Peru Cusco Travel Guide - Peru Hotels - Cusco Hotels - Machu Picchu Tours
One of the biggest architectonic works that the Inkas did, because it was built in the most difficult topographic area; but, because of this rustic and inaccessible zone, the citadel has one of the best extraordinary landscapes.
Location
It's located in the department of Cusco, province of Urubamba, district of Machu Picchu, it has an area of 32.592 hectares between the snow-covered mountains range of Salkantay in the south and Veronica in the north.
Machu Picchu stands 7,970 feet above sea level, in the middle of a tropical mountain forest, in an extraordinarily beautiful setting. It was without a doubt the most amazing urban creation of the Inka Empire.
Climate
The climate is warm and humid, with an annual average temperature of 16ºC (60.5ºF) in the day. The rainy season starts of November until March.
Opening Hours
The sanctuary is open from 6:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The Citadel of Machu Picchu is one of the biggest architectonic works that the Inkas did, because it was built in the most difficult topographic area; but because of this but due to this rustic and inaccessible zone, the citadel has one of the best extraordinary landscapes. Today is world know as much by its imposing ruins, as by its incomparable location on the brink of madness an abyss, in whose bottom the stormy waters of the Urubamba river runs.
! Machu Picchu is Spectacular!!!! The train ride is about 3 ½ hours perhaps honestly you are so excited the time flies by. The scenery on the train is stunning as you cut deep through the mountains on some amazing curves-Wow. You will arrive to Machu Picchu Town (last stop). The bus will be there to take you to the magic citadel of Machu Picchu. Some choose to walk up: BE FIT. You will enter through an old stone doorway and there it is -breathtaking - a marvel in time and architecture!
Spend the night in Machu Picchu town (if you can) that way you can rise very early to watch the sun rise over the citadel, remember Inkas worshipped the sun which is why many temples are on top of mountains and its buildings are oriented to the sun.
How do I get to Machu Picchu?
The main way to get Machu Picchu is by train. The train to Machu Picchu leaves every day form San Pedro Train Station (tel. 23 5200), it is located near San Pedro Market, in this area you have to be very careful with the things you carry on because the delinquency is very frequent here. There a lot of services with regards to the Train (Peru Rail): Visitandome (called before as Autovagon, the most expensive but the most comfortable), the train de turistas (that includes the following services: Inka, Backpacker o “Mochilero” y Visitandome) and the local train (with the services: Social Train and Social Cerrojo). All of them stop just a few minutes at Poroy, Ollantaytambo, Qorihuayrachina (km. 88 or the beginning of Inca Trail), at km. 104 (or the beginning of the short Inca Trail) and at Aguas Calientes (km 112). From there, you will have to use all available services to reach Machu Picchu (5 minutes approx.). The local train used to continue to Quillabamba but since 1998 it is not available.
Train Schedule (coming)
| Service | Cusco | Poroy | Ollantaytambo | Machu Picchu | ||
| Departure | Arrival | Departure | Arrival | Departure | Arrival | |
| Visitandome called before as Autovagón) | 06:00 | 06:40 | 06:45 | 08:05 | 08:15 | 09:35 |
| Backpacker | 06:30 | 07:20 | 07:30 | 08:55 | 09:00 | 10:30 |
| Visitandome 1 | 07:00 | 08:10 | ||||
| Visitandome 3 | 10:00 | 11:24 | ||||
| Visitandome 5 | 15:10 | 16:30 | ||||
| Backpacker Cerrojo * | 09:35 | 11:05 | ||||
| Tren Social | 08:00 | 10:25 | 10:30 | 12:11 | ||
| Tren Social-Cerrojo ** | 20:00 | 21:35 |
*From May 1st to October 31st
**With Backpacker train car connected.Train Schedule (Return)
| Service | Machu Picchu | Ollantaytambo | Poroy | Cusco | ||
| Departure | Arrival | Departure | Arrival | Departure | Arrival | |
| Visitandome (called before as Autovagón) | 15:00 | 16:24 | 16:27 | 17:50 | 18:00 | 18:50 |
| Backpacker | 16:10 | 17:50 | 17:53 | 19:29 | 19:39 | 20:30 |
| Visitandome 2 | 08:30 | 09:57 | ||||
| Visitandome 4 | 13:30 | 14:44 | ||||
| Visitandome 6 | 17:00 | 18:15 | ||||
| Backpacker Cerrojo * | 17:20 | 19:00 | ||||
| Tren Social | 17:45 | 19:35 | 19:40 | 22:20 | ||
| Tren Social-Cerrojo ** | 06:05 | 07:55 |
*From May 1st to October 31st
**With Backpacker train car connected.Once being in Machu Picchu Town, there are two way to reach Machu Picchu, the first one (the most common) is by bus (20-minut ride). The other way is by foot (cheap but hard to do) the walk is 1 ½ hours long.
Or you can also do Inca Trail of 4D/3N (walking from km. 88), or 2D/1N (walking from km. 104).
PricesEntrance to Machu Picchu
| Series | Details | Price |
| 105 | ADULT ABROAD | S/.124.00 |
| 106 | FOREIGN STUDENT (ISIC) | S/.62.00 |
| 107 | NATIONAL ADULT (DNI) | S/.63.00 |
| 108 | STUDENT NATIONAL (DNI) | S/.31.00 |
Prices
Buses from Machu Picchu Town to Machu Picchu Citadel
| Ticket | Price |
| Adult s/b (Foreigner) | US$ 14.00 |
| Adult o/w (Foreigner) | US$ 7.00 |
| Children s/b (Foreigner) | US$ 7.00 |
| Children o/w (Foreigner) | US$ 3.50 |
| Adult s/b (National) | US$ 10.50 |
| Adult o/w (National) | US$ 5.25 |
| Student s/b (National) | US$ 7.00 |
| Studiant o/w (National) | US$ 3.25 |
| Children s/b (National) | US$ 5.25 |
| Children o/w (National) | US$ 2.60 |
| Guide W/T | S/. 11.70 |
| Resident Cusco W/T (every day) | S/. 17.50 |
| Resident Machu Picchu W/T (sundays) | S/. 7.00 |
Quik tips / Suggestions
If you decide to stay at Machu Picchu Town, you must go up to the citadel early in the morning to appreciate the sunrise. The sanctuary of Machu Picchu is open from 06:00 A.M and the sun rises at 07:15 A.M. approximately. You can't miss it!!!!
Check the following links in order to view more information about the Citadel of Machu Picchu:
- Machu Picchu (Wikipedia)
- Machu Picchu (World Heritage)
- Machu Picchu, History, Current Challenges ....
