Cusco in Depth and a Machu Picchu Day Trip

Stay all five nights in San Blas, visiting the old-town museums and ruins and the Sacred Valley's salt pans and terraces, then take the train to Machu Picchu and back in one day.

Spend the first two days in the city to acclimatize to the altitude, seeing the Inca walls, the Inca Museum and Sacsayhuamán. On day 3, follow the western Sacred Valley route through Chinchero, Moray, the Maras salt pans and Ollantaytambo. On day 4, take the train from Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu and back the same day, a 12–14-hour trip. You never change hotels; the trade-off is that the Machu Picchu day is very tiring. It suits first-time visitors who don't want to haul luggage between lodgings.

Book Machu Picchu tickets and trains in advance; from January to April, Poroy station is often closed and you take a connecting bus to the train instead.

Day by day

Day 1 · Arrival in San Blas and the Plaza

Cusco（San Blas、Plaza de Armas, Cusco、Cusco Cathedral）

Take a taxi from the airport to San Blas (about 25 minutes); in the evening, walk downhill to the Plaza de Armas and the cathedral.

San Blas is steep; take it slowly when you first arrive.

Stay: San Blas

Day 2 · Inca Walls and Sacsayhuamán

Cusco（Qorikancha、Twelve-Angled Stone & Hatun Rumiyoc Street、Museo Inka、Sacsayhuamán、Q'enqo）

In the morning, explore the old town on foot to see the Qorikancha (Temple of the Sun), the Twelve-Angled Stone and the Inca Museum; in the afternoon, walk uphill for 30–40 minutes to Sacsayhuamán and Qenqo.

Stay: San Blas

Day 3 · Western Sacred Valley: Salt Pans and Terraces

Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu（Chinchero、Moray、Maras Salt Mines、Ollantaytambo）

Hire a car or join a tour to Chinchero, Moray and Maras, reaching Ollantaytambo in the afternoon and returning to the city in the evening, about 9 hours in all.

The Maras salt pans charge a separate entrance fee; use the Tourist Ticket (Boleto Turístico) at Moray.

Stay: San Blas

Day 4 · Train to Machu Picchu and Back

Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu（Machu Picchu Trains (Ollantaytambo Station)、Machu Picchu、Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu Pueblo)）

Take a car in the small hours to Ollantaytambo (about 2 hours), then a train to Aguas Calientes (about 1.5 hours) and a bus up the mountain; return the same way in the evening, reaching the city around 9–10 pm.

Enter at the time slot and on the designated route shown on your ticket, and bring your original passport.

Stay: San Blas

Day 5 · Markets and the Machu Picchu Museum

Cusco（Museo Machu Picchu – Casa Concha、San Pedro Market）

Sleep in this morning, then walk to the Machu Picchu Museum and San Pedro Market; take a taxi to the airport in the afternoon.

Similar itineraries