It was really amazing to see Machu Picchu in person after seeing it so many times in Travel Magazines. You just can't beleive it until you see it with your very own eyes.

It's just so unbelievable to me that the Inka people built this astounding mountaintop city. Which included a Palace, Temples, Observatory...with water fountains, terrace gardens, and even a sun dial so they could tell what time of day it was. All this, built using only primative tools!

The weather was perfect, not too warm and not too chilly....it was great just making our way through this amazing place, discovering all the things we had read about in our travel guide. Seeing this structure for ourselves. I'm sure it would have been best to have a tour guide point out everything, but, luckily, I had my travel pal who was very well read and could identify everything....the sundial.....
the water fountain...the agriculture area as well as the domestic area. {It's great being friends with someone so smart!}

I was hopeing to see some llamas and I wasn't disappointed. As I was climbing the stairs, one just walked right up to me! He seemed to check me out and as I was scrambling for my camera, he walked past me and decended down the stairs, stopping to survey the marvelous view. He wasn't interested in getting his photo taken. So, I sought after another llama, that was by the grassy area....I just had to get a photo of myself with a llama! And he was quite patient with me as I tried to take a photo of the two of us! You hear about how they can get pretty mean and spit. Thank God, I got a nice one!

When we got up to where the sun dial was there were lots of groups; mostly school children. One of the teachers pointed to me and one at a time, the children approached me and asked if they could take a photo with me. There must have been about 20 children as well as 2 teachers. I don't quite know why they choose to be photographed with me, perhaps they don't see many blondes....or was it the pink leopard hiking boots?

From reading the other reviews, it appears that most people opt for the less time consuming option of going to Machu by train from Cusco.
I would, however, highly recommend you consider doing the 4 day trek to get there. Reaching Machu at 6am on the morning of the 4th day was one of the most incredible things i have experienced.
The trek itself is not all that difficult. if you are reasonably fit (if you can walk basically!) Granted, there are a few high passes (4200m is the highest) where you do get a bit breathless, but the views are astounding. Also, every day you get to see some other ruins, which are very impressive.
In terms of pricing, you will pay about $400. But if you look at what you get in the 4 days (everything basically!) it is money well spent.
We went in January 08 (the supposed rainy season) and were obviously very lucky with the weather as it rained once in 4 days. The company we used were based out of Cusco: United Mice. Highly recommended - good quality tents, good quality (and quantity!) of food and a highly knowledgeable and amusing peruvian guide.
I understand for some people time may be an issue, but if you can stretch to do it, you MUST do the trek. You will feel a great sense of awe and accomplishment when you reach the Sun gate early on the last morning and look down at an empty Machu Picchu...

You will need CASH (no credit cards accepted) to purchase your train tickets to Machu Picchu from Cusco, and the cost for the Vistadome is about $110 USD. At Machu Picchu, if you are not part of a tour you will need to purchase a ticket at the gate - and again, they DO NOT TAKE CREDIT CARDS OR USD!!! We were hit for a terrible exchange rate at The Santuary Lodge (but it was our only option)!

Wow... simply put, wow!

If you have the urge, even the slightest interest in visiting this wonder of the world (on the new 7 wonders list) don't hesitate for one instant. Machu Picchu may be the most amazing site I have every been to... more so than the Grand Canyon, more so than any Erupoean city, more so than the Norwegean or New Zealand Fjords.

Pictures do not do Machu Picchu justice... you must see it, feel it, to understand how spectacular this site is. To try and imagine the Incas not only living in but building the city in such a remote and seemingly uninhabitable place baffles the mind at times.

When we first arrived on top of the mountain, if was raining and we did get very wet (along with the other 500 or so tourists). But after a short drying off at the hotel (see my Sanctuary Lodge review) and some lunch, the skies cleared around 4:00pm and we headed back out... and to our pleasant surprise, there couldn't have been more than 150 people on the site. We nearly had the place to ourselves for an hour (it's bigger than you might think).

I am still in awe and would recommend that if you have the chance to visit Machu Picchu, don't pass on it. You will be amazed.