Machu Picchu sits at 2,430 metres (7,970 ft) — high enough to notice, but not high enough to be a serious problem for most visitors. The altitude issue on this trip is Cusco, not the ruins themselves.
Most flights land at Cusco airport, which is 3,399 m (11,152 ft). Flying in from sea level, you’ll feel it: shortness of breath on stairs, mild headache, broken sleep for the first night or two. The usual advice holds — spend two to three days at altitude before any strenuous activity, drink more water than you’d expect, go easy on alcohol, and keep coca tea or sorojchi pills handy. The Sacred Valley, around 2,800 m, is a gentler base than Cusco if you have the time.
At Machu Picchu itself the air feels noticeably easier. The ecosystem shifts too — cloud forest instead of altiplano — with orchids, hummingbirds and the resident spectacled bear if you’re very lucky. Add 450 m if you climb Huayna Picchu (2,693 m) and 650 m if you climb Machu Picchu Mountain (3,082 m).
Peruways can structure the trip so the acclimatisation builds naturally — Cusco first, then Sacred Valley, then Machu Picchu — rather than hitting you with 3,400 m on day one.
Plan the sequence, give the altitude its due, and the trip looks after itself.
