Leaving from Cusco
Machu Picchu tour from Cusco: pickup, train and the way back
All nine trips on this site include a pickup in Cusco, Peru. This Machu Picchu tour from Cusco guide follows the day from that pickup to the station at Ollantaytambo, onto the train, up to the citadel and back to the city, and lines up every trip side by side. Hikes cost from $585 per person. The three day tours by train cost $308 to $349.
Quick answer
The short answer. In one long day, a Machu Picchu tour from Cusco by train picks you up between 4:00 and 8:00 AM, drives you to Ollantaytambo, puts you on the train to Aguas Calientes, and gives you about two hours inside with a guide. To walk in through the Sun Gate, the 2-day Inca Trail adds a night in a hotel, and our top pick, the 4-day trail at $840, adds three nights in camp and the panoramic train on the way back.
Machu Picchu tour from Cusco at a glance
- Trips that start in Cusco
- All 9each includes a pickup
- Pickup on day tours
- 4:00 to 8:00 AMset by your train time
- Hikes
- From $585per person, 2-day Inca Trail
- Day tours by train
- $308 to $349per person, 12 to 15 hours
- Cusco to Ollantaytambo
- 1.5 to 2 hoursby van, bus or car
- Train to Aguas Calientes
- About 1 h 45 to 2 hfrom Ollantaytambo station
- Bus up to the citadel
- 25 to 30 minutesin every programme; fare not stated
- Time with the guide
- 2 to 2.5 hourson the three day tours
- Lunch on day tours
- Not in the pricepay on the day, or an option
- Refunds
- 7 of 9 non-refundablefree cancellation: 2-day panoramic and alternative 4-day hikes
- Reviews
- 5,037across all nine listings
Before dawn
Pickup in Cusco: what time, and where
Pickups run from 4:00 to 8:00 AM, set by the train you are booked on.
On a Machu Picchu day tour from Cusco the day starts in the dark. The full-day group tour picks you up within the historic center of Cusco at 4:00, 6:00 or 8:00 AM, depending on your train. The tour with optional lunch collects you between 4:00 and 8:00 and sends the exact time the day before. The 1-day tour by train comes to your hotel at 4:00 AM.
The hikes start just as early: 4:00 AM on the 2-day panoramic hike, 5:00 AM on the alternative 4-day route, and an early pickup on our top pick. The 2-day overnight and 2-day Vistadome hikes include a pickup without printing the hour; the Sacred Valley trip sends its time a couple of days before.
If you sleep outside the historic center, the group tour only collects inside it. Staying in the valley? None of the nine is sold as a Machu Picchu tour from Ollantaytambo, but our top pick also collects from Sacred Valley hotels.
The road and the rails
From the hotel door to the citadel, step by step
How a Machu Picchu tour from Cusco 1 day long runs, with the times the three day-tour listings give.
- Pickup, 4:00 to 8:00 AM
A van, bus or car collects you in Cusco. The time follows your train; one listing sends it the day before.
- The drive to Ollantaytambo, about 1.5 hours
The trains leave from Ollantaytambo station. No listing here is a Machu Picchu day tour from Ollantaytambo; all three drive you there from Cusco. One route uses Poroy station instead, 30 minutes from Cusco.
- The train, about 2 hours
1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours down the valley to Aguas Calientes, also known as Machu Picchu Pueblo. From Poroy, the 1-day tour by train takes about 3.5 hours.
- The bus up, 25 to 30 minutes
A zigzag road climbs from the town to the gate. Aguas Calientes is a stop, not a start: no listing here is a Machu Picchu tour from Aguas Calientes.
- The guided visit, 2 to 2.5 hours
Your guide leads the circuit your ticket allows. Circuits are given by availability, and one listing says you cannot re-enter once the visit ends.
- Lunch in Aguas Calientes
At your own expense on two of the three day tours; an optional Peruvian lunch on the third. One listing adds that the hot springs are extra too.
- The way back
The same chain in reverse: bus down, train to Ollantaytambo, road to Cusco. The listings give 12 hours for two of the tours and 15 for the third.
On the way
Ollantaytambo, the railway and the town below the citadel
What you pass on a Machu Picchu tour from Cusco: the station town, the railway and the town at the end of the line.
Ollantaytambo
Grass-topped Inca terraces climb towards a rocky peak, with a small stone house set into the cliff and visitors on the paths.
The railway
A blue train with a yellow nose follows a track cut into a green cliff, high above the brown water of the river.
Looking up
Windows curve up into the roof of a carriage, and rocky peaks show through the glass above the seats.
Aguas Calientes
White hotel blocks line the street at the foot of steep forested cliffs, with a green footbridge further down.
Coming back
The way back to Cusco, and when you get in
Train to Ollantaytambo, then the road back to the city.
Almost every Machu Picchu tour from Cusco comes home the same way: the train back up the valley to Ollantaytambo, then the road. The group tour drops you back in the historic center. Martin from Sweden, on the tour with optional lunch: «It is a long ride from Cusco to the train station and then almost two hours to the village connecting the railway to Machu Picchu. But the train ride is very beautiful…»
On the hikes, the return leg is part of the programme. Our top pick rides the panoramic Vistadome train back to Ollantaytambo, then a van for about two hours to your hotel. The 2-day Vistadome hike returns on that train and a bus, arriving at about 7:30 PM; the 2-day panoramic hike takes the Vistadome train back and a bus in the early evening. The overnight hike ends with the return train and a car to your Cusco hotel; the Sacred Valley trip with the train and a bus.
Every trip, current fare
Machu Picchu tour from Cusco prices, side by side
The Cusco to Machu Picchu tour cost below is per person, as listed. «What the price covers» gives only what each listing states; tap a name to check dates.
| Trip | Price | Length | Pickup | What the price covers | Refund | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4-day Inca Trail, panoramic train · our top pick | $840 | 4 days | Early, hotels in Cusco or the Sacred Valley | Km 82 start, three nights in camp, meals in camp, guided visit, Vistadome train back | Non-refundable | 4.9 · 595 |
| 2-day Inca Trail, overnight | $585 | 2 days | Included; hour not given | Trail past Wiñay Wayna to the Sun Gate, hotel night, 2-hour guided visit, train and car back | Non-refundable | 4.9 · 227 |
| 2-day Inca Trail, Vistadome train | $630 | 2 days | Included; hour not given | Picnic breakfast and lunch on the trail, guided visit, Vistadome train back, bus to Cusco | Non-refundable | 4.8 · 333 |
| 2-day Inca Trail, panoramic train | $679 | 2 days | 4:00 AM, Cusco hotel | Train to Km 104, 3-star hotel, guided visit, Vistadome train back, bus to Cusco | Free cancellation | 4.9 · 9 reviews |
| 4-day alternative Inca Trail route | $1,290 | 4 days | 5:00 AM, Cusco hotel | Kuychicassa Pass, two nights camping, a hotel night, two visits to the citadel, train back | Free cancellation | 5.0 · 1 review |
| 2 days, Sacred Valley and the citadel | $370 | 2 days | Hotel pickup; time sent days ahead | Pisac and Ollantaytambo, train, guided visit; day-two lunch to buy | Non-refundable | 4.6 · 345 |
| Full-day group tour | $349 | 12 hours | 4:00, 6:00 or 8:00 AM, historic center | Bus and train both ways, about 2 hours with a guide; lunch on your own | Non-refundable | 4.7 · 2,334 |
| 1-day tour by train | $320 | 12 hours | 4:00 AM, Cusco hotel | Expedition or Voyager train, 30-minute bus, about 2 hours with a guide; lunch extra | Non-refundable | 4.7 · 209 |
| Full-day tour, optional lunch | $308 | 15 hours | 4:00 to 8:00 AM; time sent the day before | Tourist or Superior class train, 2.5 hours with a guide; entry on some options | Non-refundable | 4.6 · 984 |
On foot from Cusco
The hikes that start with a Cusco pickup
On a Machu Picchu tour from Cusco on foot, the drive comes first.
Each Machu Picchu hike from Cusco on this site begins in a vehicle, not on the trail. Our top pick drives you about two hours to Ollantaytambo for breakfast, then on to the Km 82 trailhead. You sleep three nights in campsites and rise before dawn on day four to reach the Sun Gate. At $840 with 595 reviews at 4.9, it is the most-reviewed hike on this site.
On the 2-day panoramic hike, a car takes you to Ollantaytambo and a 1.5-hour train runs along the Urubamba River to Km 104. The 2-day Vistadome hike walks past Chachabamba and Wiñay Wayna to the Sun Gate; the overnight hike, at $585 the lowest hike price here, passes Wiñay Wayna and the Sun Gate too. Two of the three name a hotel in Aguas Calientes for the night.
The alternative 4-day route, at $1,290, drives 1 hour 45 minutes to Soqma and joins the Inca Trail at Km 104 on day three.
Before you pay
Five things to check before you book from Cusco
Before you book a Machu Picchu tour from Cusco, read five lines on the booking page: the listings differ on refunds, papers and lead time.
- Refunds
Seven of the nine listings say the activity is non-refundable, among them our top pick and the lowest hike price. Free cancellation is offered on two: the 2-day panoramic hike and the alternative 4-day route.
- Your passport
Four listings ask for passport details when you book, so tickets can be issued; two ask you to carry it on the day.
- Lead time
The 2-day overnight hike must be booked 2 weeks before the tour date. The alternative 4-day route asks you to check availability first, as permits are very limited.
- Dates
The 1-day tour by train allows no change of dates. On the tour with optional lunch, the entry date cannot change once the ticket is issued.
- February
One listing, the 2-day panoramic hike, notes that the Inca Trail closes in February for maintenance.
Our verdict
Which trip from Cusco to book
With four days, book our top pick, the 4-day Inca Trail at $840: hotel pickup, three nights in camp, the walk to the Sun Gate before dawn and the panoramic train on the way back. With two days, the overnight hike at $585 is rated 4.9 by 227 reviewers. With one day, the full-day group tour at $349 carries 2,334 reviews at 4.7. The best Machu Picchu tour from Cusco is the one that fits your days.
Common questions
Machu Picchu tour from Cusco: your questions
What time does a Machu Picchu tour from Cusco pick you up?
Between 4:00 and 8:00 AM on the day tours: 4:00 AM on the 1-day tour by train; 4:00, 6:00 or 8:00 AM on the group tour; the tour with optional lunch sends the time the day before. The 2-day panoramic hike collects at 4:00 AM.
How long is the train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes?
About 1 hour 45 minutes on the group tour, 110 minutes on the tour with optional lunch, and about 2 hours on the 1-day tour by train. On the 2-day panoramic hike, the train to the Km 104 trailhead takes 1.5 hours.
How long do you get inside Machu Picchu on a day tour?
About 2 hours on the group tour and the 1-day tour by train, and 2.5 hours on the tour with optional lunch. Every Machu Picchu guided tour from Cusco on this site includes this visit with a guide; once it ends, the group tour notes, you cannot re-enter.
Is lunch included on the day tour from Cusco?
No. On the group tour and the 1-day tour by train, lunch is at your own expense. The tour with optional lunch offers a traditional Peruvian lunch as an option.
Do I need my passport?
Yes. Four listings ask for passport details when you book; the group tour and the 2-day panoramic hike ask you to carry it on the day.
Can I cancel and get a refund?
Seven of the nine listings say the activity is non-refundable. Free cancellation is offered on the 2-day panoramic hike and on the alternative 4-day route.
Your options
Choosing your start, your train and your days
Same morning, different way in.
Whichever tour from Cusco to Machu Picchu you choose, the morning is the same: an early pickup, the drive to the station and the train down the valley. What changes is the way in: by bus on a day tour, through the Sun Gate on a hike. Mariusz from the United Kingdom, on the group tour: «The tour was very well organized—from the moment we were picked up at the hotel until we returned.»
Want a set date? Book your Machu Picchu tour from Cusco early: two hikes are marked likely to sell out, and the overnight hike asks for two weeks.
Go deeper
More guides to Machu Picchu
In one day
Train there, guided visit, train back: what a single long day looks like.
By trainBy train
Which tours ride which train, and what the carriages are like.
Two daysTwo days
The short trail: one walking day, one night, the citadel next morning.
Four daysFour days
The full trail with three nights in camp.
Sacred ValleySacred Valley
Two days with a night near the citadel and the valley on the way.
