Since the flooding and landslides earlier in the year, much of the railway line is still out of action. Therefore, from Cuzco a minibus-convoy-train combo trip (with part of the journey via van running along the railway tracks) finally brought us to Aguas Calientes, the nearest pueblo to Machu Picchu. It was a scenic journey through the Sacred Valley and almost felt like home as we recognised a few places from our previous visit to the area.

Aguas Calientes is a small scruffy town surrounded on all sides by towering mountains with a small river running through the centre.

We arrived in the late afternoon and just wandered around, chilled out and had an early night in preparation for a good start in the morning.