Machu Picchu sits on a ridge between two peaks above the Urubamba River, reached from the town of Aguas Calientes at its base by a 25-minute bus up the switchbacks. Entry is by timed ticket on a fixed circuit — the Peruvian authorities introduced numbered routes to manage the flow, and the circuit you buy determines what you see: the classic upper terraces with the postcard view, the lower city with the Temple of the Sun, or the routes that add the Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain climbs. Buy on the official government site as soon as your dates are firm; high-season days sell out months ahead.
Huayna Picchu, the sugarloaf peak behind the ruins in every photograph, is a steep 45-minute climb on Inca steps with a permit limited to a few hundred a day — it is the ticket that disappears first. Machu Picchu Mountain is a longer, gentler climb with a higher view. Neither is essential; the citadel alone fills three hours.
Getting there is the journey. Fly Lima to Cusco (3,400 metres — spend two nights acclimatising, drink coca tea, take it slowly), then take the train from Poroy or, better, from Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley, which sits at a friendlier altitude and has its own Inca fortress. PeruRail and Inca Rail run the route; the Hiram Bingham is the luxury option with lunch and a bar car. The four-day Inca Trail must be booked with a licensed operator six months ahead; the two-day version and the Salkantay trek are the alternatives.
Sleep in Aguas Calientes the night before so you can take the first bus at 5:30 a.m. and be at the Sun Gate side of the site as the mist lifts. There are no chauffeurs on the mountain, but there are in Cusco and the Sacred Valley — a private driver for the valley's ruins, markets and the Ollantaytambo station is the comfortable way to string the trip together.
Three things to get right
- Buy circuit tickets on the official site the day your dates are fixed; Huayna Picchu sells out first.
- Two nights in Cusco or the Sacred Valley before the citadel — altitude is real.
- Sleep in Aguas Calientes and take the 5:30 a.m. bus.
