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TRAVEL TIPS

Train Travel

Trains run along four different routes: between Cusco and Machu Picchu, between Cusco and Lake Titicaca, and, more sporadically, between Huancayo and Lima, and between Huancayo and Huancavelica. Tickets can be purchased at train stations, through travel agencies, or online. During holidays or high season it's best to get your tickets in advance.

Two companies offer train service to Machu Picchu. PeruRail, which has served the route since 1999, is operated by Orient-Express—the same company that runs one of the most luxurious and famous trains in the world, the Venice Simplon Orient Express between London and Venice. It travels to Machu Picchu from Cusco (technically from the nearby town of Poroy, about 20 minutes outside the city) and the Sacred Valley towns of Ollantaytambo and Urubamba. Inca Rail, which began service in 2010 and merged with Andean Railways in 2012, travels between Urubamba, Ollantaytambo, and Machu Picchu. Foreigners are prohibited from riding the very inexpensive local trains that cover the route. The Machu Picchu station is not at the ruins themselves, but in the nearby town of Aguas Calientes.

Three or four PeruRail trains a week, depending on season, take passengers on the 10-hour trip between Cusco and Lake Titicaca. The plush Andean Explorer is $268 USD one-way. Note that there are two different train stations in Cusco. Estación Poroy serves the Machu Picchu route, and Estación Wanchaq serves the Lake Titicaca route. Reserve and purchase your ticket as far ahead as possible, especially during holidays or high season. Reservations can be made directly with PeruRail through its website, or through a travel agency or tour operator.

Reservations

Inca Rail. Portal de Panes 105, Plaza de Armas, Cusco, Cusco. 084/581–860; 01/613–5288; www.incarail.com.

PeruRail. Portal de Carnes 104, Plaza de Armas, Cusco, Cusco. 084/581–414; www.perurail.com.

Train Stations

Estación Poroy (Cusco - Machu Picchu Route). Poroy, Cusco, Cusco. 084/581-414.

Estación Wanchaq (Cusco–Lake Titicaca route). Pachacutec 503, Cusco, Cusco. 084/581–400.

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