That Time I Missed the Bus to Machu Picchu
And what to do it you do too
They say it takes a village to raise a child, but; as was proven when I missed my bus to Machu Picchu, it also takes a village to get a Hillary up a mountain.
The morning I was going to Aguas Calientes to stay the night before going to Machu Picchu, I woke up good and early and had almost plenty of time to get to my bus to my train.
I had double checked the address on my ticket and knew it was only a 15 minute walk from my hotel. I had passed the area it was in the day before so I was feeling very accomplished arriving almost 18 minutes early.
Except…
When I got to the address on the ticket, it was not where the bus pick up was. The woman gave me very exact directions: 2 blocks straight, then just on the left.
Okay, cool… I still have a solid 15 minutes and with these giraffe legs can cover that in 4.
Except…
“Just on the left” there was no bus. No people in vests or coats or even name badges. No signage; no anything indicating a bus stop.
I asked a police officer, showed him my ticket and he pointed and said “down there”.
Okay, cool… I still have 10 minutes and I can cover that quick.
Except…
Again, no bus, no signs, no staff…
Slight panic.
Then I see several people in Cusco municipality jackets! Praise be! THEY MUST know!
Haha. Nope.
BUT another man nearby jumps in to offer his assistance and knows EXACTLY where I need to go! But I don’t speak enough Spanish to fully understand. No worries! He points: uno, dos, tres, points to the left and crosses himself… hmm? Oh! Left! Left at the church? Si!
I take off at as close to a run as my chunky self and the crowded streets allow.
7 minutes.
I see an ACTUAL STATION SIGN!
Dripping sweat and heaving, I find a man in a vest with a name tag!
Who tells me I am the WRONG STATION.
The bus stop I need is 3 blocks over, 3 blocks down.
4 minutes, 6 blocks… there is no way.
But maybe the bus is delayed?! I take TF off and cover those 6 blocks in 6 minutes… 2 minutes too late.
I will NOT cry. There has to be a solution.
I check Uber prices to the train station. Hefty, but not TERRIBLE.
But, what if this is like skiplaggong and if I miss the bus they cancel my train ticket?!
So I go back to the original station and tell the woman I couldn’t find the bus.
After a resounding chorus of “oh no!!” She says I can absolutely still use my train ticket, but not to take an Uber, she is going to tell me how to get there (that went well the first time…).
She tells me I can take a taxi from the city center where we are to another taxi service that goes directly to then train station.
Taxi 1 should be 10 soles (approx $2.70usd), taxi 2 should be 40 soles (approx $11usd) but is shared with 3 other people. No problem!
Oh wait, problem: I don’t have enough cash.
She walks with me to find a money exchange, then flags me a cab. Gives him directions, puts me in and says “you will make it, our bus is slow, the taxi is fast”.
Here’s hoping.
Taxi 1 takes me to where taxi 2 is and as I get out am bombarded with taxi offers. I hand driver 1 a 10 soles note and a 5 soles coin (or so I thought) and thank him very much. He looks at the money and at me and I say “it’s okay, thank you!” And he gets in the car and leaves.
As I am trying to figure out which car to take, there is a bit of a commotion and 2 men run down the street then come back and approach me with a handful of cash. I immediate think ‘scam’ and try to ignore them.
Nope! In my flustered state I handed taxi 1 a 100 soles note, not 10. He actually pulled over and called them over to give me my money back, and they did.
Okay; now I’m about to cry.
But there is no time for that, I am already being ushered in to the front seat of a van. Luckily, there is a man who comes over to speak to me in English and asks what time my train is.
12:46.
It is 10:30. My bus was at 9:55.
“Don’t worry”
Umm, sir, this is a time to worry.
Another woman gets in the van along with another taxi driver.
The man who was speaking English to me asks if I am okay to pay an additional 20 soles to leave now.
I would have given him my big toe, so about $5 seemed reasonable.
That settled, a whole teenager slides in to the driver’s seat and the man speaking English speaks to him in Spanish then says “fast, fast fast!”
That directive was heard loud and clear. Not a single stop sign was stopped at. Speed bumps sent us air-born. The horn was held as we flew passed cars on the wrong side of the road, stopping only for occasional dogs crossing the street (pedestrians better duck and dodge). We took switchbacks and turns on 2 wheels.
We stopped briefly to drop off the other 2 people in the van, then via google translate the driver told me we only had 25 more minutes to go and I would make it.
We arrived at the trains station with 12 minutes to spare!
This teen-angel asked via google translate to see my ticket, then got out of the van and said “come”. He took me inside, found a train staff and handed me off to her. She checked my ticket and we took off to the check in window, then toward the train where she handed me off to the next staff that graciously welcomed me aboard.
3 minutes to spare.
Made it!!
What To Do if You Miss Your Bus
(Or just want to take the train from Estación Ferroviaria de Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes)
During rainy season, November-April, the trains do not run from Cusco City Center to Ollantaytambo. Both train services operate “bi-modal”, with a bus (commercial van) taking passengers from the city center about halfway, to Ollantaytambo station to take the train the rest of the way.
Tranist from Cusco to Ollantaytambo takes approximately 1 hour and 5 minutes and can cost anywhere from $20 dollars and up.
In the event you miss your van (happens to the best of us), or would prefer a more private option, here are some options:
•Pre-arrange transit via a private driver or tour (clearly not an option if you planned to take the bus and miss it)
There are many options for pre-booking transportation, including Get Your Guide, Viator, TripAdvisor and many more
•Take a taxi.
Establish the flat rate fare BEFORE getting in the car.
The flat rate starts at approx $34 USD
•Shared taxi: Get a shared colectivo or combi (like a mini-van) from the taxi terminal on Pavitos Street which anywhere from $4 to $20 USD depending on how many people are taking the trip.
This is what I did and it was an affordable and efficient option, even very last minute.
