Inca Trail permits: quotas, release, and the February closure

Classic Inca Trail permits are capped per day (roughly 200 tourist places plus support staff), can only be purchased by licensed operators, are bound to your passport, and are non-transferable and non-refundable. Permits for the following year are released roughly a year ahead (recently around October or November, and announced each year by the Ministry), and high-season dates are gone within hours to days. The trail closes every February for maintenance. If your dates lack permits, the Short Inca Trail and alternative treks are the standard fallbacks.