If you are doing the 2 day & 1 night hike to Machu Picchu, you may be uncertain about what to pack. When you go on this hike, you have to pack a day bag and carry everything you will need for the entire 2 day hike. There are no porters, so you will need to carry everything yourself.
We booked our hike through Alpaca Expeditions, and I would highly recommend them. They exceeded all of my expectations and helped made our trip so incredible. Read about what to expect on your hike here.
If you are uncertain about what to do with your main luggage that you brought to Peru with you, Alpaca Expeditions will store it for you in their office. We paid for an apartment in Cusco for an entire week to use as our base, so we left our main luggage in the apartment.
What I Wore During the Hike
- Athletic leggings. I only brought one pair of athletic leggings and wore them on both days of the hike. What I LOVED about these leggings is that they had pockets along the side of the leg, so I was able to put my phone in there and quickly access it if I wanted to take a picture.
- Athletic Shirt. I brought 2 shirts (one for each day of the hike).
- Athletic Long-Sleeved Zipper-Up Shirt. I sometimes wore this over my shoulders to protect my skin from the sun too.
- Baseball cap. This was a last minute add-on to my bag and I’m so glad I packed it since it protected my face from the sun.
- Sunglasses.
- Hiking shoes. I purchased these from a store dedicated to hiking. They had a little bit of water resistance, and were really good quality. They looked almost like regular sneakers with a tiny bit of ankle support. Wear whatever is extremely comfortable for you!
My backpack
The backpack I used was just a regular backpack from Walmart. It didn’t have hip straps, or a water bladder compartment, or anything fancy. It had LOTS of pockets for organizing though, which I liked.
If I were to do it again, I would get a bag with hip straps so that less weight is carried on the shoulders. The 1.5LT bottle of water that I carried with me was heavy. I personally don’t think a water bladder is necessary, because reaching into my bag to get my water was a nice excuse to stop and take a break.
What to pack for the 2 day & 1 night hike to Machu Picchu
- My packable down jacket. I didn’t need this during the trek, but it was nice to wear on those early mornings and in the evenings before and after the trek when it was a bit more chilly. It was REALLY light and small, so I didn’t even notice it in my bag.
- 1.5 LT of water. Alpaca Expeditions refilled our water bottles at lunchtime too.
- Snacks. (I brought cliff bars, and a few cookies)
- Sunscreen
- Bug Spray. I personally didn’t use this at all, but I hear that the bugs can get bad. So bring it just in case.
- Lip Chap with SPF
- External Charger. This was great to recharge my phone (which I also used a camera).
- First Aid Kit:
- Diamox for the altitude
- Prescription medicine
- Blister pads
- Bandaids
- Pepto Bismol
- Imodium
- Ibuprofen (for headaches)
- Lacrosse Ball/Tennis Ball. I didn’t actually pack this myself, but someone in our group did and it was AMAZING. I rolled my foot on it every evening to give it a massage.
- Athletic T-shirts. I had one shirt for each day. Alpaca Expeditions gave us a free T-shirt on our travels which I wore that evening to supper and on our second day.
- 1 Cotton Leggings (I wore these out for supper)
- Underwear for each day, plus extra.
- Socks for each day, plus extra for the evenings.
- Baseball hat
- Poncho. Just in case it rained!
- Passport. You will definitely need you passport, so make sure you bring this with you!
- Money Belt. This is optional, but I used this as a place to put my passport and wallet, and I left it at the bottom of my backpack. On our lunch break, we were able to drop off our backpacks at the campsite while they gave us a tour of a near-by ruin. I didn’t want to bring my heavy backpack with me, but I also didn’t want to leave my passport and money unattended, so I wore my money belt instead.
On our second day of the hike, we were able to leave our items with the hotel in the morning and pick it up before we left. So I gave them all of my extra clothes & my external charger, which made a huge difference in the weight of my bag the next day!
Packing for an extra day in Ollantaytambo
After the hike, we spent an extra night in Ollantaytambo, so we had to pack for a whole extra day. The only “extra” items I packed was one extra T-shirt which I didn’t need because Alpaca Expeditions had given me a shirt. I also packed one extra pair of underwear and socks. I wore the same pants for the entire 3 days (lovely, I know. But it wasn’t that bad).
Have you hiked to Machu Picchu? What are your essentials for a hike?
