susant14

Greetings! We are currently debating what to do next Spring Break (first week in April) and have narrowed it down to a few options, one of which is a Lima/MP trip. I am a little hesitant to book this due to the potentially wet weather in early April. Has anyone been there in April? Also, what can we expect to pay for transportation along the journey? Is renting a car a bad idea, or public transport/buses/trains the best way to go? Our children will be 9 & 10 at that point so I am thinking that the Inca trail hike may be a bit too much for them. I have read about buses and trains that also head up to MP... any recommendations? Thanks in advance!

Mosesluv

Hi there, I just returned from it in Mid may...and honestly I was a little disappointed and how brown it had already become. We had thought we would be hitting the tail end of the wet season on purpose so it would all be lush and green (I went may 8-13). I think April would actually be the best time to go. As for renting a car.. likely depends on what you are doing?? I went with a tour group (Adventure Life) and they had us go to Sacred Valley for a lot of the time before MP, and I LOVED it, but definitely would not have easily found my way around on my own in a rental car. Nothing is marked. Cusco traffic is crazy too. I'll bet you wouldn't save much in terms of $ anyway... things there seem to be very expensive in general. Hope that helps! You will love Peru!

colduphere

Our youngest was 12 when we did the IT. It was a breeze for him. If your kids are outdoorsy types I doubt they would have a problem. But doing the hike would take up much of your available time.

geetika

We were in Peru mid-April 2011 and had great weather, though some days there was a slight drizzle, nothing bad. One advantage of going in the shoulder season is avoiding the crowds, something quite important at Machu Picchu. You'll love Peru, enjoy!

kaudrey

I think you can't really count on what the weather will be. We went to Peru May 11-25th, including the Inca Trail in the middle, and we got poured on often on the hike (luckily, no rain on MP day!). It also rained in the afternoon almost every day in Cuzco.

mlgb

Renting a car is a bad idea and also unnecessary. A taxi with driver costs less than renting a car for the day.

April is definitely within the rainy season, although it is starting to taper off. There is tremendous variation from year to year, due to the El Niño - La Niña influences (extending even into the Andes).

You will find many trip reports here that do pretty much what you intend, with or without the Inca Trail.

Basically it goes

Fly to Lima, overnight near the airport
Fly to Cusco, go to the Sacred Valley for a few nights (Ollantaytambo or Urubamba)
Take the train (www.Perurail.com)from the Sacred Valley (Ollantaytambo) to Aguas Calientes, and then the bus to Machu Picchu.

Some people do an overnight in Aguas Calientes and go back to MP a second day.

Return via Ollantaytambo (picking up your luggage) and take a taxi to Cusco. (for a day trip you sleep the night in "Olly").

Spend a night or two in Cusco. Fly to Lima the morning before your flight home.

Fly home from Lima.

There is absolutely no need to book this via a travel agency.

Hotels are able to arrange your airport pickups, and your tours. You may also want to prearrange a day tour or two around the SV with a local guide. Quite a few are recommended here on Fodors.

Lima is a desert so there is no chance of rain, and April is actually a fairly pleasant month there.