A Week in Cusco: Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley
Cusco sits at 3,400 metres — high enough to stop most visitors in their tracks on arrival. Spend two days acclimatising, then the Inca Empire's greatest sites are within reach.
Acclimatisation First
Altitude sickness (soroche) is real. Arriving from sea level to 3,400m will give most people headaches, fatigue and sometimes nausea for 24-48 hours. The standard advice: rest, avoid alcohol, drink coca tea (freely available and mildly effective), stay hydrated. Diamox (acetazolamide) taken in advance is effective for more serious cases.
Cusco City
Cusco's colonial Spanish architecture is built literally on Inca foundations — the curved stone walls of Inca palaces appear beneath colonial churches throughout the city. The Plaza de Armas, the Cathedral, and Qorikancha (the Inca Temple of the Sun, now beneath Santo Domingo church) are the essential sites.
The Sacred Valley
An hour from Cusco at lower altitude, the Sacred Valley of the Urubamba River contains Pisac market (the finest traditional market in Peru, best on Sunday), Ollantaytambo fortress (the best-preserved Inca site in the valley), and Chinchero village.
Machu Picchu
The access town is Aguas Calientes, reached by train from Ollantaytambo (90 minutes). Buses run to the site from 5am. Entry is now timed and must be booked far in advance online. Sunrise entry is spectacular; the site is most atmospheric in the first two hours before the day-trip crowds arrive by 10am.
The Inca Trail
The classic 4-day trek to Machu Picchu requires permits booked months in advance through a licensed operator. Alternatively, the Salkantay Trek offers a harder, wilder route without the permit queue.
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