Aguas Calientes is a tiny town, nestled between two mountain sides with a river running through the center. If it didn’t serve as the launch point for all Machu Picchu tours, I’m not sure if would exist. And that alone, dear reader, should be enough to tell you that there really isn’t much to do in Aguas Calientes.
Advice, dear reader, from the start: I really wish someone had told me this in advance. You can do two routes in Machu Pichu in one day! You don’t need to do one route per day. In fact, spreading the routes over two days will leave you scratching your head on what to do. And forgive me, but I wouldn’t pay for route 3: somehow we did it for free and although the easiest walk, with some interesting things, I wouldn’t add on a second day just for a third route.
I would advise you to arrive the day before your tours, check into your hotel, and prepare for Machu Picchu the following day. Each route takes no more than 2.5 hours. So, if you do your first route at, say 9am, you can easily plan to do a second route at noon. It is hot at noon, and weather could affect things in the morning, but this approach will maximize your time, and even save you money. Because, dear reader, after you come down from Machu Picchu, there is nothing to do and the town is that small and full of touristy knickknacks.
It really is possible to do two routes in one day, and then take the train back to Ollantaytambo and the bus back to Cusco. There is so much more to do in Cusco, and better restaurants, that I truly wish I had known the above before going.
Nites
As far as I could determine, all hotels in Aguas Calientes require prepayment in advance of your stay. When you consider the remote nature of the town, especially in relation to the remoteness of Machu Picchu, this does make sense to prevent no-shows. But here’s my issue: when I was meant to stay in 2025 but was unable to make the trip due to demonstrations and political unrest, it took nearly one year before my prepayment was refunded. There was no urgency on the part of the hotel to refund our money, and the time spent chasing them was unacceptable.
We stayed at a different hotel in 2026 that had baby-bathwater temp water in the shower for two of the three days that we were there. Despite numerous complaints and voiced displeasure, there really was no willingness to resolve the issue in a timely manner and no apologies other than “it will be fixed”. The properties in Aguas Calientes know that they have a captive audience and appear to have no interest, in my opinion, in even adhering to the basics of customer service.
I didn’t stay here – but given that I have nothing to advocate for on the other hotels, I did want to provide at least one suggestion – but the Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel looks absolutely stunning (https://www.inkaterra.com/inkaterra/inkaterra-machu-picchu-pueblo-hotel/the-experience/).
Bites
If I only had one night in Aguas Calientes, which really is quite possible, I would go to Green House (no website, but on social media). They had plenty of vegetarian options, and although there were very few staff members present, the food was lovely and relaxed, and high enough above the street to avoid the crowds.
If you do have a second night, I quite enjoyed Mapacho Craft Beer (https://mapacho.pe/). This restaurant is much larger than Green House – both in terms of physical size and the size of the menu – so it’s not quite as quaint as above, but the food was well-prepared and the staff very attentive.
Sites
The only reason you come to Aguas Calientes is to visit Machu Picchu. Having now experienced this magical citadel high in the Andes mountains, I’ll share a few bits of insight that really cannot be emphasized enough.
- Your ticket, whoever you booked through, most likely does NOT include the bus trip up to Machu Picchu and back. A round-trip ticket is $24 and you are required to have your passport with you.
- The lines for the bus are long, but not nearly as long as what you’ll see on social media.
- It is possible to walk down from Machu Picchu to Aguas Calientes. Even though downhill, it is not for the faint of heart.
- Hire a guide. Various websites include a guide with your ticket, or you can hire a guide through your hotel, or there are guides roving around the entrance to Machu Picchu. I saw people without guides and although possible, you just have no background on what you are actually looking at.
- If you follow my earlier advice, your guide will meet you at the right time for your first tour, and you can meet your second guide at a predetermined location when you tell them that you’ll already be at the citadel
- Be patient. Despite efforts to limit the number of tourists, it still gets pretty crazy.
If you find yourself in Aguas Calientes and don’t have a ticket, or just didn’t plan so well, I would highly recommend hiking to Mandor. From town, follow Avenida Hermanos Ayar (the direction that the buses to Machu Pichu take in and out of the town). After you pass Maripossario on your left, you’ll see a dirt road going up on your right. Take this road and begin following the train tracks for about 45 minutes. It’s a beautiful walk with birds, flora, and stunning views of the river. And if you’re in need of food along the way, there are actually a couple of stands – yes, along the railroad tracks! It costs 10 SOL to enter Mandor but truly worth it: not only are there two little waterfalls, but there’s a lovely, if not exhausting, hike up to a lookout point that will take you about an hour or so to reach.