How to Get to Cusco: Velasco Astete Airport, Trains and Taxis

Surrounded by the eastern cordillera of the Andes, Cusco is connected to Lima and other southern Peruvian cities by frequent daytime and early-evening flights, paved mountain highways through Arequipa, Puno, and Nazca, and narrow-gauge railway lines serving the Sacred Valley and Lake Titicaca. Below is how to plan your arrival and onward transport across the region.

Flying into Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport (CUZ)

Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport (IATA: CUZ) sits at 3,249 metres elevation inside the urban basin, roughly 5 kilometres southeast of Plaza de Armas. According to CORPAC statistics, it is Peru’s second-busiest airport, handling 3,004,412 passengers in 2023. Frequent domestic flights from Lima take around 1 hour 20 minutes, alongside direct regional routes from Arequipa, Juliaca, Puerto Maldonado, and La Paz. Because the single runway sits between mountain ridges, most flights operate during daylight and early evening hours; choose a window seat on the left side when flying from Lima for views of the Vilcabamba snowpeaks.

Licensed airport taxis wait inside the gated terminal courtyard and reach the historic centre in 15 to 25 minutes depending on traffic along Avenida El Sol. If you prefer to walk out to Avenida Velasco Astete outside the perimeter fence, use only registered radio taxis displaying a company roof sign and printed door registration.

Trains to the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu and Lake Titicaca

Two railway operators connect Cusco with Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu Pueblo) along the 914-millimetre narrow-gauge Ferrocarril Santa Ana line:

• PeruRail: Operates Vistadome, Expedition, and Hiram Bingham services departing from San Pedro station (a 10-minute walk from Plaza de Armas), Poroy station (20 minutes west by taxi), or Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley. During the rainy season (January to April), Cusco-area departures frequently operate as bimodal bus-and-train services via Ollantaytambo; check the official PeruRail site for seasonal schedules.
• Inca Rail: Operates The Voyager, The 360°, and The First Class trains from Ollantaytambo station to Aguas Calientes, with bimodal coach transfers from central Cusco.
• Southern Railway to Puno and Arequipa: PeruRail also runs the Titicaca Train and the Belmond Andean Explorer sleeping train southeast across the La Raya pass (4,313 metres) to Puno on Lake Titicaca and onward to Arequipa.

Overland Buses and Sacred Valley Colectivos

Long-distance coaches from Arequipa, Puno (Lake Titicaca), and Lima arrive at the Terminal Terrestre de Cusco on Vía de Evitamiento, 3 kilometres southeast of the centre. For day trips to Pisac and Urubamba, shared minivans (colectivos) depart from Calle Puputi (for Pisac and Calca) and Avenida Grau or Calle Pavitos (for Chinchero, Urubamba, and Ollantaytambo).