Peru: Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley

Machu Picchu tickets are sold by Peru's Ministry of Culture on its tuboleto.cultura.pe platform, which replaced machupicchu.gob.pe for sales; that site now carries circuit information only. Visits are organised in 3 circuits with 10 routes, and the Ministry publishes visiting hours for each circuit and route. Buy from the Ministry's platform, and carry the identity document you booked with. The Ministry also sells tickets in person in Machupicchu Pueblo; treat that as a backup rather than a plan, and ask there what is available for your date. Daily capacity changes seasonally, so this page states none: the Ministry's sites, linked below, have the current figures.

The CDC's Yellow Book puts Cusco at 3,400 m (11,152 ft), an hour's flight from Lima on the coast, and its high-altitude chapter advises only mild exercise for the first 48 hours at altitude. The Government of Canada's travel advice for Peru warns that trails in the Andes may be steep, slippery and poorly marked, and that some hikers have become lost on trails around Machu Picchu. The guide to flying to Cusco, linked below, covers what to discuss with your doctor.

Many visitors fly into Cusco, allow time to adjust to the altitude, then take a train to Aguas Calientes (Machupicchu Pueblo), the town at the base of the mountain, and a bus up from there. Train timetables and fares are the train operators' to publish, and the train is booked separately from the entry ticket.

Plan a gradual ascent and a quiet start at altitude. Ask a health professional how to prepare for your itinerary and any personal risk factors; local remedies are not a substitute for that advice. Before packing any coca product to take home, check the rules of the country you are flying back to.

The multi-day Inca Trail is hiked with licensed operators under a permit system. How many permits exist, how far ahead they must be booked and who issues them are set by Peru's authorities, the Ministry of Culture and the protected-areas service SERNANP, so ask a licensed operator well before you travel. The train and bus reach the same site.

Most trips base themselves in Cusco, and the old town repays a slow first day or two while you adjust to the altitude. Above it stands Sacsayhuamán, the Inca fortress and ceremonial site whose zigzag stone walls look over the city; it is an easy walk or short taxi ride uphill, and the climb itself is a reason to take it gently in your first days.

Where to stay splits by style. The historic centre around the Plaza de Armas keeps you close to the main sights and the tour departures; San Blas, the artisans' quarter uphill from the plaza, is a tangle of steep lanes, workshops and flower-lined stairs with smaller hotels. Either way, judge a Cusco address by its climb as much as its distance on the map: at 3,400 m, an uphill walk home is exercise.

The Sacred Valley between Cusco and Machu Picchu has terraced hillsides, weaving villages and Inca sites that draw smaller crowds than the citadel; many itineraries treat it as the road between two points, and giving it a day of its own is the common alternative. Organised tours from Cusco run to the valley sites on set schedules; if crowds matter to you, ask your accommodation or the operator when groups typically arrive.

The Salineras de Maras are terraces of salt-evaporation pools near the village of Maras; nearby Moray is a set of circular Inca terraces whose purpose is debated, so read the information on site rather than any single explanation. Both are usually visited by car or organised tour; admission and opening times are set locally and change, so ask in Cusco or the valley towns.

Ceviche gets the international attention, but the highlands have their own tradition of soups, roasted meats and Andean ingredients, and Cusco has restaurants built around them. Ease into both the altitude and unfamiliar food.

The mountain passes outside Cusco climb well above the city and show a starkly different side of the region: snow-dusted peaks and open, treeless country. The CDC's altitude advice applies more, not less, and road and weather conditions are a question for the operator on the day, since in the rainy months weather can close a pass at short notice.

The best-known of these day trips is Vinicunca, Rainbow Mountain, whose viewpoint sits at about 5,036 m, far above Cusco's 3,400 m. Tours leave Cusco early and the walk at the top is short but high, so treat it as a trip for after you have acclimatised, never for your first days; snow can dust the coloured slopes even outside the rainy season, as in this photograph.

A few words go a long way; none are expected. Basic Spanish tends to be appreciated; in the valley villages Quechua is widely spoken as well. Tipping practices vary by place and service, so ask your accommodation or operator what is usual.

The Government of Canada's travel advice for Peru, linked below, is the primary source for safety and entry.