Machu Picchu stands at 2,430 metres (7,970 feet) above sea level — high, but a thousand metres below Cusco at 3,400 metres. The citadel is often where the altitude actually eases for a visitor coming from Cusco, not where it starts.
That said, the ridge is still high enough to leave an unacclimatised visitor out of breath on the climb through the terraces. Spend two or three nights in Cusco or, better, the Sacred Valley at 2,800 metres before the citadel visit. The Sacred Valley is a kinder first stop if you are flying in from the coast.
The elevation is part of what defines Machu Picchu’s setting. The ridge-top position between Huayna Picchu and Machu Picchu Mountain, with the Urubamba oxbow below, is only possible because the Incas built the city where the valley narrows sharply. The high angle gives the citadel its view, and the altitude keeps the air clear enough to see the full ridge system on a cloudless morning.
Book your Machu Picchu entry window — matched to the circuit you want to walk — along with the train, shuttle and Sacred Valley acclimatisation stop at Peruways.
