, always happy to help. I recommend you read this article, it answers all your questions: https://www.machupicchutrek.net/hike-to-machu-picchu/inca-trail-trek/
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