After getting back from Geysers el Tatio around noon, we packed every thing and headed to El Loa Airport. After that, it’s a relay of hotel and flights until we got to Cusco, Peru - where the Machu Picchu trip starts. Yep, this is what I’m gonna talk about today!

While researching about Machu Picchu, I found out there are many inconsistent info that requires you to cross compare among different sources to learn the whole picture. The planning process is especially painful because even on the authority’s website it doesn’t have clear information. There are quite a few questions that bothered me when I was planning the trip. And I wanted to share them out and provide the answers, so you don’t have to undergo the painful process.

• ✅ This blog is for those who just want to see the famous scene on many Machu Picchu postcards like me

• ❌ Not for those who want to do a 2+ day hike like hiking in Inca trail

Table of Contents

• 7 Q&A to prepare you for Machu Picchu Planning

  • 1. Is it true that you’ll have to take buses + tra …

  • 2. Is it possible to buy Machu Picchu ticket on si …

  • 3. How to get Machu Picchu ticket onsite?

  • 4. Which Circuit in Machu Picchu should I choose?

  • 5. Do I need a tour guide to visit Machu Picchu?

  • 6. Where and how to buy Aguas Caliente <> Machu Pi …

  • 7. What is the strategy to lineup for Aguas Calien …

7 Q&A to prepare you for Machu Picchu Planning

1. Is it true that you’ll have to take buses + trains to get to Aguas Caliente?

When I searched how to get to Machu Pichhu from Cusco to Aguas Caliente (the closet town to Machu Picchu), I found quite a few blogs written in Chinese saying you should first get to a train station near Cusco called Poroy (30 min by car) then take a train from Poroy to Ollantaytambo station and finally transfer to another train getting to Aguas Caliente.

But! By cross-comparing the reviews on google map and Reddit, I found out there’s actually a train station called San Pedro in Cusco’s old town area (main tourist area where you would probably stay) that has train going to Machu Picchu directly.

💡 You can take a direct train from Cusco to Aguas Caliente. I booked a round trip with PeruRail here

2. Is it possible to buy Machu Picchu ticket on site since the ticket on official website are all sold out?

IT IS possible to buy ticket on site and this is exactly what I did. So if you check out the official website here, you probably would find the tickets are not available unless you plan several months in advance or are super lucky. I planned almost 2 month in advance, but couldn’t secure any online.

3. How to get Machu Picchu ticket onsite?

So after asking our hotel owner, verifing on the Peruvian government website and Reddit, I learned that they sell 1,000 onsite tickets (for all circuits) everyday from 15:00 to 22:00 at the Machu Picchu Cultural Center for the following day. So for example, if you buy a ticket on site on May 19th, it will show your entrance date to be May 20th.

But here’s a trick. 15:00 - 22:00 is the time you can buy a ticket with a number you get in advance, not the time you can just go and buy. So before getting off the train, we asked a train staff when we could go to the Cultural Center to buy a ticket just to confirm. And he surprisingly replied “Right after you get off the train (around noon)”. Then I realized they opens early and start to give out “tickets with a number” (which decides your purchase order) until 15:00. From 15:00, they’ll start to call the numbers from 1 - 1,000 one by one, and that’s the time you can actually buy a ticket.

💡 Go to Machu Picchu Cultural Center before 3 PM so can get in line for your Machu Picchu tickets the following day & bring your passport!

4. Which Circuit in Machu Picchu should I choose?

Many people say the first priority is Circuit 2 and then Circuit 1. I ended up getting Circuit 1 and found it quite satisfied, so I can’t really say anything here. I recommend checking out a blog here which I found it very useful for the detailed Circuit comparison or the official website that shows maps and even videos for different Circuits.

5. Do I need a tour guide to visit Machu Picchu?

For a simple visit (not taking any specific trails) like I did, you don’t need a tour guide. For some reasons, there are some info saying that you have to hire a guide to take you to Machu Picchu, which makes us wondering if we need to just join a tour. But it turns out not mandatory. (But for the famous Inca Trails, it seems to have different regulations.)

6. Where and how to buy Aguas Caliente <> Machu Picchu bus ticket?

Thankfully, you don’t have to be as panic as buying Machu Picchu entrance tickets. The bus ticket is quite simple, here’s the info you would need:

• Buy ticket at Consettur Bus Ticket (there will be signs and directions in town, so no worries at all!)

• The ticket office is open during 5:30 - 22:00

• Tickets do not need to be reserved in advance and won’t be sold out

• Need to prepare your passport

• Bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu: $24 (round trip)

• The earliest departure from Aguas Calientes is at 5:30, once every 5 minutes, and takes 30 minutes to arrive.

7. What is the strategy to lineup for Aguas Caliente > Machu Picchu bus?

The time you can lineup for a bus depends on your Machu Picchu entrance ticket. The bus staff will raise a sign to signal people. For example, when you see “11:00”, that means the line is for people who hold Machu Picchu 11:00 entrance ticket. The line will be long and filled up soon, so better be there early. (the stop is just outside the Consettur Bus Ticket, very easy to identify so no worries!)

💡 Our entrance time to Machu Picchu is at 11:00, we were there around 9:30 and the first in the queue 😁 So I guess 1.5 hour in advance is good! (There’s a chaotic line shifting from left to right moment, but it didn’t affects people lining front like us)

Stay tuned! Next week, I’ll share about the cost breakdown and experience!