Really! I've been reading but I'm still confused about Machu Picchu?
 

Please don't think that I haven't tried...I've read through these boards and my fodors book but am still confused...Can someone walk me through this...?
Does this sound right???

you fly to lima
and then fly to cuzco
and then take a train to aguas calientas?
then take a bus to Machu Picchu
We'd like to stay overnight
So..........
when do you see the sacred valley of the inca and other sits? Sexy woman, Olly (can't spell them but I know you know what I mean)

I know there are other ruins there that are very impressive and we'd like to see them but I'm not sure what the sequence is??

Thanks for any help you can provide!!!

I feel your pain. Following is a site that may help. It seems like a reasonable period of time. Beyond what you read there, I too know nothing:

http://tinyurl.com/zcpkv

It seems that you can tailor the itinerary to suit your purposes.

Each time I preview this reply, the url is duplicated for some reson. I'll also try to send you an email directly.

Here's the itinerary we did in January with a slight variation on the train portion from the itinerary you outlined

- Fly to Lima over night from Toronto
- Fly to Cusco - arriving about 11am
- Pick up at Cusco airport and transferred to Ollantaytambo (Sacred Valley) - 3 reasons to go there - one, it's lower altitude than Cusco and makes acclimation easier, two it's faster to take the train to AC from Ollantaytambo and drive to Cusco and three - as you say the ruins in the SV are all very impressive. We stayed at Hotel Sauce for 4 nights and loved it. Visited Pisac, Moray, Salinas and the ruins at Ollantaytambo. We had a private guide/driver instead of a tour and really liked the flexibility that gave us and it wasn't more expensive than a mid range tour
- Train to AC then bus to MP - we stayed at the Sanctuary Lodge for 2 nights - we chose to stay two nights at MP as it was a very important part of the trip for us and we were traveling in the rainy season so we wanted some protection for bad weather.
- Train from AC to Ollantaytambo and driver to Cusco
- Cusco for 3 nights (we could have spent less time there but others love it)
- then we drove to Lake Titicaca and spent 2 nights in Puno and one night on an island with a family

Here's a link to our blog with photos

http://lizandrichardsa.typepad.com/l...aca/index.html

Try to get an overnight flight to Lima that will arrive before dawn, say at 4 a.m. That way, you can have time to go through immigration and customs and catch one of the early-morning flights to Cusco. Some international flights arrive in Lima very late at night, and you're confronted with the issue of what to do until your domestic flight leaves the next morning. That is, unless you already plan to spend some time in Lima.

Even the first morning flight to Cusco will not get you there in time to catch a train to Aguas Calientes, even if you immediately head out to the Sacred Valley and pick up the train there. So spend your first day (or days) in Cusco or the Sacred Valley. They're well worth the time.

You have the same issue in reverse when it's time to leave. The train back from MP does not arrive in Cusco in time for you to catch a flight back to Lima, so you'll need to spend at least your last night in Cusco or the Sacred Valley. If you're out in the Sacred Valley, you'd need to get a pretty early start to make it the airport in time.

Thanks so much!
I've printed out what you all helped me with and will go over it this weekend.
I really appreciate your input!!!!

The sacred valley is an easy day trip from Cusco. Personally I like the small villages in the Sacred Valley more than Cusco, particularly Ollantaytambo. Sacsayhuaman is practically in the city of Cusco and you can easily catch a cab to it. You can also take the train to Aguas Caliente directly from Ollantaytambo. Basically Ollantaytambo is an Incan ruin that is still inhabited. I stayed at Hotel Pakaritampu and loved it. It is best to spend at least one night in Aguas Caliente so you can visit the ruins when they are less crowded. From about 10 am to 2 pm it is swarmed with day trippers from Cusco.

www.pakaritampu.com/english/index.htm

you guys ROCK! This is exactly the kind of information that I was looking for.
Thanks so very much!!!!

I'm sure I'll be back as I'm just starting my planning.
Thanks again!
Toni

Not sure what your timeframe is but giving yourself a little time to acclimate wouldn't hurt. The whole area has a lot to offer and even the streets of Cusco are steep enough to wind you if you aren't used to the height. I appreciated seeing the Inca sights around Cusco as a preview for Machu Picchu. Made what you see there more meaningful.