Although Machu Picchu is the most popular place in Peru, you would be a bit disappointed to learn that there is no direct route from Lima, the capital of Peru, to Machu Picchu. Once you land in Lima, you must arrive in Cusco, the ancient capital of the Inca empire. The distance between these two cities is more than 700 miles. You can fly from Lima or take a bus for a long and difficult journey. Once you arrive in Cusco, you will need to take another trip to get to Aguas Calientes, which is the closest city to Machu Picchu. Machu Picchu, the famous ruin is only a few kilometers from Aguas Calientes. You can walk or take a bus to get there. Now let’s discuss the whole thing in a more elaborate way.
Lima to Cusco
Most people arrive in Lima via an international flight. If you get to Lima in plenty of time, you can certainly stay there for a night or two and get around the city. In many cases, people arrive in Peru with a budget of 4/5 days. In those cases, you need to arrange your flight so that you get there in the morning. Most of the popular flights land early in the morning at the Lima airport. So you can take another flight from Lima to Cusco in a few hours. They have 3/4 good airlines in Peru, and some of them offer flights every few hours from Lima.
But you should not buy the tickets from the airport, rather when you buy the international ticket, make the connecting flight to Cusco in the same morning. The flight time from Lima to Cusco is only one hour, so you can arrive in Cusco early in the afternoon of the same day. There is another alternative route. You can take a bus to get to Cusco. However, it is a long journey. There are few good bus companies that you can choose from, such as Ormeno or Cruz del Sur. They have luxury buses that circulate between Lima and Cusco. If you are not in a hurry, you can choose bus instead of plane, as they are really very cheap. The plane will cost you around US $ 100.00 for a one-way trip. Considering that you only need US $ 30.00 / 40.00 for the luxury bus trip to Cusco. But remember that buses take around twenty hours to get to Cusco.
Cusco to Aguas Calientes
Once you arrive in Cusco, you can either spend the night here or transfer to Machu Picchu the same day. It depends on how many days you plan to stay in Peru. Cusco is a historical city. If you can spend time there, you will definitely enjoy the city. But if you’re in a rush, take the afternoon train from Cusco to get to Aguas Calientes. The train ride is scenic and although you will have to sit for more than three hours inside the train (the distance is 70 miles), it will still be an enjoyable experience.
There are many hotels in Aguas Calientes to sleep. If you are in a peak season, I recommend that you reserve a room well before you get there.
Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu
You can get up very early in the morning to take the bus to reach the ruins of Machu Picchu. It is less than two miles and you need about twenty minutes to reach the ruins. Aguas Calientes is a very small town. They only have buses for transportation. you can easily walk around the city. They have two bus stations in the city, one is in the middle of the city, very close to where the train stops, the other is at the end of the cities, towards Machu Picchu. Taking the bus from Aguas Calientes is easy, the ticket office is at the bus stations and the bus leaves the city towards the ruins of Machu Picchu in a short interval. So take a bus, enjoy the little 20 minute ride, arrive at Machu Picchu, and enjoy the impressive Machu Picchu.