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Machu Picchu And Kilts


Ormond

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Now, before anyone jumps on me on about Brigadoon or feathers in a daft bunnet, this is merely to help anyone who may be thinking of wearing the kilt on a Machu Picchu trip. 

I notice a lot of new rules have been brought in by the Peruvian government with regards to entry into Machu Picchu. One rule that seems to be popping up on every Google search is the prohibition of kilts and other like garments. I have been reading that there are increasing numbers of arsehole tourists doing stupid shit like baring arses and tits for photo opportunities inside the citadel. I also know there have been many Scots before who have hiked into the ruins in kilts with no problems. Like I said though, these rules are new and probably reflect the arseholeyness of recent tourists. 

It isn't going to affect my trip. I just thought it may help for others to be aware of this.

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1 hour ago, kumnio said:

Thats a bit shit, Im visiting Machu Picchu, but wanted to climb it wearing my kilt.

Im planning on doing it the day before the game, with an early morning flight back to Lima on game day.

I have taken a flight inland to Cusco for a 3 day trip to the Cusco Sacred Valley area and I have digs sorted for one night in Ollantaytambo en-route in prep for Machu Picchu.

One more thing to be aware of. Forgive me if you know already but tickets are needed in advance of arriving at the Machu gates. There is only a certain amount of people sold tickets for each day. It’s to limit the amount of erosion increasing numbers of tourists are creating say the government(bugger all to do with making more cash:rolleyes:) and be very aware that the authorities have recently separated admission to an AM and a PM ticket. You are not allowed to stay past your allotted time. Tickets can be purchased online or you can risk it and get them from the tourist offices in Cusco or Aguas Calientes. But if they run out it would be a cunt finding that out once you have travelled all that way. :(

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11 hours ago, Ormond said:

I have taken a flight inland to Cusco for a 3 day trip to the Cusco Sacred Valley area and I have digs sorted for one night in Ollantaytambo en-route in prep for Machu Picchu.

One more thing to be aware of. Forgive me if you know already but tickets are needed in advance of arriving at the Machu gates. There is only a certain amount of people sold tickets for each day. It’s to limit the amount of erosion increasing numbers of tourists are creating say the government(bugger all to do with making more cash:rolleyes:) and be very aware that the authorities have recently separated admission to an AM and a PM ticket. You are not allowed to stay past your allotted time. Tickets can be purchased online or you can risk it and get them from the tourist offices in Cusco or Aguas Calientes. But if they run out it would be a cunt finding that out once you have travelled all that way. :(

Especially if you've spent five days doing the Inca trail in your kilt.:lol:

You can do shorter Inca trail routes as well, if you don't want to do the full length one, but you need to get a permit to do it. Permits sell out quickly so you might already be too late. Get in soon if you want to do the trail.

We went there, many moons ago, planning to do the one day Inca trail route. But by the time we got to Cusco I had altitude sickness and no amount of Mate de Coca was going to get me up that trail. Instead we stayed overnight at Machu Picchu and early in the morning we walked back up the Inca trail out of Machu Picchu for about an hour, just so that we could say we had "done the Inca trail". Even that was a major struggle. Altitude sickness is no joke, I can tell you.

 

 

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10 minutes ago, Brummie Hibs said:

I just want to get up there take a photo and get back down. Don't care about walking Inca trails or living with Shamans or seeing sunrises.

Can this all be done from Lima and back in a day? 

You could get there in a day but you would be really struggling. Let’s say for instance you took a flight to Cusco which is an hour and a half long. So, 3 hours spent checking in at Lima and landing at Cusco. Then you have to get a taxi to a train station. Then it’s another 4 hours to get to Aguas Calientes. A further 40 minute bus trip from there brings you to Machu. Bearing in mind it closes at 5pm. All the above costs some serious money too. The trains are not cheap at all, as they are touristy built lines. There are no proper roads direct either so you can’t just spend a couple of hundred quid telling a taxi to take you. 

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5 minutes ago, Brummie Hibs said:

I just want to get up there take a photo and get back down. Don't care about walking Inca trails or living with Shamans or seeing sunrises.

Can this all be done from Lima and back in a day? 

I don't think you could do it in a day? Mind you, it was about 20 years ago that I did it, and I was spaced out on Mate de Coca, so my sense of time might have been a bit warped. You need to fly to Cusco, then get the train to Machu Picchu (I think the train alone takes a couple of hours each way?). You would probably be best to book a couple of nights in Cusco giving you the full day to get to Machu Picchu and back. 

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40 minutes ago, Orraloon said:

Especially if you've spent five days doing the Inca trail in your kilt.:lol:

You can do shorter Inca trail routes as well, if you don't want to do the full length one, but you need to get a permit to do it. Permits sell out quickly so you might already be too late. Get in soon if you want to do the trail.

We went there, many moons ago, planning to do the one day Inca trail route. But by the time we got to Cusco I had altitude sickness and no amount of Mate de Coca was going to get me up that trail. Instead we stayed overnight at Machu Picchu and early in the morning we walked back up the Inca trail out of Machu Picchu for about an hour, just so that we could say we had "done the Inca trail". Even that was a major struggle. Altitude sickness is no joke, I can tell you.

 

 

I’m not doing the “trail” as you say. I don’t have the time to acclimatise myself to the altitude beforehand. I’d love to do it but another time maybe. I’m doing all the hop, skipping and jumping between wee toons using trains and buses.

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2 minutes ago, Orraloon said:

I don't think you could do it in a day? Mind you, it was about 20 years ago that I did it, and I was spaced out on Mate de Coca, so my sense of time might have been a bit warped. You need to fly to Cusco, then get the train to Machu Picchu (I think the train alone takes a couple of hours each way?). You would probably be best to book a couple of nights in Cusco giving you the full day to get to Machu Picchu and back. 

Try doubling that.

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3 minutes ago, Ormond said:

You could get there in a day but you would be really struggling. Let’s say for instance you took a flight to Cusco which is an hour and a half long. So, 3 hours spent checking in at Lima and landing at Cusco. Then you have to get a taxi to a train station. Then it’s another 4 hours to get to Aguas Calientes. A further 40 minute bus trip from there brings you to Machu. Bearing in mind it closes at 5pm. All the above costs some serious money too. The trains are not cheap at all, as they are touristy built lines. There are no proper roads direct either so you can’t just spend a couple of hundred quid telling a taxi to take you. 

Aye, what he said.:ok:

Although, I can't remember the 40 minute bus trip from the station to Machu Picchu ? I seem to remember getting off the train, negotiating our way through loads of folk trying sell us loads of shit, and getting on a wee minibus which took us up the hill to the entrance - I think it only took about 5 minutes.

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Just now, Orraloon said:

Aye, what he said.:ok:

Although, I can't remember the 40 minute bus trip from the station to Machu Picchu ? I seem to remember getting off the train, negotiating our way through loads of folk trying sell us loads of shit, and getting on a wee minibus which took us up the hill to the entrance - I think it only took about 5 minutes.

Actually, you may be right about the wee bus at the end up the hill. I might be getting confused over it’s frequency rather than it’s duration.

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Anyhow, this is how I’m doing it. 

23rd- Fly to Cusco, stay one night. 

24th- Taxi to Ollantaytambo, stay one night.

25th- Train to Aguas Calientes, go up and see Machu AM ticket. Travel back to Cusco on the train same evening, stay 2 nights.

27th- Fly back to Lima.

 

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3 minutes ago, Ormond said:

Anyhow, this is how I’m doing it. 

23rd- Fly to Cusco, stay one night. 

24th- Taxi to Ollantaytambo, stay one night.

25th- Train to Aguas Calientes, go up and see Machu AM ticket. Travel back to Cusco on the train same evening, stay 2 nights.

27th- Fly back to Lima.

 

Get yourself some Coco leaves when you arrive in Cusco, just in case you need them but don't try to take them home to the USofA with you.;)

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How much is a return flight to Cusco? It's costing a small fortune as it is, but it would be a travesty to go all that way and not go to MP.

Her indoors ain't that bothered about visiting MP, so if it costs even more money to go there then it gives her even more ammo! I feel lucky enough to negotiate 'time with the boys' on the day and day before the match in Lima and MC. The rest is strictly "...our holiday..." !!

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Just now, Orraloon said:

Get yourself some Coco leaves when you arrive in Cusco, just in case you need them but don't try to take them home to the USofA with you.;)

I was reading up on that. Although not Cocaine like we know it, it says if you have a job which requires random drug tests that you should not take them. That’s it for me then. I’ll be chopping the fuck oot o’ them and seeing how much I can squeeze up my beak. :P

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1 minute ago, Brummie Hibs said:

How much is a return flight to Cusco? It's costing a small fortune as it is, but it would be a travesty to go all that way and not go to MP.

Her indoors ain't that bothered about visiting MP, so if it costs even more money to go there then it gives her even more ammo! I feel lucky enough to negotiate 'time with the boys' on the day and day before the match in Lima and MC. The rest is strictly "...our holiday..." !!

I got mine return for 80 dollars.

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@Brummie Hibs, remember if you are on a tight budget as you say, that getting even from Cusco to Machu Picchu isn’t cheap. The return train fare is 200 dollars if you somehow manage to pick the cheap times. It can climb to 600 dollars return if you are on a tight timescale and are forced to accept the departure times your itinerary allows. Then you have to time all the journey in exactly with an AM or PM ticket for entry to Machu. 

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2 minutes ago, Ormond said:

@Brummie Hibs, remember if you are on a tight budget as you say, that getting even from Cusco to Machu Picchu isn’t cheap. The return train fare is 200 dollars if you somehow manage to pick the cheap times. It can climb to 600 dollars return if you are on a tight timescale and are forced to accept the departure times your itinerary allows. Then you have to time all the journey in exactly with an AM or PM ticket for entry to Machu. 

It seems like I need to do a bit of research on this. We have the money for it, but it is whether we can justify it. 

Saying that, I went to Angkor Wat a couple of years back and it blew me away, however completely spoiled by the number of tourists. The GF wasn't impressed at all, so I'm fighting a battle....

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Just now, Brummie Hibs said:

It seems like I need to do a bit of research on this. We have the money for it, but it is whether we can justify it. 

Saying that, I went to Angkor Wat a couple of years back and it blew me away, however completely spoiled by the number of tourists. The GF wasn't impressed at all, so I'm fighting a battle....

I’ve spent the last 4 years thinking about doing Machu. The fitba’ made my mind up for me now. It takes a wee bit of thinking. Cusco itself looks a stunningly old city and therefore you could fly there only and swan about there without the physical and financial headache of doing Machu. 

The Peruvian government have only just tightened up all the rules and regulations heavily to get into Machu. Remember this when you are told from umpteen Scots that it was “Nae bother at a’ getting intae Machu the last time” 

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8 minutes ago, Brummie Hibs said:

Saying that, I went to Angkor Wat a couple of years back and it blew me away, however completely spoiled by the number of tourists. The GF wasn't impressed at all, so I'm fighting a battle....

I used to work with an old guy who’s Wife was really into historical architecture. So he would go along for the trip. When asked how his trip to the Egyptian pyramids were he answered it was “Just a heap o’ auld rocks” and after returning from the Great Wall Of China the response was “Once you’ve seen one dyke, you’ve seen them aw!” :lol:

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7 minutes ago, DoonTheSlope said:

The more I've read about it the more it all sounds a bit of a damp squib. It all sound a bit too regimental since they've tightened entry requirements 

That’ll suit the eejits in piper jaickets then. 

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