Guide to Visiting Machu Picchu in 2026: Routes, Tickets and Rules

To visit Machu Picchu you need a ticket with a date, time and route, bought on the official platform of the Ministry of Culture or at the ticket office in Machu Picchu Pueblo. You also have to travel by train to Machu Picchu Pueblo (formerly Aguas Calientes) and go up to the citadel by bus or on foot. Since 2024 the visit has been organized into 3 circuits and 10 routes: each ticket is valid only for the route you choose, with a maximum time inside. In this guide we explain each route, how much the ticket costs, how to buy it and the rules that apply in 2026.

Data as of 19 October 2026. Visiting rules change often: at the end of the article you will find the official resolutions and pages for every figure.

• 2,430 maltitude of the citadel, almost 1,000 m lower than Cusco
• 3 circuits · 10 routeseach ticket is valid for one route only
• 4,500 – 5,600visitors a day in 2026, depending on the season

Machu Picchu circuits and routes in 2026

Since 1 June 2024 the Llaqta (the Inca city) has been visited along 3 circuits: Circuit 1 (Panorámico), with the views from the upper part; Circuit 2 (Clásico), which goes through the center of the city; and Circuit 3 (Machupicchu Realeza), through the temples and houses of the Inca elite. Each circuit has several routes. When you buy the ticket you choose one route, and you can only walk that one: leaving the route is grounds for removal.

* Sold only in high season. In 2026 high season is 1 January, 2 to 5 April, 19 June to 2 November, and 30 and 31 December. The maximum times are those on the official map of each route.

Which one to choose? If it is your first visit and you want the classic photo of the citadel, routes 1-B and 2-A are the most direct. If you are interested in the temples, 3-B. If you are in good physical condition and want to walk more, the mountain routes 1-A and 3-A.

To print: download this table, with the mountains, entry times and fares, as Machu Picchu Circuits and Routes 2026 (PDF).

Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain

Each of the two mountains has its own ticket, which also includes part of the citadel. They are routes with steep stairs: the Ministry of Culture considers them voluntary and for people in good physical condition, and you must sign in at the checkpoint hut when you enter and when you leave.

These are the most limited places in Machu Picchu. In June 2026 Huayna Picchu was closed for a month for conservation work: before buying, check that the route is on sale for your date.

We compare the two mountains in detail, with their trails and what each ticket includes, in Huayna Picchu or Machu Picchu Mountain: which one to choose.

How much the Machu Picchu ticket costs in 2026

For Peruvians, foreign residents in Peru and citizens of the Andean Community (Bolivia, Colombia and Ecuador), the Ministry of Culture set these fares for 2026:

Children under 3 enter free, and minors must be accompanied by an adult. Students need their valid higher-education student card.

For non-resident foreigners, the general fare published by the Cusco Directorate of Culture is S/ 152 per adult, S/ 77 per higher-education student and S/ 70 per child aged 3 to 17 on the routes without a mountain. The mountain routes cost more. The final price, in soles, is shown on the official platform when you choose the route: check it before paying.

In addition, since May 2026 a Historic Sanctuary fee (SERNANP) of S/ 11 for foreigners and S/ 5 for nationals has applied; in July 2026 the Government announced that it will be charged within the same ticket sales system.

How to buy the Machu Picchu ticket

There are two official channels:

• Online, at tuboleto.cultura.pe, the platform of the Ministry of Culture. Since 22 September 2026 there are no more reservations: the ticket is bought with payment confirmed at the time (during the trial phase you have 15 minutes to pay; otherwise the place is released). You can buy up to 5 tickets per purchase.
• In person, at the Ministry of Culture ticket office in Machu Picchu Pueblo, which sells up to 1,000 tickets a day, as a rule for the following day (in May 2026, as an exception, sales up to three days in advance were allowed when tickets for the following day had sold out). Each visitor must buy in person.

The ticket carries your name and your ID document: you cannot change the date or the holder, and it is not refunded except in cases of force majeure. As daily places are limited, for our tours we recommend booking at least three months in advance, especially if you want a mountain route or Circuit 2.

In this calendar you can see the places available by date and route, with data from the Ministry of Culture:

Entry times and how long you can stay

• Entry slots every hour, from 6:00 to 15:00. The time on your ticket is the time at the main gate of the citadel.
• Tolerance: you can enter up to 30 minutes after your time in regular season and up to 45 minutes in high season. After that you can no longer enter, except in proven cases of force majeure. There is no tolerance at the mountain checkpoints.
• Time inside: 2 h 30 on the routes without a mountain and 3 to 7 hours on the others (see the routes table). The citadel closes at 17:30.
• No re-entry: once you leave, you cannot enter again with the same ticket.

How to get to Machu Picchu from Cusco

There is no road from Cusco to Machu Picchu Pueblo: the usual way is by train. PeruRail departs from Cusco (San Pedro and Poroy stations; it has used Poroy again since May 2026) and from Ollantaytambo, in the Sacred Valley; Inca Rail departs from Ollantaytambo. According to PeruRail, the train takes about 1 h 30 from Ollantaytambo, 3 h 30 from Poroy and 4 h 30 from San Pedro.

From Machu Picchu Pueblo you go up to the citadel by bus, about 30 minutes along the Hiram Bingham road (the first bus leaves at 5:30, according to PeruRail), or on foot up the stairs, in about 2 hours. Bus tickets are bought in Machu Picchu Pueblo.

There is also the road route to Hidroeléctrica, with a walk alongside the railway: it is the cheapest option, the one used by our Machu Picchu tour by bus (2 days).

Stations, train classes, travel times and rules, in detail: how to get to Machu Picchu from Cusco.

Rules: guide, documents and what is not allowed

Guide. The current regulations recommend entering with a tour guide, but do not require it. With an official guide you understand what you see and make better use of the limited time on your route.

Documents. Bring your ticket and the original ID document you used to buy it: passport, foreign resident card (carné de extranjería) or, for citizens of the Andean Community and Mercosur, their national ID document. Peruvians, their DNI. Staff may ask for them inside the citadel.

You may not enter with:

• backpacks or bags larger than 40 x 35 x 20 cm;
• food;
• walking sticks, umbrellas, parasols, portable seats, tripods, camera supports or extensions;
• drones;
• high heels or hard-soled shoes, and baby strollers;
• animals (except guide dogs), musical instruments, speakers, alcohol or aerosols.

You also may not smoke, touch or climb on the stones, or leave the route. Anyone who breaks the rules is removed immediately and without a refund. The toilets are in the entrance area, next to the bus stop.

To print: download the checklist What to Pack for Machu Picchu and Cusco (PDF) and tick it before you leave.

When to go: weather and seasons

According to the Master Plan of the Sanctuary, the dry season runs from April to August and the rainiest months are January to March. The average temperature at the citadel is 18 °C and cloud cover is frequent, because it lies in a cloud forest. The citadel can be visited all year; what closes in February for maintenance is the Inca Trail (as happened in 2026).

High season (19 June to 2 November in 2026) has more places and routes, but also more demand: buy further in advance. Weather month by month and the busiest and quietest months in best time to visit Machu Picchu.

Altitude of Machu Picchu

The citadel is at 2,430 meters above sea level, according to the official fact sheet of the Ministry of Culture. It is almost 1,000 meters lower than Cusco (3,399 m): if you have already spent a few days in Cusco, at Machu Picchu you will be considerably lower. Huayna Picchu reaches about 2,720 m, according to PromPerú.

On your own or with a tour?

On your own you have to coordinate the ticket, the train, the bus and the guide, each with its own schedule. A tour takes care of it all in a single booking. These are the options we offer from Cusco:

• Machu Picchu Full Day tour: in one day, with pickup at your hotel, train, bus, ticket and guide.
• Machu Picchu by train, 2 days: with one night in Machu Picchu Pueblo.
• Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu in 2 days: the Sacred Valley on the first day and Machu Picchu on the second.

Planning the whole trip? Download our Cusco and Machu Picchu itinerary for 3, 4 or 5 days (PDF), with the tours and prices for each day.

You can compare duration, transport and price in Machu Picchu tours from Cusco.