Machu Picchu by train

“It’s about the journey not just the destination” is a phrase that came to mind when I was looking at some photographs I took in Peru four years ago this month. After spending a while in the high Andean city of Cuzco, we were en route (for the second time) to visit Machu Picchu. Once again, we were travelling by train down through the productive farming lands of the Urubamba Valley. But this time, we had to take a detour via bus for part of the way. The Autumn rains had washed away part of the track.  We were dropped off at Ollantaytambo Station, ate some delicious street food (choclo y queso, that is corn and cheese), then made our way on the Peru Rail train, accompanied by Paddington Bear, down to Aguas Calientes, where the buses take you up the steep mountain slopes towards the majestic ruins of Macchu Picchu, one of the world’s most important UNESCO World Heritage Centres. Here are a few images taken from the journey.

If you are planning on taking the train from Cuzco to Macchu Picchu, do check out the latest information as there have been some changes to where trains depart from in Cuzco (sadly, they no longer shunt back and forwards up a zig zag trail to get to the top of the mountain). One useful source of information is The Man in Seat 61.

For more photographs of  Peru, please visit J. Ashley Nixon Photography