Everything you need to visit Machu Picchu – the complete 2026 guide

Naturally, anyone who thinks of Peru thinks of Machu Picchu. That makes sense, because it’s one of the most important tourist sites in the world. And very honestly, it’s also a breathtaking site – its reputation is fully deserved. There are loads of magnificent tourist sites around Cusco, but Machu Picchu really is in a league of its own.

Some people don’t want to visit it because “it’s overrated and too touristy”. Overrated? No. Really not. The setting is exceptional, a site perched up in the clouds, and the structure itself is superb.

Touristy? Yes, clearly, but no more than any other major tourist site. Far less than St Peter’s in Rome, the Eiffel Tower, or Mont Saint Michel, for example.

Above all, Machu Picchu has a daily visitor quota, which is a very good thing because the limit stays fairly reasonable. And since Covid, attendance has been much lower than before. On top of that, I’ll also explain how to make the most of it so you don’t end up in the crowds, because yes, that’s possible 🙂

Since it’s not the easiest site to get to, or one where you can buy tickets easily, in this article I’ll give you all the information you need to organise your visit to Machu Picchu properly. The preparations and once you’re there. So that little hassles don’t spoil this superb day.

Let’s go!

What are the different routes (circuits) at Machu Picchu

I’m starting this article with this, because it quickly turns into total chaos. Before, it was easy – you did what you wanted, you went where you wanted, it was great. You could add the “montaña Machu Picchu / Wayna Picchu” option. And that was it, easy.

But now they’ve set up circuits. Have you already tried to look into it and understood absolutely nothing? That’s normal. There are 10 of them. 10! And of course, they each have their own specifics and don’t go through the same places. Here’s a little summary and my opinion:

• Circuit 1 – Panorámico: the high-altitude circuit, which leads to the highest viewpoints and to THE postcard photo seen from above, but never goes down into the city itself. Want to do the Montaña Machu Picchu (like me)? This is the one!
• Circuit 2 – Clásico: the only one that combines the panoramic photo from above AND the descent into the urban heart (Temple of the Sun, Temple of the Three Windows, Sacred Rock) – this is the one to choose if you only do one. You get the most classic views, these are the most sought-after routes, the ones where you really have to book early, especially 2B
• Circuit 3 – Realeza: the circuit that dives into the royal and sacred sector at the bottom (Temple of the Sun, Royal Tomb, Temple of the Condor) and gives access to the big Huayna Picchu climb, but without the classic panoramic viewpoint.

I’ll give you an example for each route just below, so you can roughly see what it corresponds to.

My big piece of advice, if it’s your first time at Machu Picchu, is to take number 2, and especially 2B. You get the lovely overall views, then afterwards you go into the buildings. For me it’s the most complete route, the longest (apart from the ones with hikes). Ideal for getting a nice overview. The 2A is the same but… with one view less. So it’s not bad either.

If you want to do some climbing-style hiking, then Montaña Machu Picchu (route 1) or Wayna Picchu (route 3) – careful, some are only open in high season.

• I’ll give you more info below, but above all, in the following article I detail all the Machu Picchu routes to help you choose well

The details of the 10 Machu Picchu circuits

Circuit 1 – Panorámico

• 1-A · Montaña Machu Picchu: the most athletic and longest route (up to 6 hours), with the ascent of the highest peak (~3,082 m) for the most vertiginous view over the whole sanctuary.
• 1-B · Terraza Superior: the shortest (~2h30) and most in-demand, a direct climb to the upper terraces for the postcard photo, with no extra climbing.
• 1-C · Portada Intipunku (high season only): the walk up to the Inti Punku, the Sun Gate where the Inca Trail trekkers emerge.
• 1-D · Puente Inka (high season only): the detour to the Inca Bridge, a stone walkway clinging to a vertiginous cliff, the most secret nook of the panoramic circuit.

Circuit 2 – Clásico

• 2-A · Ruta diseñada: the most complete version of the classic – panoramic photo from the high point, then a full tour of the urban area.
• 2-B · Terraza Inferior: the same urban tour but with the photo taken from a lower terrace, so a gentler and often more peaceful walk, without climbing up to the high terraces.

Circuit 3 – Realeza

• 3-A · Montaña Waynapicchu: the royal sector at the bottom combined with the ascent of the emblematic and steep Huayna Picchu peak, the one that towers over the postcard photo.
• 3-B · Ruta diseñada: the flattest and most accessible route, only the royal temples at the bottom, with no climb or panoramic viewpoint – ideal for anyone who doesn’t want to climb.
• 3-C · Gran Caverna (high season only): the long getaway to the Temple of the Moon and the Gran Caverna, on the other side of Huayna Picchu, the most remote and least-visited route.
• 3-D · Huchuypicchu (high season only): a short climb up the little Huchuy Picchu mount for a quick bird’s-eye view, without the effort of the big summit.

Useful note: routes 1-C, 1-D, 3-C and 3-D are only open in high season

In the following article: how to choose the right route for visiting Machu Picchu

How to book your Machu Picchu tickets

You thought choosing your route was the most complicated thing? Oh ho ho, what a mistake 😀

Booking your Machu Picchu tickets isn’t the easiest thing. Yes yes, even though it’s the country’s major tourist site, it’s a mess.

• The classic ticket costs from 152 soles (around 45$) to 200 soles (around 60 dollars), depending on the route chosen (the ones with the Wayna Picchu or Montaña Machu Picchu hikes are more expensive)
• Valid for a specific date and a specific time slot, which you choose when buying
• Possibility to add a hike (Montaña Machu Picchu or Wayna Picchu), that’s route 3
• You have to book several weeks (months) in advance, especially the hikes where places are very limited. Bearing in mind that availability doesn’t open super far in advance, sometimes 3 months, sometimes more, sometimes less. Ideal for planning.

For booking, there are several options:

• the official sales site, which used to be an unspeakable mess that has changed, and it seems simpler now. They now go through a proper online ticketing system. Is it more efficient than before, when you didn’t receive the tickets? Oh yes indeed.
  • Here is the official site
• platforms like Getyourguide, but the prices are higher (from 70€). The advantage is that you’re sure to receive your ticket. You have two options:
  • Get a classic entry ticket for the circuit of your choice
  • Get the ticket for route 2 with a guide
• buy the tickets at a shop on site (Aguas Calientes). Honestly, I’d advise against it because it means you’re leaving it to the last minute. And Machu Picchu fills up quickly. For example the occupancy rate for July and August is already at 50% (as I write this, it’s mid-April, the next availability is early June). And as I explain in the article on booking Machu Picchu tickets, if you want to buy tickets at the last minute, it can be 2 days later! because there are LOTS of people who do that. So you arrive in Aguas Calientes in uncertainty.
  In very low season, why not.
  • To check ticket availability in real time for the same day or the next day, I recommend this official site, super handy
• go through an agency to come from Cusco with the train journey. It’s more expensive, everything is included, and you have nothing to do. In short, ideal for visiting Machu Picchu with complete peace of mind and with a guide.
  • Info and booking

So I recommend the following article if you want a lot more information on how to buy your Machu Picchu tickets in Aguas Calientes

Machu Picchu opening hours and ticket times

When you buy your ticket, you’re asked for an entry time. You enter within that slot, and you leave whenever you want. Officially you have 4 hours, but no one is going to check.

Opening hours are from 6 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.:

• the first entry is at 6 a.m.
• the last entry is at 3 p.m. (3:30 p.m. with the accepted grace period)

The morning slots are the most sought-after. And for good reason – they let you spend more time on site and catch a train back to Cusco fairly early.

Basically, 80% of people are concentrated between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m.

I loved coming very early because we had the site to ourselves, a pretty special atmosphere. And I loved doing the closing because from 3 p.m. there’s no one left.

Those who come directly from Cusco are there from roughly 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. That’s the big rush hour. Then again, this rush hour stays reasonable thanks to the cap on attendance.

In short, when you buy your ticket through the official site, you get the free slots and the ones that are full.

Careful: when you have a slot, only 30 minutes of lateness are allowed! after that it’s too late (45 min in very high season)

What are the different ticket types

Right, here we tell ourselves it’s simple, well actually no. There are different types of tickets:

• For the Machu Picchu visit: 45$ or 152 soles
• Machu Picchu + Montaña Machu Picchu: 58$ or 200 soles
• Machu Picchu + Huayna Picchu: 58$ or 200 soles
• Machu Picchu + Huchuy Picchu: 45$ or 152 soles

With children’s and nationals’ rates. So far, let’s say it seems simple, but…

Ticket availability

So careful! when you try to book, your date might not be available yet (or already full, but that’s another problem). Because the park administration doesn’t put all the tickets on sale at once, but period by period. It’s announced via a press release that isn’t on the sales site at all. So here it is for the year 2026 – first come, first served!

How to get to Machu Picchu

First of all, you should know that Machu Picchu is located in the Cusco region, north-west of the former Inca capital, right in the mountains. Not the easiest place to get to, but that was probably the point 😀

So Cusco will be your starting point, for 95% of you.

But Machu Picchu has a little town located at its foot: Aguas Calientes. Everything revolves around the citadel and the town is cut off from the rest of the country because there’s no road, no airport, just one train line and hiking trails.

To get to Machu Picchu, the easiest way is the train.

• • 4 hours of travel through an exceptional setting between the mountains
  • you can do the round trip in a day
  • departure from Cusco or Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes
  • prices depend on the type of carriage (classic, vistadome or observatory) but the journey starts at 50€. In general you get away with around 120€ round trip
  • The main company is Perurail, but also Inca Rail from Ollantaytambo

You can’t come to Aguas Calientes by car:

• you have to leave it at Santa Teresa, then a taxi to Hidroelectrica
• and from Hidroelectrica, either take the train (20 minutes) or walk 2 hours

The last way is to come on foot. Yes yes! Because there are some superb hikes:

• the Inca Trail, a 4-day hike that starts from the Urubamba Valley to Machu Picchu
• the Salkantay trek, which notably passes at the foot of superb snow-capped mountains
• the Choquequirao trek which, in its long version, goes all the way to Machu Picchu, but that’s 9 days all the same
• the Hidden Valley Salkantay, a lesser-known version of the Salkantay

The bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu

To get to Machu Picchu from Aguas Calientes, you don’t have a thousand options. The first is to walk. It’s high up, but why not if your calves are up for it.

The second is to take the bus. And here, impossible to get it wrong because there’s a monopoly. Just one company. No taxi, no Uber, no moto-taxi.

The ticket costs 12$ or 24$ round trip if you buy the ticket at the shop. You can consider taking the bus up and walking back down.

And given the number of people, you have to buy your ticket in advance. And here, 2 options:

• buy the bus ticket the day before or a few hours before going up, directly at the Consettur shop in the centre of Aguas Calientes, open from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• buy the ticket online. It costs a bit more, but you don’t need to queue at the shop.
  • Info and booking

How long to stay

Concretely, I recommend staying a full day at Machu Picchu and therefore spending at least one night in Aguas Calientes (ideally 2).

Which gives:

• arrive the day before in Aguas Calientes by train, visit the town, the baths, the butterfly farm, get your bus ticket for Machu Picchu
• spend the first night in Aguas Calientes
• take the first bus to Machu Picchu
• spend the day there
• spend the evening in Aguas Calientes
• take the train the next morning

Otherwise you can take the train at the end of the day after visiting Machu Picchu, for example the 6:10 p.m. train. But that means leaving Machu Picchu at 3:30 p.m., so fairly early. But if you arrive on the first bus, around 6 a.m., that’s enough time on site. So it’s doable!

Coming to Machu Picchu in one day from Cusco

If you want to do the round trip to Machu Picchu from Cusco in one day, here’s what you can do. It’s demanding, but it’s doable:

• if you’re a very early riser, then take the 3:20 a.m. bus+train for a 7:40 a.m. arrival in Aguas Calientes. Otherwise the 5:10 a.m. train for a 9:15 a.m. arrival
• you’ve booked your bus to Machu Picchu from Aguas Calientes in advance to save time
• take the bus up to Machu Picchu, you arrive around 11 a.m.
• if you want to take the 6:20 p.m. train, then you have to leave Machu Picchu at 4 p.m.
• if you want to spend more time at Machu Picchu or Aguas Calientes, you can take the 8:50 p.m. train, but that means arriving fairly late in Cusco.

Or go through an agency, I’ll explain that below.

Seeing Machu Picchu with an agency from Cusco

If you don’t want to bother with making all the train, bus and ticket bookings, then there’s a solution. Agencies take care of doing everything for you, booking everything, and you set off in a small group, with a guide.

So the service includes:

• pick-up at your Cusco hotel
• the panoramic train journey (vistadome)
• the bus to get to Machu Picchu
• the Machu Picchu ticket
• a 2h30 guided tour
• possibility to have lunch at the Inkaterra (great place)
• and the return under the same conditions

Discover Machu Picchu with an agency!

The different hikes to do at Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu isn’t just a site to visit. You also have the chance to do 2 lovely hikes starting from the ruins. Two mountains that tower over Machu Picchu and offer crazy views. These two hikes are tough, I prefer to make that clear.

• the Montaña Machu Picchu, which I did. Count on 3 hours round trip, it climbs high, gives a super panoramic view over the site. It goes higher than the Huayna Picchu, but the path is less difficult, less steep. However the big difficulty is that the steps are super high! It gives your cardio a workout.
• the Huayna Picchu, which is on the other side of the site, facing the Montaña Machu Picchu. It’s a more plunging view over the Machu Picchu site, and for good reason. The climb is very steep, a fairly narrow and steep staircase.

However, to do these two hikes, you absolutely must book in advance (and well ahead) when you book your ticket, because the number of places is very limited.

And careful, in addition to the places (between 2 and 400 per day), the time slots are limited. You have to go early, up to 9 a.m. for Montaña Machu Picchu, and up to 11 a.m. for Huayna Picchu.

The main places to see at Machu Picchu

With all these waymarked trails, it’s hard to get lost or to miss something, so here’s what you shouldn’t miss:

• Intipunku, the Sun Gate, located a 30-minute walk to the east of the site
• The Temple of the Sun
• The House of the Inca
• the Hall of Mirrors
• The ceremonial fountains
• The granite chaos
• the sacred square
• the Temple of the Condor
• the Intiwatana pyramid
• the sacred stone
• the 3 doorways
• the guardian’s house, for one of the most beautiful views over the site
• the Machu Picchu museum (outside the site, open until 4 p.m.)

Do you need to sleep in Aguas Calientes to visit Machu Picchu

Very good question! So technically no, you’re not obliged to sleep the night before or the night after in Aguas Calientes to visit Machu Picchu. As explained earlier, you can do the round trip from Cusco in the day. It’s intense, but it’s doable, whether you organise it yourself or go through an agency that takes care of everything.

However, that means you arrive fairly late in Aguas Calientes, that you’ve therefore already booked your ticket (it’s impossible to get same-day tickets when arriving that late) and that you have to leave fairly early to catch your train back to Ollantaytambo or Cusco.

For my part – you know me by now – I prefer to take my time. So I’d say the minimal solution would be to arrive the day before, visit Machu Picchu early and leave on one of the last trains. That way you optimise your trip nicely. But, it’s completely personal, I preferred to stay two nights, one night before, one night after, and leave at a leisurely pace on a not-too-early train so I could explore the town of Aguas Calientes a bit and take my time visiting the citadel.

So my advice: one night minimum, two is lovely.

In the following article I recommend several good accommodation deals in Aguas Calientes, but to make things easier for you, here’s a summary, bearing in mind we already have good hotels from 30€:

• Cheap: Oasis Inka Machu Picchu & La Pachaya
• Great value for money: Tierra Viva & Mahalo Suites
• Treat yourself: Casa del Sol & Inkaterra

4 recommended places to stay in Aguas Calientes

What is the budget for visiting Machu Picchu

So, it’s not cheap, let’s be clear:

• 45$ or 58$ for the ticket (without or with a hike)
• 24$ for the bus to get from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu (otherwise it’s a few hours of climbing)
• at least 150$ for the train from Cusco (cheaper from Ollantaytambo)
• And if you want to spend a night on site, we have decent hotels from 30$, nice ones from 50. The food is fairly expensive compared to the rest of the country (isolation and tourism oblige)

So we’re around 200€ per person, which is no small thing.

By the way, in the following article I give you loads of info to get an overall idea of the budget for a trip to Peru

⭐️ Click here to enlarge the Machu Picchu map! ⭐️

The altitude of Machu Picchu and altitude sickness

Aguas Calientes sits at an altitude of 2,000 m while Machu Picchu is perched at 2,400 m. So you might think that’s high, but you’re coming from Cusco. And the city of Cusco sits at 3,400 m, so much higher up.

The fact that you’re coming from Cusco is important because your body will already be used to the altitude, so going from 3,400 to 2,400 m you won’t have any difficulty. Normally.

Where you’ll suffer a bit is on the hikes nearby, if you go to the Montaña Machu Picchu which sits at 2,800 m, or Huayna Picchu at 2,700 m. Since you have to climb stairs (super high steps even though Peruvians are tiny, honestly), there you’ll feel the effects of the altitude.

But otherwise no, you shouldn’t have any breathing problems or altitude sickness. And at worst, simply take your time 🙂 Don’t race up, walk along nice and easy to enjoy the oxygen and the scenery 🙂

In conclusion

There you go, now you know everything! One of the most beautiful sites in the world, which is far from being the easiest to get to.

You really have to plan it in advance, unless you’re there in very low season, at the risk of not getting a ticket because attendance is capped. Also plan your train journeys from Cusco a little in advance – by the way that journey is exceptional!

And come early. Enjoy the site as early as possible before the influx of tourists.

But it’s really worth it! And worth the cost. Because it is expensive, yes, between the train and the entry, it adds up to a bit of a budget. But really, don’t miss out 🙂

• see how Machu Picchu fits into this Cusco itinerary

Other resources on Peru

The Cusco region is exceptional, magnificent landscapes and culturally it’s just incredible. Here are a few examples:

• Discover the most beautiful tourist sites around Cusco
• The Sacred Valley of the Incas brings together sites like Moray, Maras and quite a few other must-sees
• I’ve created an interactive map of Cusco and Machu Picchu to find all the best places
• For unique landscapes, you absolutely must go and see the rainbow mountain of Vinicunca
• But if you want a few less people, there’s the other rainbow mountain of Palcoyo
• Among the other cities, I hope you’ll then go and visit Arequipa, which is so beautiful and the region exceptional, and notably the Colca Canyon!
• But if you have a bit of time, also go and see Lake Titicaca and notably the surprising Uros Islands.
• Fancy sleeping on the Uros Islands and witnessing your most beautiful sunrise?
• Lima also deserves a visit, and above all that you go to the Museo Larco.
• If you go south of Lima, you must discover the Paracas reserve, a superb natural setting
• And a bit further south you have the surprising Huacachina Oasis
• Finally, in this article I offer you the essential information for your trip to Peru.
• And here, discover the most beautiful sites in Peru!
• Finally, I explain how much a trip to Peru costs
• Did you know that before Machu Picchu, another civilisation was building citadels in the mountains? They’re the Chachapoyas, with Kuelap in particular!

If you need more information, don't hesitate to ask me by clicking here 🙂How can I help you ?