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Residential Sector - Machu Picchu
Residential Sector
by ThiagoRamos
Things to Do in Machu Picchu: Ruins tips and photos posted by real travelers and Machu Picchu locals.
Ruins
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• 38 Reviews
Machu Picchu Ruins ReviewsTips 1 - 10 of 38  
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Ruins: The mistery of M.P.
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  • By schlumpf on November 13, 2004
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  • Ruins - Machu Picchu
    by schlumpf
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    Machu Picchu is a pretty big site, and for sure very famous. If you want to enjoy at 100% the place, you gotta come here very early (first bus leaves Aguas caliente at 06AM), so there won't be here too many people.... You can spend here a full day...just chill around.... There is no word more to say..just..hang around and discover!

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    Ruins: Getting up to Machu Picchu
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  • By mad4travel on July 25, 2005
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  • Better in real life than any photo - Machu Picchu
    Better in real life than any
    photo
    by mad4travel
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    If you are not walking the inca trail then the only way in to Machu Picchu is by train. It takes 4 hours from Cuzco but only 2 from Ollantaytambo. The train stops in the one train town of Aqua Caliente (see separate tip). To get up to the ruins you then have to take a bus. It takes about 15 mins to wind its way up a road containing 13 hairpin bends!. If you are agoraphobic, shut your eyes! The road is of reasonable width but it gets a bit exciting when you meet a bus coming the other way! Luckily these drivers do it all the time and can inch past on the edge of the precipice without tumbling over (mind you , I did'nt stop to ask if any buses HAD gone over!) The most fantastic thing is that you can't see the ruins for most of the way up, then when you get to about the 10th hairpin-there they are! you can't believe how perched on the side they really are. Before you know it you are there, through the gates and roaming the ruins you've been dreaming about all this time....

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    Ruins: Exploring the ruins
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  • Updated By toonsarah on June 15, 2006
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  • On the path to the Caretaker's Hut - Machu Picchu
    On the path to the
    Caretaker's Hut
    by toonsarah
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    Some things to think about when planning your visit: Take a hat and sun screen, even if the weather's overcast - in those mountains it can change very quickly (it was cloudy all morning when we were there but clear and bright in the afternoon) Take bottled water - there are no facilities inside the site. The same applies to food as well of course [there are places to eat just outside - a snack bar or in the nearby hotel] Do think about having a guide, especially if you only have the one day to see the place. OK it can be a bit of a hassle going round in a group, but a guide will make sure you see all the essentials and tell you some of the history, and there should still be time to explore by yourself in the afternoon. If you don't think you have the stamina to climb to Huayna Picchu try the path up to and beyond the Caretaker's Hut which will get you high enough for some great photos - but even that will take some effort at this altitude!


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    Ruins: Hitching Post of the Sun'
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  • By mad4travel on July 25, 2005
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  • Hitching post of the sun - Machu Picchu
    Hitching post of the sun
    by mad4travel
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    One of Machu Picchu's primary functions was that of astronomical observatory. The Intihuatana stone (meaning 'Hitching Post of the Sun') has been shown to be a precise indicator of the date of the two equinoxes and other significant celestial periods. The Intihuatana is designed to hitch the sun at the two equinoxes. At midday on March 21st and September 21st, the sun stands almost directly above the pillar, creating no shadow at all. At this precise moment the sun is "tied" to the rock. At these periods, the Incas held ceremonies at the stone in which they "tied the sun" to halt its northward movement in the sky.

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    Ruins: Wander Around the Royal Residence
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  • Updated By AKtravelers on March 26, 2005
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  • A view of Huayna Picchu from the Royal Patio - Machu Picchu
    A view of Huayna Picchu
    from the Royal Patio
    by AKtravelers
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    Importantly located at the top of the aqueduct (where the purest water is) is the Royal Residence. Its importance is also obvious from the spacious, multi-room layout of the residence and the excellent stonework used in its construction. Because this residence is best understood in comparison to other buildings at Machu Picchu, we recommend visiting it after you have toured a substantial portion of the ruins. That doesn't mean you can't visit it early in the day, but if you do that, you should go back, as we did. The residence appears to have a foyer, a main living area, a bedroom and a bathroom. The bathroom is located adjacent to the acqueduct, with a hole in the floor draining out of the house and into the stream. This explains why the top of the acqueduct is prime real estate. The interior would not have been furnished in the western manner, but most likely would have been covered in furs for sitting or lying. This would have added a warmth not apparent from the naked stonework. Outside of the residence is a broad patio with a commanding view of the city and mountains.

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    Ruins: Admire the Artisan's Wall
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  • Updated By AKtravelers on March 26, 2005
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  • Artisan's Wall warms Machu Picchu on a rainy day - Machu Picchu
    Artisan's Wall warms Machu
    Picchu on a rainy day
    by AKtravelers
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    Of all of the many walls in Machu Picchu, the one that stands out the most is the Artisan's Wall. Facing the central green on the facade of the eastern secor, the wall is beautifully structured and uniquely colored in a salmon hue. There is no explanation for why this wall would be different. In fact, the drainage openings halfway up indicate that much of its function is to retain earth -- a rather mundane duty for such a warm-looking wall.

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    Ruins: Macchu Picchu
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  • Updated By darthmilmo on November 15, 2002
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  • Machu Picchu - Machu Picchu
    Machu Picchu
    by darthmilmo
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    At times, you forget that Machu Picchu was not the Inca capital; Cusco was, just from the magnitude of the site. We had our tour of the site at 8 AM. After a while though, I just got so overwhelmed with the incredible masonry techniques in the Imperial Inca Construction that I just started breathing in the site by myself and totally ignored what the guide said. I just prefer to see the ruins and then to think about them. It took me a while to realize the tour had ended for I was always lagging behind. I must have walked another hour or so in the ruins by myself.

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    Ruins: All Machu Picchu is a must see and feel !!!!!!!!!
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  • By chancay on January 17, 2003
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  • Ruins - Machu Picchu
    by chancay
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    Take your time! Try to imagine Inca life 500 years and more ago. Try to hear their voices, try to smell it.....thereīs so much energy between these old walls. Try to imagine the mystic cults that happenend on that place.....and never forget to remember the incredible tragedy that happened to the Inca civilisation because of the colonialism. I donīt want to put that southamerican tragedy on an upper level than all the other changes until destructions of other cultural zones all over the world because of the wolrdwide colonial development, but what happened all around Peru was for my understanding very special because of this very high social level that has been already reached here....much higher than it did exist in Europe at the same time, they could have learned so much from each other, but there was only destruction. This is my personal idea.

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    Ruins: Residential area
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  • Updated By Jim_Eliason on August 9, 2005
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  • Machu Pichu - Machu Picchu
    Machu Pichu
    by Jim_Eliason
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    In the lower right corner is the residental area of Machu Pichu. Each of the rectangular rooms were individual houses. The whole structure was covered with a grass roof.

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    Ruins: The Entrance
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  • Updated By Jim_Eliason on August 9, 2005
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  • Machu Pichu - Machu Picchu
    Machu Pichu
    by Jim_Eliason
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    These buildings mark the entrance to the ruins. This will serve as your landmark for entering and leaving the ruins.

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