Cusco · Peru
Plan your trip to Cusco
Everything worth settling before you book: how many days you need, when to come, what it costs and how you get there. None of these pages sells a tour; they work just as well if you end up travelling with another operator.
Itineraries by number of days
What you can realistically see with 3, 5, 7 or 9 days, and how many of those go on acclimatising.
When to go to Cusco
Month-by-month weather, which months to avoid at altitude and which dates fill the city.
What the trip costs
What the whole trip costs, not just the tours: tickets, train, food and lodging.
Getting to Machu Picchu
Train, the Hidroeléctrica road, or on foot: time, price and what each one buys you.
Machu Picchu tickets and circuits
The 3 circuits and their 10 routes, which one gives the classic photo, and how the mountains work.
The Cusco Tourist Ticket
Which of the four to buy, what each one opens, and why no agency includes it.
What to do in Cusco itself
Arrival day and spare days: what you can do at 3,400 m without exerting yourself.
Altitude sickness in Cusco
What is normal to feel, what is not, and the point at which you have to descend.
Choosing an agency
Ten checks before paying any agency, ourselves included.
Before you go
Altitude, insurance, documents, how the tour day works and what gear you rent.
Booking conditions
How you pay, what happens if you cancel, and what we do if there is a strike or no train.