Luxury Cusco, Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu, 4 Days
Private throughout, with Chinchero, a picnic lunch and the Observatory train
- 4 days
- 3,762 m max
- Easy
- Cusco airport to Cusco airport
Four days entirely private — your own guide and vehicle, a sunset city tour of Cusco, the upper Sacred Valley through Chinchero, Moray and the Maras salt pans with a chef-prepared picnic lunch, and Machu Picchu with a private guide before the Vistadome Observatory train home.
The four-day Cusco, Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu itinerary is the most common trip in Peru, which means it is usually sold as a coach seat. This is the same four days rebuilt as a private one.
Two things actually change. The first is the obvious one: your own guide and vehicle, your own start times, and as long as you like at Moray. The second is the route — through the upper valley and Chinchero rather than along the floor, which trades the Pisac market for the weaving town and some genuinely beautiful high ground.
The rest is detail, but good detail: a picnic lunch made by a chef instead of a buffet, a private guide inside the citadel, and the Observatory train home.
What you'll see
Private from the airport onwards
Your own guide, your own driver and your own vehicle for all four days. Nothing is shared and no morning starts because somebody else's group is ready.
The upper valley, not the standard circuit
Chinchero, Moray, the Maras salt pans and Ollantaytambo. Chinchero is the difference — Inca terraces, a colonial church on a palace, and the weaving town above the valley.
The weavers at Chinchero
A women's weaving cooperative where natural dyes, alpaca wool and pre-Hispanic technique are still in daily use. It is a visit rather than a demonstration.
A picnic lunch cooked by a chef
Laid out in the valley on day two, with fresh local ingredients, instead of a buffet stop with four coaches outside.
Machu Picchu with a private guide
Your own guide inside the citadel, at your pace, on the best circuit available for your date.
The Vistadome Observatory train home
Panoramic glass, an open-air carriage, music and refreshments on the way back down the valley.
Luxury Cusco, Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu, 4 Days: day by day
Times are what we actually aim for, not a best case. Traffic into Cusco and the train timetable move them by a little.
Day 1
Arrive in Cusco, and a private city tour at sunset
Private airport pickup and hotel transfer, with the morning free to settle into the altitude. In the afternoon, a private tour of the Plaza de Armas, the Cathedral, Qoricancha, Sacsayhuamán, Q'enqo, Puka Pukara and Tambomachay, finishing at Cristo Blanco for the sunset.
- Meals
- None included
- Night
- Handpicked hotel in Cusco
Day 2
Chinchero, Moray, Maras and Ollantaytambo
A private day through the upper Sacred Valley — Chinchero and the weaving cooperative, the circular terraces at Moray, the Maras salt pans and the living Inca town of Ollantaytambo — with a chef-prepared picnic lunch, then the train to Aguas Calientes.
- Meals
- Breakfast, picnic lunch and dinner
- Night
- Handpicked hotel in Aguas Calientes
Day 3
Machu Picchu, then the Observatory train
The bus up after breakfast and the citadel with your private guide. Lunch near Machu Picchu, then the Vistadome Observatory train to Ollantaytambo and a private vehicle to your hotel in Cusco.
- Meals
- Breakfast and lunch
- Night
- Handpicked hotel in Cusco
Day 4
Home
Breakfast at the hotel, then a private transfer to the airport or the bus station at the time your schedule needs.
- Meals
- Breakfast
- Night
- Not included — you fly out
What the price covers
Private service throughout
- Airport transfers on arrival and departure
- Private transport for all four days
- Private professional guides
- Full coordination and support, and all taxes
Cusco and the valley
- Private Cusco city tour — Plaza de Armas, the Cathedral, Qoricancha, Sacsayhuamán, Q'enqo, Puka Pukara, Tambomachay and Cristo Blanco
- Full day in the upper Sacred Valley — Chinchero, Moray, the Maras salt pans and Ollantaytambo
- A visit to a women's weaving cooperative in Chinchero
- Chef-prepared picnic lunch in the valley
- Every entrance fee for the sites named in the itinerary
Trains, buses and the citadel
- Train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes
- Vistadome Observatory train from Aguas Calientes to Ollantaytambo
- Private transfer from Ollantaytambo to Cusco
- Return bus between Aguas Calientes and the citadel
- Machu Picchu entrance, with Circuit 2 requested by default
- A private guided tour inside the citadel
Hotels and meals
- Two nights in a handpicked hotel in Cusco
- One night in a handpicked hotel in Aguas Calientes
- Three hotel breakfasts
- Dinner in Aguas Calientes on day two and lunch near the citadel on day three
Not included
- Flights to and from Cusco
- Any meal not named in the programme
- Huayna Picchu and Machu Picchu Mountain
- Hotel upgrades or special room categories unless agreed in advance
- The Hiram Bingham train, which we can arrange on request
- Travel insurance
- Tips, which are genuinely optional
Luxury Cusco, Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu, 4 Days: prices and options
Add-ons
- +£60
Huayna Picchu
About two hours there and back on day three. Book well ahead.
- +£60
Machu Picchu Mountain
About three hours there and back, on a broader path.
What to bring
Papers and money
- Your original passport — checked at the citadel gate and on the train
- Cash in soles for the weavers at Chinchero and for tips
- Your medication and any personal first aid
Day to day
- A small daypack, 25 litres at most for inside the sanctuary
- A refillable water bottle
- A camera and a power bank
- An overnight bag for the night in Aguas Calientes
Clothes
- Comfortable walking shoes, already worn in
- Clothes you can layer — Chinchero at 3,762 m is cold in the morning
- A fleece or light jacket
- A rain poncho
- Something to change into for dinner
Sun and skin
- High-factor sun cream
- Sunglasses with UV protection and a sun hat
- Insect repellent for Aguas Calientes
- Lip balm
Questions we get asked
What does private actually change here?
The start times, the pace and the lunch. Group departures leave when the group leaves, spend a fixed span at each site and eat at a buffet built for coaches. On this trip you set the morning, stay at Moray as long as it holds you, and eat a picnic a chef has made. The guide is also answering your questions rather than a bus load of them.
How is the Sacred Valley day different from the standard one?
It goes through the upper valley rather than the floor. Chinchero — the weaving town at 3,762 m, with Inca walls and a colonial church built on a palace — replaces the Pisac ruins and market. Which is better depends on what you want — Pisac has the market, Chinchero has the textiles and the higher ground.
Is it hard work?
No. Graded easy. You walk around sites on uneven Inca ground and there are steps at the citadel, but a vehicle does all the distance and the pace is yours.
What is the Vistadome Observatory train?
PeruRail's top scenic service short of the Hiram Bingham — panoramic glass overhead as well as at the windows, an open-air carriage at the rear, refreshments, music and dance on board. It is included on the return leg rather than sold as an upgrade.
Can I have the Hiram Bingham instead?
Yes, on request and for a supplement. It is a different proposition again — 1920s Pullman carriages, a bar car and fine dining — and we quote it against your dates.
Which circuit will I get at Machu Picchu?
We request Circuit 2, the most complete route, by default. If it has sold out for your date we secure the best remaining route, usually Circuit 1 or 3, and tell you which before you travel. The allocation is the Ministry of Culture's, not ours.
When should I book?
Three to four months ahead for the May to September window. The constraint is the Machu Picchu ticket rather than the hotels.
Do I need to book flights separately?
Yes — this is land only, starting and ending at Cusco airport. Try to land in Cusco in the morning so that the afternoon city tour works as intended.
Ask us about Luxury Cusco, Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu, 4 Days
Tell us your dates and we'll come back with availability, the circuit we'd recommend, and a firm price. No deposit to ask, and we answer within one working day.