What is the best way to get from Cusco to Ollantaytambo? (And to return from Ollantaytambo to Cusco)
Ollantaytambo will most likely be a must stop on your
trip to Machu Picchu. It is from here that the trains depart towards Aguas
Calientes, the gateway to Machu Picchu. Ollantaytambo is a wonderful land that
we invite a lot to visit and where we made our base to visit Machu Picchu (you
can know more about the reasons for our choice in our article: Ollantaytambo or Cusco, what is the best place to stay before your visit to Machu Picchu).
Being a must stop, you can just pass through
Ollantaytambo to catch the train to Aguas Calientes, or visit on a tourist tour
or, as we recommend and did, stay in Ollantaytambo and get to know this
fantastic village.
Regardless of the reasons that will lead you to go
through Ollantaytambo, one of the questions you are likely to confront, as
happened to us, is like going from Cusco to Ollantaytambo. This is because, as
you will probably arrive by plane to Cusco, you will have to take the route to
Ollantaytambo and then visit Machu Picchu.
Let's talk about the different options to go from
Cusco to Ollantaytambo
This is an option that exists but, in our opinion, it is probably the least advised. In addition to being a probably more expensive option, it also requires that you move from Cusco (or Cusco Airport) to
the village of Poroy, which is about a 40-minute drive away, so you will have
to deal with this trip, which will probably be heald by taxi.
Being this the most expensive and, not so fast as other options can be, lets us pass to the next option.
Another option, probably the most comfortable,
will be to go by taxi. The taxi has the advantage of taking it from its
original point to its final destination, without any worries about luggage. We
personally used this means of transportation upon our arrival at Cusco airport.
As we chose to stay in Ollantaytambo during the first days in the Cusco area
(you can know more about the reasons that led us to choose to stay first in
Ollantaytambo than in Cusco by clicking here).
Probably the biggest problem associated with this
choice concerns the price as it is not the cheapest option. In our case, we
were able to make the trip from Cusco airport to our hotel in Ollantaytambo for
$ 37 USD, about 120 soles.
To do this course you can pre-book before your trip,
which is what we did, using Taxidatum's online services,
which we recommend for the good service we had during our trip to Peru, you can
consult others and online services and compare prices, including Cuscolocalfriend and Cuscotransfers.
It is also very easy to get taxis either outside the
airport or in the city of Cusco. However, do not forget, that taxis in Peru do
not have a meter, so be sure to negotiate the price before getting into the
taxi, and only after you have agreed the amount to pay, you must enter and begin
your journey.
This is probably the cheapest option and for those who
travel from the center of Cusco to Ollantaytambo it is a very viable option and
also a way of exploring and getting to know the local way of life as it is also
the means of transportation used by locals. In our case, we used Ollantaytambo
towards Cusco and, for the price of 10 soles people (sometimes they can ask for
something more, so it is important to negotiate if the value is higher than 10
soles).
It is possible to carry luggage but be prepared that
it will probably be stored in the top of the van and the ride is not as
comfortable as a taxi but it is a great experience that we recommend and with
very affordable prices.
However, if you wish to make this trip, you can not do
it directly from the airport of Cusco, but only in the center of the city,
namely at Calle Pavitos, which you can see below in Google Maps.
Regarding your final destination, it will be close to
the Ollantaytambo train station, from where you can directly take the train to
Machu Picchu or, if you decide to stay in Ollantaytambo, you can walk to the
center of the locality, which is very small and easily accessible.
Buses depart very often, from early to late at night,
there is no timetable, nor is it possible to book. The idea is to arrive and,
as they manage to fill the collective, it departs towards its destination.
To return from Ollantaytambo to Cusco, you just have
to catch the bus in the same place, next to the train station, at the end of the Avenida Ferrocarril, as you can see
in Google Maps below.
One of the most used options is to go from Cusco to
Ollantaytambo through the different tours offered by the Sacred Valley of the
Incas. How to do it then?
One of the greatest options to get to know the Sacred
Valley of the Incas is to do it through Tours (you can learn more about the
Sacred Valley of the Incas and how to know it through our post by clicking here).
These tours pass through various destinations, such as Pisac, Moray, Maras and, always part of the route, Ollantaytambo. Ollantaytambo is usually the last stop for many of the tours that depart from Cusco and what many people do and it is possible to combine with most of the tour operators is to do your entire tour and, at the last stop, Ollantaytambo, stay in that destination, leaving to make the return to Cusco.
These tours pass through various destinations, such as Pisac, Moray, Maras and, always part of the route, Ollantaytambo. Ollantaytambo is usually the last stop for many of the tours that depart from Cusco and what many people do and it is possible to combine with most of the tour operators is to do your entire tour and, at the last stop, Ollantaytambo, stay in that destination, leaving to make the return to Cusco.
In this way, instead of spending money on a trip, for
those who are first staying in Cusco and want to tour the Sacred Valley, this
can be a good chance to do this route. However, for the return to Cusco, you
can use any of the alternatives that we mentioned previously.
The route Cusco - Ollantaytambo will most likely be
something that you will have to accomplish and organize yourself to do. As we
mentioned in an earlier post (click here to find out more about), we even recommend
Ollantaytambo as the first place to stay when landing in Cusco. Now you have
several options to perform this course, which tends to take about 1h30 when
done directly.
Now the reasons for choice will have to be directly
linked to your interests. For example, in our case, as we went directly from
Cusco airport to Ollantaytambo, trying to avoid the consequences of altitude
sickness (see here how to prevent and deal with the consequences of altitude sickness), we sought a little comfort for this stage and, so we went directly
by taxi to our hotel in Ollantaytambo. The financial issue is always very
important for us, which we always try to save the most to be able to travel
more. However, to go from collective to Ollantaytambo, we would have to go
first to Cusco, and only from there pick Ollantaytambo. It was perhaps the most
comfortable and in this situation and as we were going with our son we felt it
was worth the extra financial investment.
However, on the way back to Cusco and as we were going
to stay in the center of town, we decided to return as a group and we also
highly recommend this option because it is extremely cheap and, although less
comfortable, it is nothing that is not pleasant and we liked it much of the
experience.
Another option that we did not use because we did not
stay in Cusco as a base to explore the Sacred Valley, but you can use it, is to reserve for the last
day of your stay in Cusco to do the tour of the Sacred Valley of the Incas (if it is your option
to do the tour) and, deal with the agency for you to stay in Ollantaytambo. Please, do not forget to take the time to
visit Ollantaytambo, because it's a really wonderful place.
Lastly, as previously mentioned, we do not recommend
the train because it is not truly compensatory, neither financially nor in
terms of time, so we leave this as the last alternative.
There are also the options connected to the tour
operators that make the desired transfers, among them some of the contacts that
we left above but, here what is necessary is always to make the comparison of
prices, something that is always better to do personally than online, because
tend to be more expensive and, when in conjunction with more people, you can
get more affordable prices than by taxi.
We really hope that our ideas help you to prepare for your visit and if you are planning your trip to Machu Picchu, we always do our reservations with booking, they are our partners and its with them that we get the best deals. You can look for the best deals by clicking here, it won't cost you any money and, it helps us to support our blog.
Booking.com
We would also like to invite you to leave your opinion and questions and, in case you have already visited Machu Picchu, let us know about your experience using our comments box. Thanks for your visit to our Non Stop Family Travel Blog, come back often and, if you liked our article, don’t forget to share it with your friends.
If you are planning your visit to Peru, here is a list of some of our destination-related posts that are sure to be very helpful in organizing your itinerary:
- 10 reasons why you should visit Lima
- 20 things you should know when planning your trip to Machu Picchu
- What is the Sacred Valley of the Incas? What to see in the Sacred Valley, Peru
- How to avoid the crowds in Machu Picchu
- How to visit the Rainbow Mountain in Peru? Things to know when planning your trip
Pin it for Later
We really hope that our ideas help you to prepare for your visit and if you are planning your trip to Machu Picchu, we always do our reservations with booking, they are our partners and its with them that we get the best deals. You can look for the best deals by clicking here, it won't cost you any money and, it helps us to support our blog.
Booking.com
We would also like to invite you to leave your opinion and questions and, in case you have already visited Machu Picchu, let us know about your experience using our comments box. Thanks for your visit to our Non Stop Family Travel Blog, come back often and, if you liked our article, don’t forget to share it with your friends.
If you are planning your visit to Peru, here is a list of some of our destination-related posts that are sure to be very helpful in organizing your itinerary:
- 10 reasons why you should visit Lima
- 20 things you should know when planning your trip to Machu Picchu
- What is the Sacred Valley of the Incas? What to see in the Sacred Valley, Peru
- How to avoid the crowds in Machu Picchu
- How to visit the Rainbow Mountain in Peru? Things to know when planning your trip
Pin it for Later
Tags:
bus
colectivo
Cusco
Incas
Ollantaytambo
Peru
price
Sacred Valley
taxi
to get from
Train
What is the best way
6 comentários
Thanks and keep sharing such valuable updates through your side.
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hi，the collective from ollantaytambo to Cusco will drop off at whIch location of cusco?
ResponderEliminarHi.
ResponderEliminarThe collectivos depart from Calle Pavitos (Pavitos street), just a 10 minuttes walk from Plaza de Armas, the center of Cusco. Check here the link to see it on Google Maps
https://www.google.pt/maps/place/Pavitos+Colectivo+A+Ollantaytambo/@-13.522923,-71.9816709,17z/data=!4m12!1m6!3m5!1s0x916dd6758868faf3:0x6a1e2aff6499d4f9!2sPavitos+Colectivo+A+Ollantaytambo!8m2!3d-13.5229282!4d-71.9794822!3m4!1s0x916dd6758868faf3:0x6a1e2aff6499d4f9!8m2!3d-13.5229282!4d-71.9794822