How to get to the Sacred Valley from Cusco: by tour with pickup, by public transport or private
Book for tomorrow: Express US$32 · Classic US$30 · is there space? · how to book
The two ways into the valley
| From the east: Cusco → Taray → Pisac | 40 minutes to the viewpoint (2,972 m) and 50 more to Pisac. It is the Classic’s road and the one public transport takes to Pisac. |
| From the west: Cusco → Chinchero → Urubamba | 1 hour to Chinchero (3,762 m) across the plateau, with turn-offs to Maras and Moray, and a 40-minute descent to Urubamba. It is the Express’s road. |
| Along the valley floor | The road linking Pisac, Urubamba and Ollantaytambo beside the river: 1 h from Pisac to Urubamba and 1 h 10 from Urubamba to Ollantaytambo. |
Three ways to get there, compared
| Shared tour | Public transport | Private | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you see in a day | 4 or 5 places with a guide and lunch | 1 or 2 towns; Maras and Moray are off the road | Whatever you choose, at your own pace |
| Pickup | At your place in central Cusco, 6:20 or 7:20 am | You make your own way to the stop | At your door, wherever it is |
| Return | To central Cusco at 6:30 / 7 pm, or finishing in Ollantaytambo | On your own, with changes | To your door |
| Cost per person | US$29–32 with lunch; entrance fees separate | Low per leg, but without a guide or lunch; entrance fees separate | US$90–140 with the 14 Inkas lunch |
| Bookable today for tomorrow | Yes, until 8 pm | Not needed | On WhatsApp, subject to a vehicle |
For anyone with two or three days who likes improvising, public transport is an option; for anyone with one, it is not.
How the tour works
Hotel, Airbnb or a meeting point in the historic center, from 6:20 am (Express) or 7:20 am (Classic). The exact time arrives on WhatsApp the night before.
A bus of 17–18 at most, a certified guide in English and Spanish, buffet lunch in Urubamba at 12 pm.
At 6:30 or 7 pm, not to your hotel. Or you finish at 3:30 pm in Ollantaytambo if you carry on by train to Machu Picchu.
If you are coming from or going to Machu Picchu
The train to Machu Picchu leaves from Ollantaytambo, at the western end of the valley. The departures ending in Ollantaytambo finish at 3:30 pm, a 15-minute walk from the station: it is the way to reach the valley and your train in one go, without paying for a separate transfer. How to fit it around your ticket.
Bookings for tomorrow: non-refundable; you can move the date if there is space, and we reschedule or refund if we cancel because of the weather.