Machu Picchu is one of the best preserved Incan ruin sites on the planet AND is one of the Seven Wonders of the World! So, it’s no surprise that this is the most popular attraction in Peru, with a whopping 1.5 MILLION visitors per year. And, yet, it’s actually not straightforward to get to Machu Picchu from Cusco, the city that serves as the main springboard for most people exploring the Sacred Valley and other Incan sites in the surrounding area. In fact, it actually generally involves at least three modes of transportation! Sounds confusing? It is!
But, in this article, we’ve broken down exactly how to get to Machu Picchu from Cusco, so you can experience this Wonder of the World all for yourself.
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Where is Machu Picchu?
Machu Picchu is an ancient Incan city, located high in the Cordillera de Vilcabamba range of the Andes mountains in the southeastern region of Peru. The site, which dates back to the 15th century, is believed to have been one of the most sacred cities in the Inca civilization and is considered to be one of the largest and most complete Inca ruin sites left, with over 150 buildings spread throughout its 200 square mile footprint.
The closest town to the ancient city is Aguas Calientes, about a twenty five minute drive away, along the floor of the Sacred Valley, which once was the beating heart of the Incan empire.
However, you can’t just drive to Aguas Calientes. The only way to reach the town is by train. You can board this train in several towns in the surrounding area, including Poroy (which is near the city of Cusco) and Ollytantambo in the Sacred Valley.
How to get to Machu Picchu from Cusco
When exploring Machu Picchu and other famed Incan ruin sites in the surrounding area, most travelers base themselves in the city of Cusco.
Once the capital of the Inca empire, the city now serves as the home to almost half a million locals and is extremely tourist-friendly. Not only does it offer the Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport, with multiple flights daily from Lima, but it also has seemingly endless hotels, restaurants, and tour operators lining its cobblestone streets.
You have several options of getting to Machu Picchu from Cusco:
Let’s get into it!
On Your Own
Here are the steps of how to get to Machu Picchu from Cusco if you’re on a budget and would prefer to visit on your own.
1. Take the train to Aguas Calientes
Depending on how quickly you want to get to Machu Picchu and whether you have any interest in exploring the Sacred Valley, you can either board a train near Cusco in its neighboring town of Poroy or, alternatively, in the town of Ollytantambo.
If you just want to get to Machu Picchu as quickly as possible, your best bet is to grab a taxi, Uber, or private shuttle, like this option, for about half an hour from your hotel in Cusco to the train station in the neighboring town of Poroy. From here, you can get a direct train to Aguas Calientes, which lasts for approximately three hours and 15 minutes.
Alternatively, many travelers head from Cusco to the town of Ollytantambo, about two hours northwest, to explore some of the most popular sites in the Sacred Valley for a day or two, like Moray or Chinchero and then grab a train to Machu Picchu from the town’s train station, which takes approximately two hours.
To get to Ollytantambo from Cusco, you can either:
- Take a taxi or Uber to the Ollytantambo colectivo station in Cusco and then grab a colectivo to the town, which should cost between 10 to 20 soles
- Take a taxi or Uber to Ollytantambo, which should cost around $45 USD
- Take a private transfer, like this option
Train options to Aguas Calientes
There’s two train operators that offer services to Aguas Calientes.
Regardless of which of the two operators below that you choose, I’d recommend buying tickets well in advance, especially if you’re visiting during the busy season, from May through September. Tickets sell out, especially for the more desirable times and cheaper ticket classes, so if you’re short on time (or money!), I’d suggest buying tickets as soon as you can.
You can either buy tickets online or at their physical offices. Both of the operators have several offices around Peru, but if you’re staying in Cusco, each has a ticket office in the city’s Plaza de Armes.
Peru Rail
This is the most popular operator, mostly due to its more frequent departures. It’s also the only operator that departs from the town of Poroy near Cusco.
It has four ticket class options:
- Expedition: This is their most economical class, but is still plenty comfortable, with cushy seats and large windows and skylights.
- Vistadome: This is the next class up, with enormous panoramic windows, an included onboard snack, and, on your return trip from Machu Picchu, a performance of traditional Peruvian dancing and even a fashion show of alpaca wool garments (which, of course, are available to purchase).
- Vistadome Observatory: This is basically the same as the Vistadome experience, other than the addition of an observation/bar car.
- Hiram Bingham: This is the most luxurious class (with a pricepoint to match!), which includes a welcome performance, complete with Peruvian dancing and a cocktail; a gourmet lunch or dinner prepared from regional ingredients; live music; and your entrance ticket to Machu Picchu.
In my opinion, all of them are on the pricier side (at least, with respect to Peruvian standards), starting around $60 USD to $450+ USD one-way.
We hiked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu and took the Peru Rail Expedition class back towards Cusco, so I can’t weigh in on whether any of the higher classes are worth it from personal experience. But, from what I’ve gathered from friends that have done some of the pricier class options, they generally have not felt like the extra benefits are worth the higher pricepoints (if you’re rolling in dough, the Hiram Bingham looks pretty fun though!).
Inca Rail
This is the train operator underdog in this area, due to its more limited schedule and the fact that it only offers direct service to Aguas Calientes from Ollytantambo (and not from Poroy).
It does, however, offer bimodal service from Cusco—i.e., you can buy a ticket with them that includes a bus from Cusco to the Ollytantambo train station and then an Inca Rail train from Ollytantambo to Aguas Caliente.
Like Peru Rail, there’s several ticket classes that you can choose from:
- The Voyager: This is the most economical version, with comfy seats and large windows to watch the Sacred Valley roll by.
- The 360º: This is the next class up, with panoramic windows; one complimentary snack and drink; live music; and an open-air observatory car.
- The First Class: For a bougie experience, The First Class offers many of the same benefits as the 360º, but with the addition of a dining/bar car, three course gourmet meal and a complimentary wine pairing (complete with a “wine ceremony” that’s accompanied by a saxophone and violin onboard!).
- The Private: True to its name, this consists of having your very own carriage for your private group (up to 8 people), along with all of the amenities of first class.
Inca Rail tickets typically start around $60 USD one-way, costing up to $5,500 USD for your own carriage with The Private class.
2. Get from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu
Regardless of which train operator you use and where you depart from, you will be dropped off at the Machu Picchu train station in Aguas Caliente. From here, you can either take the bus (the easy option!) or walk (the glutton for punishment option) the rest of the way to Machu Picchu.
It’s worth mentioning that a significant chunk of travelers opt to stay overnight in Aguas Calientes, so they can get a bright and early start at Machu Picchu the following morning. Luckily, Aguas Calientes is a fun little town to explore for a day, with its famed thermal baths to enjoy and plenty of hotels to stay at (I’d recommend the cute boutique hotel, Jaya Machu Picchu).
Take the bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu
Most travelers opt to get a Consettur Bus up to the entrance gates of the ancient city. Conveniently, the bus station is located here, just a five minute walk from the train.
You can either purchase bus tickets, which cost $24 USD roundtrip, online ahead of time or, alternatively, purchase tickets in person.
Lines to buy bus tickets can be INSANELY long, so I’d strongly recommend purchasing tickets online instead. However, I’d suggest giving yourself sufficient buffer time between when the train is supposed to drop you off and your bus’ departure time—our Peru Rail train arrived over an hour late, due to other cars on the tracks.
Walk from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu
You can alternatively walk from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu—but only if you’re up for a hike! It’s about a two mile walk from town (one-way) and, more importantly, a 2,300 foot climb up a seemingly never-ending series of stairs. Here’s a trail map of the route if you’re interested in tackling it.
This is actually how we reached Machu Picchu during our Inca Trail trek. Due to a landslide, we camped in Aguas Calientes on the last night of our trek and then walked back up in the very early morning. The stairs are pretty steep and can feel pretty challenging, especially with the heat and high humidity of the Peruvian jungle.
So, I’d really only recommend this option if you’re in decent shape and can start your hike early in the morning, before the sun and humidity starts baking you to death (i.e., your best bet would be to spend the preceding night in Aguas Caliente).
3. Enter Machu Picchu
The bus or the stairs leading up to Machu Picchu will drop you off at its entrance gates.
You can purchase a ticket online or at the gate itself, which costs around $43 USD for non-Peruvian resident adults. I’d suggest purchasing tickets ahead of time, given that only 4,500 people per day are permitted to visit the site.
Additionally, each ticket is for a specific circuit (i.e., one of 10 set routes around the ancient city), so if there’s something specific in Machu Picchu that you’re keen to see, it’s important to purchase tickets for your desired circuit ahead of time. The most popular route, Circuit 2, frequently sells out ahead of time—it’s completely sold out for over two months from the date that I’m writing this!
And don’t forget your passport—you’ll need to show it when you buy tickets, as well as when you enter the site itself!
4. Get back to Cusco from Machu Picchu
To get back to Cusco from Machu Picchu, you’ll need to just reverse your steps:
- Take the bus from Machu Picchu back to Aguas Caliente
- Grab the train from Aguas Calientes to either Ollytantambo or Poroy
- Grab a taxi, Uber, or shuttle (here’s an option from Ollytantambo and here’s an option from Poroy) back to your hotel in Cusco
Again, given the popularity of Machu Picchu, I’d recommend prebooking all of your return tickets online ahead of time. Not to beat a dead horse, but be sure to bake in plenty of buffer time—you never know if there’s going to be train delays or if it’s going to take longer than you think to get photos at Machu Picchu.
With a tour
If you want to learn more about Incan history and culture AND don’t want to worry about all of the logistics I outlined above, you can just go on a guided tour and have the confusing part taken care of for you!
Most tours completely handle your transportation door to door—you’ll usually get picked up from your hotel in Cusco quite early (like, 4 AM early) and dropped back off around 7 or 8 PM. It’s definitely a long day, but it’s nice to have a stress-free way to get to and from Machu Picchu.
Plus, you’ll have the benefit of having a knowledgeable tour guide with you to provide plenty of interesting information about the ancient city and the people that once lived here. There’s really no educational signage at Machu Picchu, so, while you’re allowed to explore it by yourself, you really won’t have a ton of context of the stone structures around you if you go completely by yourself.
You can either choose to go with a small group or on a private tour for not that much more!
Trekking
Finally, many travelers use Cusco as a springboard to reach Machu Picchu by completing one of the multi-day treks through the Andes Mountains.
That’s exactly what we did to get to Machu Picchu. We got picked up by our tour operator in Cusco, driven past the town of Ollytantambo, and then, over the course of four days, hiked from the Inca Trail trailhead a little over 20 miles to the Sungate of the ancient city.
Not only did we get to see jaw-dropping views of the Andes Mountains along the way, but we got to explore a ton of different Inca ruins that most people will never get to see and learn about this fascinating civilization along the way.
If you trek any of these hikes as part of a tour, they will include transportation to and from Cusco. However, if you do any of these treks on your own, you’ll need to handle finding your way to the trailhead and your own transportation back from Machu Picchu to Cusco (i.e., check out the instructions for Getting back to Cusco from Machu Picchu above).
Here are the most popular options for trekking to Machu Picchu.
The Classic Inca Trail
This is the best trekking option if you’re interested in getting beautiful views of the Andes Mountains AND diving more into Incan history.
Here’s some quick stats about the Inca Trail:
- Distance: 22.4 miles
- Elevation gain: 9,468 feet
- Typical duration: 4 days/3 nights
We overall LOVED our time on the Inca Trail—we traversed a variety of stunning landscapes, but also learned a lot about the Incan people and the ruins they left behind along the way. Plus, it was REALLY cool to enter Machu Picchu through the Sungate, where ancient Incas used to arrive in the city—definitely a more impactful experience than just taking a crowded bus up to the entrance gates.
It’s worth mentioning that, while the vast majority of hikers go on all of these treks with a guided tour, the Inca Trail is the only one where it’s legally required to do so.
It’s also extremely competitive to get a permit to this trail—only 200 hikers a day are allowed. Accordingly, the cost of the Inca Trail is frequently higher than some of the other treks and requires booking your permit pretty far in advance—ideally, at least six months. We booked ours over a year in advance and our tour operator was still only able to secure a permit for the day after we had initially requested.
After doing a TON of research, we went on this tour with Salkantay Trekking, due to the fact that it’s one of the only locally owned trekking companies and, as far as I can tell, they pay their porters more fairly than other companies—we highly recommend them! Alternatively, TreXperience is another highly reviewed (and locally owned!) company.
Pssst… short on time?
A popular alternative is the two-day Inca trail, where you’ll start the trail significantly closer to Machu Picchu than on the classic route. From here, you’ll hike 12 kilometers, past two impressive Inca Ruins, to the Sungate and on to the iconic Machu Picchu viewpoint. After spending the night in Aguas Caliente, you’ll wake up and head for a three hour tour around the ruins with your guide, before being transported back to Cusco.
Here’s a tour offered by TreXperience or here's a small group option.
Salkantay Trek
If you’re more interested in stunning mountain views and cool glamping experiences, you might want to consider the Salkantay Trek, which is actually becoming more popular than the Inca Trail. Along the way, you’ll pass massive glaciers, technicolor lakes, and some of the tallest mountains in Peru, all while staying in cool geodesic domes and glass igloos each night.
Here’s some quick stats about the Salkantay Trek:
- Distance: 43.2 miles
- Elevation gain: 12,001 feet
- Typical duration: 5 days/4 nights
Given the length and elevation gain, this trek is definitely a butt-kicker, so I wouldn’t suggest this option if you’re relatively new to hiking.
I’d highly recommend booking our tour operator, Salkantay Trekking, for this trail—true to their name, it’s their bread and butter, and they have some of the coolest glamping spots here.
Lares Trek
Finally, if you’re keen to experience what life is like in remote Andean villages, the Lares Trek is an under-the-radar option that’s slowly growing in popularity.
On this unique trail, you’ll hike through several small Quechua (who are the modern day descendants of Incas) villages, high in the Andes, that are only accessible on foot—plus, you’ll get to soak in some nice hot springs along the way!
Here’s some quick stats about the Lares Trek:
- Distance: 18.7 miles
- Elevation gain: 5,593 feet
- Typical duration: 4 days/3 nights
The benefit of this option is that it’s typically waaaay less crowded than either the Inca Trail or the Salkantay Trek—in fact, your tour group will likely be the only one you see on the trail all day.
Here’s a trekking option that’s offered by TreXperience.
And there you have it—how to get to Machu Picchu from Cusco. Do you have any questions about any of the options above? Let me know in the comments!
