Rules Center
Every rule below is stamped with the date we last checked it.
We design your whole Peru trip and arrange every part of it around the right Machu Picchu access, with every entry confirmed as part of it.
Current rule
Operator-only, passport-bound permits with a hard daily quota; following-year permits release roughly a year ahead; since 2026, trail arrivals enter the citadel on route 3-B, and since September 2026 places are sold only with full payment at purchase.
Current rule
Timed, circuit-specific, capacity-capped entry tickets sold only by Peru's Ministry of Culture.
Current rule
Since June 2024 the citadel is visited on 3 circuits with 10 designated routes; your ticket locks your route.
Sep 11, 2026
Ministerial Resolution 333-2026-MC makes direct sale on the official platform, paid in full at purchase and issued in each hiker's name, the only way licensed operators buy Inca Trail places. Direct sale on the platform began on September 22, 2026.
What this means for your trip: A place is no longer held while payment is pending, so a date is either bought or still open. Tickets are valid only for their date, route and holder, and cannot be refunded or moved except for documented force majeure.
Nov 10, 2025
Article 15-B (Ministerial Resolution 306-2025-MC) gives visitors arriving on the Inca Trail network a limited daily allocation of citadel entries, reserved and paid in advance through authorized agencies, on route 3-B only. The allocation sits inside the citadel's daily capacity and is sized by the Cusco cultural authority.
What this means for your trip: Trekkers finish the trail at the Sun Gate as before, then enter the citadel on the lower route 3-B rather than the classic Circuit 2. A visit on Circuit 2 is a separate entry on a separate day. Trail permits and citadel entries are booked together through the licensed operator.
Source: Resolucion Ministerial N° 306-2025-MC (article 15-B: Inca Trail arrivals enter on route 3-B)
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The rules decide which circuit and dates make sense; these complete trips are built around exactly that.
4 days, from $795 per person
5 days, from $995 per person
7 days, from $1,295 per person
9 days, from $1,695 per person
7 days, from $1,695 per person
10 days, from $1,695 per person
8 days, from $1,795 per person
9 days, from $1,895 per person
9 days, from $2,095 per person
10 days, from $2,095 per person
Not sure which circuit or route is right? Use the route recommender. Planning the Inca Trail? Track the permit release and set an alert. Checking dates? See the latest availability.