Machu picchu: best time of year to go?
 

I have always want to travel to Machu Picchu When is the best time of year to visit? (weather wise) and how much time do we need to do Machu Picchu and what other areas you might suggest? ( 2 weeks)
any advice would be appreciated :)

I've been to MP several times, all different times of the year. If you have a choice, I think late April/first half of May is my favorite time of year there. The rainy season has ended, but everything is still lush and green. The huge crowds won't begin to arrive until a few weeks later.

You go when you can make the time, and if it's another time of year, that'll be fine too. :)

May early green less rain crowds

MP/Cusco Amazon Titicaca Arequipa/Colca Canyon Nasca

www.kuodatours.com

www.peruforless.com

usually cheaper than DIY

We picked early May also because the rainy season had ended and the summer rush hadn't begun. We spent one night at Agua Calientes (Machu Picchu Inkaterra) and arrived the first day by 9am, so were able to spend two whole days at Machu Picchu. You could see it in a day, but this led to a more relaxed visit. Also, it rained the first afternoon and was cloudy, so it was good to be able to come back the next day when it was sunny...you get an entirely different feeling from the two days.
Also, we were trying to find the best time for the Galapagos, and end of April was perfect for that. We also went on to the Amazon (Puerto Maldonado , Reserva Amazonica ) and wanted to go as late in May as possible to avoid the rainy season. While it didn't rain there, the mud that you had to trek through was horrible. I would skip the Amazon. Be sure to spend several days in the Sacred Valley...that was one of the highlights for scenic beauty. And, of course, Cusco. You probably have to go to Lima, but that's worth a day. I tell people that you shouldn't plan to spend time in Lima, because your flights will probably be cancelled and you'll have unexpected time in Lima...that happened to us coming and going. That's probably the only negative of going in early May is that the Lima airport s
If you need a driver guide for the Sacred Valley area, I'd recommend Percy Salas, who was very reliable and knowledgeable and spoke English well.

How do you get in touch with percy salas? How much time did you spend there? We do have 2 weeks in may the 14 - 29. Thanks for your advice! Can you recommend places to stay?

You can contact Percy at [email protected]. If you do a search on his name in this forum you'll come up with other discussions about his services.

Another great guide is David Choque who u can reach thru the website
http://www.cuscotoptravelperu.com/
U can also do a search on Fodors to read about people who have used him. We were very pleased with his services.

We took the train from Ollantaytambo to MP and spend a full day there. Arrived around 9 am and left about 3ish. We were also there late April and it was b4 it was tourist season. We also went on a Sunday thinking that many people would do the Pisac market and thus less crowds at MP. Having only been there the 1 time I can't compare to how crowded it was at other times. But it was not bad at all in the am and after lunch, pretty empty.

Hi Travelbugmb,
We were supposed to stay 1 night in Pisac at Royal Inka Pisaq, but our flight got delayed due to Lima fog, so we didn't arrive until the next afternoon. I emailed the hotel that day that we were cancelling and they were great about refunding our deposit.

So, because of that, Percy had to drive us all the way from Cusco (after waiting for us to make a change to our train tickets to Machu Picchu) to Ollantaytambo (Hotel Pakaritampu), and then pick us up the next am. (after we toured the Ollanta ruins on our own at 8am) and drive us all the way back to Pisac to see the ruins, the market, Seminario Ceramics in Urubamba, the Salinas salt mines, and then back to Ollanta...so it was way too hectic of a way to enjoy the Sacred Valley. The Hotel Pakaritampu was wonderful...would highly recommend.