We spent 2 days there, but if you are not doing any of the hikes, 1 day should be fine. We did the Inca bridge and Sun Gate hikes and toured part of the ruins the first day and did the Huayna Picchu hike and toured the rest of the ruins the second day. Huayna Picchu is very steep and strenuous and requires lots of climbing. I don't recommend it if you have knee problems. Just climbing all the stairs in the ruins themselves can be hard on the knees.

There are many former posts about this topic..and as many opinions as posters! We didn't hike but we did spend two days at MP..and thoroughly enjoyed it. The second day gave us chance to revisit areas and to just sit and absorb the specialness of this wonderful place. You will have come a long way to see MP, it is a very large site and imo it deserves at least two days.

MP is unique .

I have visited several times and it always amazes me.

I would vote for a minimum 2 day stay.

xochitl - if you were to have 3-4 days in MP, other than exploring the sanctuary and hiking Huayna Picchu and the Sun Gate, what are some of the activities you would recommend?

We're currently considering staying at the Inkaterra and will do some of their included activities, but want to make sure we maximixe our time as we do not anticipate returning to Machu Picchu on later trips to Peru. Some of the additional activities we're thinking of -- hiking to the top of Apu Machu Picchu, walking to Mandor Falls.

one day for MP and agua callente is sufficient. The hotel at MP is very expensive....we took the train from cusco and then they put you on the bus for a short ride. The hike into MP is quite steep and windy over a good narrow trail. It is not difficult and takes about 15 min.l The hike up to Temple of Moon is a killer... if you want to do that, you will need two days.... I just enjoyed the view from MP. Personally, one day is sufficient, and if steep hikes are not for you, forget the hike up the Mtn to the Temple... coming down is even harder on knees than going up....

have a great time.....

if you have any specific questions, email me at waynedrury48@hotmail.com....have been to Peru 25 times....

Wayne, thanks for your comment. While one day may be sufficient for most people, we definitely plan to spend a couple of days in the area ... we want to enjoy some of the hikes at the citadel and take advantage of the activities offered by the hotel. This will likely be our only visit to MP, so we see no reason to rush through it.

We just returned from Peru last week. I had originally planned to spend a night at MP, with 2 days at the site. Because of a threatened railway strike we ended up spending one long day there. We left Ollantaytambo at 6:40 a.m. and took the 7:00 p.m. train back to Ollantaytambo, spending the night at Ollantaytambo. While the site is fairly large, there is enough time in one long day to take a 2 hour tour of the site in the morning before the tours arrive from Cusco, hike Huayna Picchu at around 11:30 (this takes about 2 hours at a fairly leisurely pace) and then have time for lunch and a relaxing second look at the ruins in the afternoon. We even had time for a short hike in the late afternoon up the inca trail toward the Sun Gate (just to the first viewing point).

I don't think you need a second day if you follow this plan.

I would definitely bring an energy bar or some peanuts with me, as well as a big water bottle, as there is nothing to buy at the site and the restaurant is far from the ruins and very expensive by Peru standards.

Just to be in MP is a very relaxing and energy feeling experience.

If you plan for 4 days, your best bet is to stck with what Inkaterra is offering you, they are the best in the area and I am sure they wll take good care of you.

Just to be in MP is a very relaxing and energy feeling experience.

If you plan for 4 days, your best bet is to stck with what Inkaterra is offering you, they are the best in the area and I am sure they wll take good care of you.

My son and I just returned from two weeks in Peru. We spend two days up at the site at Macchu Picchu and if we had to do it over again we would do it in a day:

- First, hike Huayna Picchu first thing in the morning while it's cool

- Second, spend a leisurely rest of the day visiting the Macchu Picchu ruins, which can easily be done in several hours.

- Then, take the late train back to Ollantaytambo.

With the extra day, we would have spent more time in Ollantaytambo. We spend one and a half days in Ollantaytambo, and loved it....could have easily used the extra time we spend in MP at Ollantaytambo. There's a number of interesting sites to walk to/hike to from there, and we could have spend more time there.

We spent two night in Pisaq; loved that, too, but O. is nicer.

MP, of course is spectacular, but one of our surprises from our trip is how much we liked the rest of the Sacred Valley -- the hotels are nice, the food is good, and sites and hiking are fantastic.