Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca royal estate on a ridge in the eastern Andes, 2,430 m above sea level, 80 km north-west of Cusco. The site was built around 1450 under Pachacuti, abandoned a century later, and never found by the Spanish — Hiram Bingham brought it to international attention in 1911 with the help of local farmers who already knew it was there.
Geographically the site is cloud forest, not altiplano. The ridge drops 1,000 m to the Urubamba on three sides; the setting matters almost as much as the architecture. Orchids, hummingbirds and (rarely) spectacled bears live in the surrounding forest.
Peruways runs Machu Picchu tours with licensed Ministry-of-Culture guides, timed entry, train from Ollantaytambo and the Consettur bus up from Aguas Calientes — all in one booking.
Options include the Classic Inca Trail (4 days, 42 km, licensed-operator-only), the Salkantay and Lares treks, and single-day visits with train both ways. Peruways matches the format to your timing and fitness.
Book at Peruways. Dry-season dates (May–September) sell out six to eight weeks ahead; Inca Trail permits need six months.
