July 18th 2015

Machu Picchu, these mountainous ruins are the most famous tourist attraction which brings people to South America.  This famed Incan city found a few hours from Cusco in South Eastern Peru is more or less the definition of the beaten path and there’s now countless options for how to get there.  Treks to Trains,  Luxury Hotels to camping, all the options are on the table.  When my Parents where in South America all the way back in the Cretaceous period (1985 or so)  they paid about 20 dollars each to do the inca trail. That price is now nearly 800 and booking far in advance is usually required, especially in the high season of June July August.  But for those looking to get to Machu Picchu as cheaply as possible without sacrificing an amazing experience, this entry is for you.

First you need to understand the steps of how to get to Machu Picchu from Cusco.  Basically you need to get to the tiny tourist town of Aguas Calientes nestled into the temperate forested mountains which surround Machu Picchu.  Then it’s a simple matter of going up the mountain to the ruins the next day.  (90 minute to 150 minute walk or 25 minutes 13 USD bus ride (one way)

Many people will tell you making a day trip on the train with advanced reservations is the cheapest way to get to Aguas but they’d be wrong.  The train usually runs about 50USD one way and up, but there is a much cheaper option.  A minibus from Cusco to Hidroelectrica (A nearby hydro electric plant) which takes about 7 hours of perilous roads including a lunch stop and a 2.5 hour walk along the rail road tracks to the town.  For those not in the best physical shape like myself, don’t worry, barring the first 5-10 minutes the walk is very flat and easy, and takes you through some beautiful forests and rivers, including a few tantalizing glimpses of the ruins in the distance above.

Tickets on to these roundtrip minibus services (you pick the return date)  are available at many many tourist agencies around Cusco.  They normally set the asking price at around 100 Soles Return (33 USD)  but with 6 people looking to go we get one agency a few blocks behind the Plaza de Armas to agree to a 60 Soles each price tag for the round trip. (18 USD)

The bus arranged, our next step is the same as yours will likely be, although you can do this next part first if you so desire.  I mean of course buying your entry ticket to Machu Picchu.  For all the info you need on ticket prices and to check availability (The Peruvian government limits entries to 4000 daily) you can visit this website, but I’ll run down most of the options here.  While there is a ticket office in Aguas Calientes I highly recommend buying them in the new Cusco ticket office, close by the Plaza de Armas on Calle Garcilaso open Monday to Friday from 7:00 to 19:00 and going early in the morning  to avoid long line ups.

There are four basic ticket options.  For all of them you buy for a specific day and it is not transferable and registered with your passport number.  (You must bring your passport to the ticket office.)  One thing to note is that student’s get almost half price on all tickets.  They say it’s only with an ISIC card but as long as your student card has an expiry date and a photo they are likely to accept it.

Option 1: Just Machu Picchu 

You can buy an Entry to Machu Picchu Alone (Just the main cite of the ruins themselves though you can still walk to the Sun Gate and the Incan Bridge). These tickets cost 128 Soles (about 40 USD)

Option 2:  Machu Picchu + Museum.

These tickets include entry to the city of Machu Picchu and the Museum which is located on the outskirts of Aguas Calientes and is very under visited.  That said there are more impressive museums in Cusco according to many who know better than I. These tickets cost 150 Sole (about 46 USD)

Option 3:  Huayna Picchu + Machu Picchu

Warning this option is the first to sell out and in high season often you need to book at least a month in advance.  Huayna Picchu is a mountain overlooking the ruins from close up, there are two windows of time when you can be admitted to embark on the roughly 90 minute hard climb, (7 am to 8 am and 10 am to 11 am, and you must pick the time when you buy your ticket) that said the views are said to be absolutely spectacular and I can’t imagine them being anything but.  Sadly this option was sold out for us.  Note:  This is not for those with a fear of heights as I’m told some of the sections of the path up are narrow and quite frightening.  These tickets cost: 152 Soles (About 47 USD)

Option 4:  Machu Picchu and Montana Machu Picchu

This is the option we went with, though only one of us had the energy to climb Montana Machu Picchu which lies a little more distant from the ruins but is also much higher, and much less crowded.  Another advantage is that you’re allowed to start the climb any time before 11 am.  Still it can be arduous and take up to 2.5 hours to reach the top if you’re out of shape, but since the price difference was so minimal we all decided it would be worth it.  The cost is 142 Soles (about 44 USD)

Once you have your ticket it’s time to get on the bus the next morning from your hostel and get ready for a very long and somewhat scary bus ride.  On the plus side there’s some incredibly beautiful scenery.  But or those who struggle with altitude be aware that while Machu Picchu is actually significantly lower than Cusco, the road to hidroelectrica does take you up above 4000 meters (13000 Feet).

After a brief and average lunch stop in Santa Teresa we drive the last hour on even more precarious roads to the hydro electric plant where we register our arrivals (no ticket or fee) and then drive on to the parking lot.

My dad always claims backpackers find the best places and then everyone else does.  This used to be the backpacker route, without many people, now there’s dozens of white mini buses and hundreds of people, but we’re not bothered as we set off up a brief series of hills to the right line of railroad tracks, getting the 2.5 hour walk over and done with without any complications.  Read more here.

Once you get back to Aguas Calientes the next step is finding a place to stay.  This tiny tourist mecca has just about every level of luxury available but for those looking to keep to a budget like us I recommend the dormitory room of Hospedaje Veronica just off the Plaza de Armas towards the bus ticket office.  It cost us 20 soles and the beds were decent, the bathroom was sort of dirty but at 20 soles in the Gringo capital of South America who can really complain.

If you’re hiking up to Machu Picchu it’s as simple as going to sleep and making sure you’re outside the gate (about 25 minute walk from town) at 5 aM when it opens.

The other option is the Bus, which I’m a little sad to say I took.  If you’re taking the bus I recommend buying your ticket the night before.  The one way passage costs 13 USD for 2015 and return is just a dollar or two savings.  I committed to walking back down with the others so it was a one way ticket for me.

The ticket seller told me that while the first batch of buses leaves at 530 am you need to get there by 5 to be on those first buses. Honestly, I’d suggest 430 if you can because by 5 the line was already hundreds of people long and we ended up boarding one of the final buses of the first batch.  Not the end of the world, but a little later and you might be waiting a while.  25 minutes later you’ll be at the entrance to Machu Picchu fishing out your ticket and pushing through the crowd to get scanned in to see these incredible Ruins which recently places number 3 on Lonely Planets 500 places in the world to see.

Three final notes:

1. The only bathroom up here is outside the entrance so if you have any need to go at all go before entering as they limit the amount of re-entries and it’s an annoying walk down to the toilets.

2.  The much famed Machu Picchu stamp for the passports is available near the entrance from 9:30 am onwards.  I stamped mine on the way out and that was easy enough.

3. I highly recommend staying at least 2 nights in Aguas Caliente.  From 2pm onwards is when the actual city of Machu Picchu becomes tolerable and not stuffed to the brim with tourists, but If you’re not spending the second night in Aguas  you’ll never be able to stay that late.