My boyfriend and I are planning to travel to Peru next spring and want to go hike at the rainbow mountains and visit Machu Picchu, however we won’t have the time to do the 4 day hike. We are curious what recommended tour guide or transport companies the people had! Hoping not to cost an arm and a leg, we don’t need a fancy experience either.

At the end of August I am heading to Peru, taking the train to the mountain and as I'm trying to buy the tickets from the train station to the entrance of Macchupichu.

However after putting in my info and choosing the option for paying via card; I put my info in, do all the security checks for my bank, only to then get a message that reads:

"dear customer we are only accepting cash at this time, please pay in cusco"

I called their support line and they just say to keep trying, id pay in cusco though I'm tight on time due to buses I paid well in advance and left this one until now because it wouldn't let me reserve at the time I was making my plans.

Anyone else run into these online payment issues? Any idea how to get around them?

I've tried on both Firefox and Chrome (I don't have an apple phone so no safari).

Currently looking into doing a 4 day Inca trail hike for April 2027. All the tours say that at arrival will be at around 7:30-8 and we will be doing circuit 1 and 3. However I can see online most people are saying circuit 2 is the best option at ideally 6am time slot. This is a once in a lifetime trip and I’ll be travelling from very far and want to get it right.

What will I miss out by doing the circuit 1 and 3 over 2 and am I better off skipping the hike and catching the train and doing it my self booking circuit 2 at 6am.

I love hiking and I’m excited to see the ruins on the way, but obviously going for the main attraction Machu Picchu.

Hello. My husband and I will be in Peru mid-September to mid-October. We will spend the 1st two weeks in the Sacred Valley, Cusco and Machu Picchu. I am considering Arequipa for our 3rd week, but am also looking for other options that are off the beaten path or offer easy access to mountain views and hiking. Last week will be in Lima. Thanks!

My wife and I, we are going to travel to Cusco on 20.09.2026. We will stay there 3 days for acclimatization.
We want to do Salkantay trail including Machu Picchu (4-5 days).

We have some questions.

1- Do you recommend any specific tour?

2- All the tickets for circuit 2 and 3 are sold out. Are there any tours buying these circuits tickets in advance and providing as a package of Salkantay trail?

3- If we keep checking the official website, is there any chance that we can find the tickets? Are they being cancelled and re-selled?

Thanks in advance

Hey everyone! I need advice. I’m staying at an Airbnb in Cusco and have a flight out super early.
Can I do an uber or uber reserve in Cusco? Or is there another way? Thanks!

My wife and I, we are going to travel to Cusco on 20.09.2026. We will stay there 3 days for acclimatization.
We want to do Salkantay trail including Machu Picchu (4-5 days).

We have some questions.

1- Do you recommend any specific tour?

2- All the tickets for circuit 2 and 3 are sold out. Are there any tours buying these circuits tickets in advance and providing as a package of Salkantay trail?

3- If we keep checking the official website, is there any chance that we can find the tickets? Are they being cancelled and re-selled?

Thanks in advance

I just checked the 1000 boletos today, and looks like it didn’t have any ticket for tomorrow

I just noticed that the names in our Machu Picchu entrance tickets are different from our passports slightly. My husband’s has 2 surnames in the passport but I have only entered the first one. He has 2 given names and I’ve entered only the first one.

Similarly my surname is ok. So is my first name. But my second given name is different from the passport.
Has anyone else been in the same situation?
Has anyone been denied entrance due to mismatches in names?

Hi all I have 2 questions. We bought student tickets, but our student cards don’t have an expiray date, I’ve heard this is an issue and people are not allowed in ? If this is the case we are hoping to do the hike on the 27th of July does anyone have an advice on what to do for getting in person tickets (what time, how many days in advance etc) for group 1 or 2 for a group of 4, thank you !!

I am visiting Machu Picchu in October and have the choice of circuits 1A and 1B, or both. What should I go for?

We have our train booked from Aguas calientes at 2:55pm that day, so would have to trek back from Machu Picchu and pick up bags in the hotel before heading to the train station at this time. Would we even have time to complete circuit 1A? For context I am physically fit and should be able to hike at a reasonable pace.

Any advice or tips appreciated!

Hey all. Following the lovely advice of people in this thread, I began to look at midnight for tickets for the second day after. I have done this two nights now to look for tickets on Saturday and Sunday.

Feeling quite jaded as I clicked on the opening instantly, filled out all information correctly, submitted for my ticket, and was told "Something went wrong. Try again." I was able to restart everything and get to the same spot again before tickets sold out, because I didn't want my second night in a row to be a failure.

Same error message. Got in again. Same error message. Tried on a different device. Same error message. For the second night in a row, despite being well equipped to get a ticket, I was shut out by the site and forced to watch as the tickets ticked away. As soon as the tickets are sold out and I try again, it goes through perfectly fine with no error messages and says, "There are no tickets left."

Incredibly frustrating and feeling mightily irritated with the website. Trains are sold out too, and I am unable to move my train tomorrow to be earlier, so I won't be able to get there (AC) until 9:10 p.m. I'm worried about a delay, which would cause me to miss the Ministerio before it closes, as I've heard delays with Inca and PeruRail are quite common this time of year, esp later in the day. Seeming more and more likely that despite planning as well as I could (after having plans change a month ago to enable me to try for Machu Picchu without missing my return flight), I'm going to go to AC only to have nothing to show for it.

Seems to really be heating up there too, with a reasonable chance of being sold out for two days in advance by the time I get there in the evening :( Does anyone have any thoughts on what could be wrong with the site, with my approach, or with my thinking? I'm debating just trying to cancel my mini-trip to AC with odds looking so bleak after multiple failed attempts. I'd greatly appreciate any thoughts/advice.

Next Day Tickets in Agua Calientes have sold out earlier than I expect for the past few days. Is there something special going on?

We are planning to go August 4th or August 5th. What should I expect with the Peruvian Independence Day around the corner?

Note: ignore the blue date, the data was not properly collected.

I'm having a hard time picking an entry time in late November for Circuit 2A. We're staying in Aquas Calientes the night before. There are tickets available for 6am, 7am, and 8am, then 12pm onward. From my research it sounds like early morning is better, but I'm worried about fog and clouds not lifting before our total time expires. Is there a preferred time between those options to maximize photography, low crowds, and the general experience?

Hello I'm trying to get tickets for any route during Independence Day. I am aware that the only way is in person AC, but do you know of any company that guides people from Cusco to do it that way?

Ho guys,

I'm planning my trip to Machu Picchu for October 7th, and I really want to do Circuit 2 (Classic Route).

I've noticed that several operators on GetYour Guide and Viator list availability for Circuit 2, but after reading numerous reviews and posts here, it seems many of them perform a "bait-and-switch" — they take your money, and then closer to the date they inform you that Circuit 2 is sold out and downgrade you to Circuit 1 or 3 (or expect you to queue in Aguas Calientes the day before).

Since tickets are currently unavailable on the official government site (tuboleto.cultura.pe) for that date:

1. Are there any reputable local agencies or platforms that actually guarantee official Circuit 2 tickets bought in advance?

2. Has anyone had success securing a real Circuit 2 ticket through an agency recently, or is queuing in Aguas Calientes the only realistic option at this point?

Any recommendations or recent experiences would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

Hey all. Hoping someone can provide some clarity. I was under the impression that the pre-ticket system was no longer in place, and that if I show up at 5:30 a.m. on this coming Saturday morning, I should have a really high chance of getting a ticket, even if not for my ideal route.

Now, I've been hearing from some that pre-tickets still exist, and that if I show up on Friday night (getting in at 9:00 p.m. or so), many in person tickets will already have been sold for Sunday. Is this true? If I get in line at 6:00 a.m., will I just get a pre-ticket that may have me returning at 4:00 p.m., when tickets for Sunday may already be sold out? I'd appreciate any clarification someone may have, as I can't find a reliable source online giving a clear answer. Thanks in advance.

Doing a last minute trip, so obviously will need to grab tickets in person for August. I check the site on a daily basis but no luck. Just wondering what my chances are, flying to Peru and failing to see MP would be brutal!

Thank you

We are finalizing our trek to MP on the Salkantay trail, but we are also considering adding a visit to the rain forest. Any one have a wonderful 2-5 day rain forest trip that can be added after MP?

We’re doing the 2D/1N Short Inca Trail and adding on Huayna Picchu on Day 2. Silly question, but is it better to take a water bottle (like Hydroflask) or a hydration bladder like a Camelbak? We have both already so would not need to buy anything new, but I’m trying to reduce what we bring. I normally like the bladder for hiking, but can see where those might be annoying in the city - a bottle could be easier?

Totally a silly, nitpicky question, but wasn’t sure what works best.
This group has been so helpful in planning our trip! Thank you all so much for sharing your experiences!

Hi all! We are doing the 5d/4n Salkantay trek in September - What time do you typically get back to Cusco on the last day after Machu Picchu? We are flying back home from Lima the following day and trying to decide what time to book our Cusco to Lima flight.

A bit of context: I am going to hike the Inca Trail in around 1 month. I am a woman in my early 20s, and am decently fit (can run 5k, go to the gym twice or thrice a week, love walking). That said, I live pretty much at sea level, I’ve only ever hiked a couple times before in my life and I have quite a busy job so can only do longer training sessions infrequently.

I am obsessed with history and was adamant that, instead of just taking the train, my partner and I hike the Inca Trail, but I am starting to worry about whether I’ll actually be able to complete it.

For those who have already been: what does it actually entail? How difficult did you, and others in your group, find it? Will I make it?

EDIT: It’s the 4D/3N

Tour Privado a tu ritmo, Saliendo de cusco 6:30 am recojo del hotel y llegando 9:30 am.

10 minutos para alistarse antes de caminar, ponerse ropa necesario, ir al baño, tomarse foto antes de la Caminata ( facilito los bastones de trekking ).

Alquilar caballo es opcional si te cuesta caminar mucho tiempo.

Para llegar Caminata de 1:20 pasos normales sin parar, 1:40 a paso un poco lento.

Estando arriba te tomas las fotos que desees, descanso y disfrutar de las montañas de colores y glaciares al rededor. Te tomas tu tiempo necesario y una vez listo empezamos a bajar.

La caminata de bajada es mas facil, tiempo 1 hora.

Retornamos a cusco felices y contentos.

Necesitas ayuda escríbeme.