Private Cusco, Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu
Three days with your own guide, driver and vehicle throughout
- 3 days
- 3,762 m max
- Easy
- Cusco to Cusco
The Cusco ruins, the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu across three days, entirely private. Your own vehicle and guide, two nights in 3-star hotels, the Vistadome Observatory train both ways, and three hours inside the citadel with a Machu Picchu specialist.
Every operator in Cusco sells a three-day Machu Picchu trip, and most of them sell it by listing the same sites. The difference between them is in the shape of the route and in who is standing next to you.
This one runs downhill and forwards. Day one works through the archaeology above Cusco and finishes in Urubamba. Day two crosses the valley and puts you on the train. Day three is the citadel. At no point do you return to Cusco to sleep and set out again, which is how the cheaper three-day itineraries lose two or three hours a day to the same stretch of road.
Being private is what makes the rest of it possible — an eight o’clock start instead of a five o’clock one, three hours inside the sanctuary at your own pace, and a guide who answers your questions rather than a group’s.
What you'll see
Nobody else in the vehicle
Your party, your guide, your driver, your pace. No collection round of six other hotels at dawn and no waiting for the slowest member of a group you did not choose.
A route that never doubles back
Cusco to Urubamba on day one, across the valley to the train on day two, Machu Picchu on day three. Each night is closer to the citadel than the last, which saves hours of driving the standard tours spend backtracking to Cusco.
Two specialists, not one generalist
One guide for the Cusco and Sacred Valley archaeology, then a second who works only at Machu Picchu. The depth of what you hear is noticeably different.
The Vistadome Observatory train
A step above the ordinary Vistadome — glass ceilings, an open-air observatory carriage, and live music and dance on board. Both legs are included, not just one.
Three hours in the citadel
A private guided tour with time for the questions and the photographs, arranged around what you want to see rather than a shared group's schedule.
You sleep lower every night
Urubamba is some 500 m below Cusco and Aguas Calientes another 800 m below that. Acclimatising downhill is the easiest way to do it.
Private Cusco, Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu: 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
The Cusco ruins, then down into the valley
A gentle 8am start on the archaeology above Cusco, working steadily downhill into the Sacred Valley. The highest ground of the day comes early, while you are fresh.
- 08:00Your guide and driver meet you in your hotel lobby in Cusco. No earlier, and no minibus full of strangers.
- 08:30Qorikancha, the Inca Temple of the Sun. The Spanish built Santo Domingo straight onto its walls, so you see both at once and can judge the stonework for yourself.
- 09:45Sacsayhuamán, just above the city, where single blocks weigh up to 120 tonnes, and then the carved limestone passages of Q'enqo.
- 12:30Buffet lunch at a restaurant looking out over Cusco.
- 14:00Tambomachay, the Inca spring shrine with its aqueducts still running, and Puka Pukara opposite, which guarded the road into the capital.
- 15:30Down into the valley to Pisac — royal terraces on a ridge, watchtowers, and the largest pre-Columbian cemetery in South America.
- 18:00Your driver takes you on to Urubamba and your hotel for the night.
- Meals
- Lunch
- Night
- 3-star hotel in Urubamba
Day 2
Across the Sacred Valley and onto the Vistadome
The salt pans, the terraces and the weavers, then Ollantaytambo and the train. You end the day at the foot of the citadel.
- 08:30Breakfast at the hotel, then out across the high plain above the valley.
- 09:15The Maras salt pans — thousands of shallow pools fed by a salt spring, worked by the same families since before the Inca.
- 10:45Moray, where concentric terraces sink into the ground. Each ring holds a different temperature, and the Inca used them to trial crops from the coast and the Amazon.
- 12:00Chinchero at 3,762 m, the highest point of the trip — Inca walls, an early colonial church built on a palace, and a weaving demonstration using plant and mineral dyes.
- 13:30Buffet lunch back down in Urubamba.
- 15:15Ollantaytambo, a town still laid out and plumbed as the Inca left it, and the terraced fortress above it.
- 17:00The Vistadome Observatory train down the gorge to Machu Picchu Pueblo, glass overhead and the Urubamba beside you.
- 19:00Our staff walk you to your hotel, and your Machu Picchu guide comes by to agree exactly how tomorrow will run.
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Night
- 3-star hotel in Machu Picchu Pueblo
Day 3
Machu Picchu, unhurried, and the way home
Three private hours in the citadel, then lunch in the town and the Observatory train back. You are in Cusco for the evening.
- 06:30Breakfast, then your private guide meets you in the lobby for the shuttle bus.
- 07:30Three hours inside the sanctuary — the Temple of the Sun, the Sacred Plaza, the engineering and the astronomy, and the viewpoints worth the photograph.
- 11:00Shuttle back down to Machu Picchu Pueblo.
- 12:00Buffet lunch in the town, included, with time to collect your bag from the hotel.
- 15:20The Vistadome Observatory train to Ollantaytambo, with the open-air carriage at the back.
- 17:00Your driver is waiting at the station exit and takes your luggage.
- 18:45Dropped at your hotel in Cusco, or in the Sacred Valley if that is where you are heading.
- Meals
- Breakfast and lunch
- Night
- Not included — you are back in Cusco
What the price covers
Before you set off
- Briefing in your hotel lobby the evening before, any time between 18:00 and 20:00
- Collection from your hotel lobby in Cusco on day one
- Storage for your main luggage in Cusco while you are away
- Our Cusco office on call throughout the three days, at any hour
Private transport
- Your own vehicle and driver for every excursion on days one and two
- Private transfer from Ollantaytambo station to your hotel in Cusco or the Sacred Valley on day three
Guides and entrance fees
- A specialist certified guide for the Cusco and Sacred Valley archaeology
- A second guide who works exclusively at Machu Picchu, for your three hours inside
- Every entrance fee on days one and two, including the Boleto Turístico
- Your Circuit 2 permit at Machu Picchu, secured when you book
Trains and shuttles
- Vistadome Observatory train, Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu Pueblo
- Vistadome Observatory train back, with access to the open-air observatory carriage
- Return Consettur shuttle between the town and the citadel gate
Hotels and meals
- One night in a 3-star hotel in Urubamba, chosen for the lower altitude
- One night in a 3-star hotel in Machu Picchu Pueblo, near the station and the bus queue
- Two breakfasts and three lunches
- Dinner on your second night, at your hotel in Machu Picchu Pueblo
Not included
- Dinner on day one in Urubamba
- Dinner on day three, once you are back in Cusco
- Upgraded train classes beyond the Observatory service
- Travel insurance
- Tips for guides, drivers and station staff, which are genuinely optional
- Anything personal — drinks, souvenirs, laundry
Private Cusco, Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu: prices and options
Add-ons
- +£60
Huayna Picchu
The peak behind the classic photograph. A separate permit, and they go months ahead.
- +£60
Machu Picchu Mountain
Higher and longer than Huayna Picchu, but a broader path and less of a scramble.
As a private trip
Your own guide and vehicle, on your dates. Per person — the more of you there are, the less it costs each.
| Group | Each |
|---|---|
| 2 people | £1,030 |
| 3 people | £970 |
| 4 people | £885 |
| 5 people | £850 |
| 6 people | £830 |
What to bring
Papers and money
- Your original passport, checked at every train and at the gate
- Cash in Peruvian soles for markets, tips and small stops
- Any medication you take
- A power bank
Clothes
- Quick-drying t-shirts you can layer
- A fleece or warm layer for Chinchero and the evenings
- A lightweight waterproof jacket or a poncho
- Comfortable walking shoes, already worn in
Sun and skin
- High-factor sun cream — the UV at 3,700 m is unlike anything at home
- Sunglasses with UV protection
- A sun hat
- Insect repellent for the cloud forest
The day bag
- A small daypack, 25 litres at most for inside the sanctuary
- A refillable water bottle
- A camera
Questions we get asked
How demanding is it?
Not very, but not nothing. There is no trekking and you are driven between sites, yet every one of them involves Inca staircases, uneven stone and a fair bit of standing about at altitude. If you can manage a long walk around a hilly town at home, you will be fine here. Because the service is private, you set the pace and can skip a climb without holding anyone up.
Do I get the same guide for all three days?
No, and that is deliberate. A guide with deep knowledge of the Cusco and Sacred Valley sites is not usually the same person who spends every week inside Machu Picchu. You get one of each — the first for days one and two, the Machu Picchu specialist for day three. It is the clearest single difference between this trip and a standard group itinerary.
What is the Vistadome Observatory train, exactly?
PeruRail's top scenic service short of the Hiram Bingham. Panoramic glass ceilings as well as windows, an open-air observatory carriage at the rear, table service, and live Andean music and dance on board. Both directions are included in your price rather than offered as an upgrade.
How much luggage can I bring on the train?
One bag of up to 8 kg per passenger, which is enough for two nights. Your main case stays at your hotel in Cusco and is stored at no charge until you return. Inside the sanctuary itself, bags over 25 litres are not permitted.
Can I upgrade the hotels?
Yes, and it is the most common change people ask for. Both nights can be moved up a category or several — there are some genuinely fine hotels in Urubamba and a handful in Machu Picchu Pueblo. The price depends entirely on which you choose, so tell us what you have in mind when you enquire and we will quote it.
Will the altitude be a problem?
The route is built to help. Cusco is about 3,400 m, the highest point you stand on is Chinchero at 3,762 m on the morning of day two, and every night after that is lower — Urubamba some 500 m below Cusco, Machu Picchu Pueblo at 2,040 m, and the citadel at 2,430 m. Arrive in Cusco at least a day or two before this trip starts, drink far more water than you think you need, and take the coca tea when it is offered.
Which meals are included?
Three lunches, two breakfasts and the dinner on your second night in Machu Picchu Pueblo. Dinner on day one in Urubamba and dinner on day three back in Cusco are left to you, on purpose — both have restaurants worth choosing yourself.
Is a photograph of my passport enough?
No. The train companies and the sanctuary both require the original physical passport, and the one you booked with. Photographs on a phone, photocopies and driving licences are refused at the checkpoint, which is a very bad place to discover it.
Why do I need cash in soles?
Hotels and the better restaurants take cards, but the weavers in Chinchero, the salt pan stalls, the small shops and the loos on the road do not. A few hundred soles in small notes covers three days comfortably.
What happens if Circuit 2 is not available on my date?
We contact you rather than quietly substituting something. Circuit 2 is the most complete route through the citadel and it is our first choice for this itinerary, but the Ministry of Culture caps permits per circuit per day and those caps bind hard between May and September. The earlier you give us your dates, the more likely we secure it.
Where does the trip actually finish?
At your hotel door. Your driver meets the Observatory train at Ollantaytambo and takes you to Cusco or to an address in the Sacred Valley, whichever you prefer. Allow the evening for it — do not book an outbound flight from Cusco on day three.
Ask us about Private Cusco, Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu
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.