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Machu Picchu is, for many of us who love to travel, one of the "Must Do" in our life, and a large percentage of people traveling to Peru do so with the purpose of visiting what is classified as one of the new 7 wonders of the world. However, when you are planning your trip to Machu Picchu, certainty you will come across several issues on your trip organization and, one of them relates to what is the best time of day to visit Machu Picchu.

And this question becomes even more important after the changes that Peru Government recently made in the way of entry into Machu Picchu. Unlike what happened until a few years ago, the possibility of staying all day in Machu Picchu no longer exists, so when you buy your ticket you will have to make the purchase with the ticket at a specific time, with the maximum time of 4 hours of stay in this wonder of humanity. As it is convenient to buy the ticket in advance, so as not to run the risk of having all your trip planned and paid for and, when it reaches your great goal, stay in the door, when the purchase will have to decide the specific time to enter, which conditions your departure time. For example, if you think that you can buy the ticket to come in at 7am on a specific day, if you later change your mind and decide to go only in the afternoon, this will not be possible and you will be barred from entering and forced to buy a new ticket. This, of course, in the hope that there are still tickets available because in times of great tourist influx, it is likely that there may no longer be any available ticket.

Arriving at the conclusion that it is necessary to buy your ticket to Machu Picchu in advance and that when you buy will have to choose the period of the day you will visit, it becomes necessary to choose the period in which you want to visit this wonder of the World and, before making this decision, there are some factors to take into account that will be of particular importance in making your decision. Let's get down to a few.

How to avoid crowds in Machu Picchu?

This is the main issue for many people: when visiting Machu Picchu without it being full of other people. Many of us want to have the privilege of worshiping in peace this wonder of the world, but we want to do it with the minimum of people around us since any traveler with the least experience already knows that the most famous places in the world tend to be filled with other people with the same intention as we, too know and to explore. So when we decide to visit Machu Picchu, we must be aware that many more people have made that decision and many of them will be there on the same day as us.

As the government of Peru has taken precautions to try to limit the influx of tourists, there is a limit of people who can visit per day and each visitor is limited to a limit of hours, which helps to decrease the number of visitors at any time in the local.

Taking into account these changes, and not only linked to them, but also to several conditions that are also linked to the round trip, what the experience confirms is that, in order to avoid larger crowds, the advisable and visit Machu Picchu in the early hours of the day or the last, and the periods between 10:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. tend to be the most filled, so the more you can visit these periods the better.

Visiting Machu Picchu in the morning or in the afternoon?

We then have as the best options to get away from the crowds entering Machu Picchu early in the morning or else in the later period of the day and both have advantages and disadvantages so we will talk a bit about them next.

Visit Machu Picchu in the morning

Perhaps the main choice of many who want to avoid crowds pass by visiting Machu Picchu in the wee hours of the morning and this is a unique sensation in life, to see the sunrise in these Inca ruins at the top of the mountain.

Of course, you're not the only one who has the desire to be the first to come, and if so, know that you have to get up early enough to get it. The doors of Machu Picchu open at 6am and the first bus that departs from Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu Pueblo) departs from it's center at 5:30 am (click here to see on google maps the exact location where you can catch the bus and, to buy the tickets, it's just near the bus stop, just follow the signs on the road).

The point is that, although the first bus leaves at 5:30 am, its capacity is reduced, and if you really want to catch the first one, you will have to arrive very early, at least an hour before departure, but you may still not be able to take the first bus. The good news is that in the morning, buses depart with a high frequency, usually every 5 minutes, and the journey takes approximately 30 minutes.

If you wish to take the trek from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu, it is free and of moderate difficulty, so it is suitable for anyone who is in good physical condition. The route is well signposted and usually takes about an hour and a half to climb, and the return journey, as it descends, tends to be quicker and easier. Usually, the most common option for those who want to do this walk is to go by bus and get off on foot.

Regarding the entrance to Machu Picchu for the first hours, although it coincides with the time when a person who makes the Inca Trail arrives, it still allows avoiding the largest crowds of tourists and enjoy this space in relative calm during the first hours, especially before tourists arriving from further afield, especially from Cusco.

The sunrise and the first rays of the sun to come will surely be an image that will not stop you from marking your life. Of course, the climate in Machu Picchu can change frequently and there can be rainy days, days with completely sun-filled and even fog. However, even so, you may have the luck of wonderful scenery and pictures, so you should always go prepared for different hypotheses and do not get too depressed if your day visiting Machu Picchu is not blessed by a clear sky. Even if it is not, you may have the opportunity to experience a wonderful experience.

Do not forget that if you choose to join the visit to Machu Picchu with the ascent to Machu Picchu or Wayna Picchu, you will have to go in the morning in order to maximize your experience.

Visit Machu Picchu in the afternoon

As we mentioned, the period between 10:30 a.m., 2:00 p.m. is the busiest, and if by 3:00 p.m. you still see a lot of people exploring the ruins, from 4:00 p.m. is probably the time of day when fewer people are in Machu Picchu, so it is also a time when you can just explore on your own and in many places you will not find anyone close to you, so it is also a wonderful time to explore the Inca ruins.

It is definitely a special time to stay in Machu Picchu at the end of the day and the chances of catching fog is much lower than in the morning so it is also a great option especially for those who do not like to wake up very early or, for those who chose not to sleep in Aguas Calientes.

Conclusions

In a quick conclusion, we can say that if you want to get away from the crowds that visit Machu Picchu daily, we recommend that you wake up early and try to be one of the first to enter or wait and prepare your visit for the end of the day, taking into account that the decision must be made before buying your ticket (which you can buy here on the official website of the Government of Peru). If you choose to take the train for your trip to Machu Picchu, please note that when you buy your ticket, you must also, buy the train ticket, so we recommend that you buy both at the same time (if you want to know more about the purchase of tickets and how to prepare your trip to Machu Picchu, we invite you to read our post about 20 Things you should know when planning your trip to Machu Picchu).

We hope that this idea will help you to prepare for your trip to Machu Picchu. If you still do not have a place to stay on your trip, 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 will not cost you any money and, it helps us to support our blog.
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We would also like to invite you to leave your opinion and questions, in case you have already visited Machu Picchu, let us know what you think is the best time of the day to visit. Thanks for your visit to our Non Stop Family Travel Blog, come back often and, if you liked our article, do not forget to share it with your friends.

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We arrived in Tokyo through Haneda Airport, (Haneda Kūkō, HND), also known as Tokyo International Airport. Despite being one of the busiest airports in the world, Haneda Airport is preferably used for domestic flights but, after the construction of the new international terminal, the number of international flights has increased greatly.

In our family trip, we came from Bangkok and, arriving through this airport turned out to be very convenient for our family, as it is relatively close to the city center, less than 25 km and easily accessible.

Our main concern was that due to our flight arriving in the evening (10.30pm), we were afraid we might miss out on using the Monorail to get out of the airport as the latter train part at 00.10am and we feared that due to some delay in the flight, or due to a longer delay to pass through customs, we could miss this alternative of travel.

However, everything went well for our family. The plain was exactly on time and, the customs were fast, has so many things in Tokyo. After our travel experience, we would like to leave our analysis and tips of the different possibilities to get to the city center from Haneda airport and, of course, our choice and the reasons for it, with the hope that our tips may help you to plan your trip to Tokyo.

Tokyo Monorail

This was our family's choice and, fortunately, everything went according to our plans like we said previously. We managed to get through the customs and get Monorail before the last departure, which is at 00h10 (the first is at 05:12).

We can not talk about the Monorail without mentioning a very important issue for those arriving in Tokyo, which is the JR Yamanote Line. And the importance of that reason is related to the fact that Tokyo is not a city with a Center, unlike many that we can meet, but rather have several centers. And the JR Yamanote Line is a circular line that runs through the different centers so that its route delimits the great center of Tokyo.

So, although the monorail does not take you to the city center, it takes you to Hamamatsucho station, which belongs to the JR Yamanote Line, and then you can pick up the train to your final destination, just like we did.

The journey to Hamamatsucho Station takes about 15 minutes and then we take the JR Yamanote Line to Kanda station near our hotel. In our case, we got in the opposite direction of the clock, because it was the one that most quickly led to our destination.

How to get Monorail?

Finding the right path for Monorail is easy, just follow the arrow that points to the left after going through customs, which is conveniently written in English.

How to buy the ticket

We advise you to carry out a previous search of the station closest to your destination. It is also possible to check the price of the trips (in our case up to Kanda, cost 650 yen per adult and 330 per child). Next to the ticket machines, you will see the main stations of destination and the respective costs for both children and adults (children from 6 to 12, less than 6 do not pay). Since all the stations we pass had wifi, we use google maps to help us to buy the tickets, it says the exact amount you should pay, and the exit you should use. Take a look at our post about the best free apps to use in your trip to Tokyo, for sure they will be of great help to you.

If you do not take yens with you when you land, we advise you, when going through customs, to use one of the companies that exchange money or to pick up at one of the several ATMs available. The reason you will need the money is that when you buy the tickets, you must do it with money because the Ticket Machines do not accept credit card. As mentioned, you can buy the tickets in the various Ticket Machines that exist in the various terminals.

Let us explain how you can buy your tickets: In the right upper corner of the screen of the Ticket Machines, you will see the option English, click there, then the whole process is easy and intuitive. In our case, we chose the JR Yamanote option, because our destination obliged to use these two means of transport.

The ticket is combined, so only one ticket allows you the use both means of transport.

If you have the Japan Rail Pass, JR Tokyo Wide Pass, JR East Nagano Niigata Area Pass, JR East Tohoku Area Pass and JR East South Hokkaido Pass, you can use it to make your trip. You can see here the detailed description of how to buy your ticket in the ticket machines.

Keikyu Line

This is also a great option for those who want to get out of the airport and head for the city center. Although our choice was to use Monorail, the decision was only to think that it is the fastest way to get to our hotel and, in making its decision, should be the main criterion to take into account, your final destination, since both modes of transport work very well and direct you to the JR Yamanote line, only at different stations.

Also, the tickets machines have a very convenient English mode and, next to them you find the different destinations and prices, there is nothing to cheat. Do not forget that you will not be able to use your credit card and you will need money to buy your tickets.

To get to Keikyu Line, simply follow the signs in English and, unlike the Monorail that will be to your left, the Keiku Line exit is to your right.

Keikyu Railways takes you to Tokyo's Shinagawa Station (JR Yamanote) on a journey of about 15 minutes, but also to the Asakusa Metro Line in Yokohama and Kanagawa Prefecture, and can also connect you to Narita Airport.

In relation to this line, the first train departs at 5:29, and the last at 0:01. And, do not worry if you lose your train, as like in the monorail, if you lose one train, after a few minutes you can catch the following. And, they are safe, clean and fast.

We only went on monorail but, from many opinions, the ride is more pretty using the monorail, so that may be a factor to consider when making your choice. But both options are, for sure, great.

Limousine Bus

Contrary to what the name might lead one to think, we are not talking about a limousine. It is a bus service that will take you to your destination on a journey that can take you to your destination in about 30 minutes to more than one hour (depending on destination, traffic). And the price varies from 620 to 2000 yen, also depending on your destination and time you do the trip, at night is more expensive.

Buying the ticket is easy. Once you reach the arrival lobby, you will find the ticket counter on your left. You do not need to make any reservation in advance. In addition to the possibility of buying your ticket, you will see in the various screens the bus schedules and the different destinations, so you only have to buy the ticket to the destination that suits you and you have the added advantage of not having to make any transfer, in case the bus passes near its final destination.

You can buy the ticket at ticket machines, but also in the ticket office, which may be the best option if you are not sure of the best option to take to reach your destination. The workers talk English and for sure they will be of great help.

To reach the terminal of the Limousine Bus is a short walk of fewer than 5 minutes, always following the indications present along the entire route. The great of the advantage of the Limousine Bus over the train and that was one of the reasons why we studied this option, which is that of their extended hours when compared to the train. They operate from around 4:30 am until 2:00 p.m., and it may be the best option to arrive at your final destination if you miss the last train shortly after 00:00.

Taxi and Uber

These are two of the best-known ways to get to the city center. They have the advantage of being extremely comfortable and take more than one passenger. It will leave you at the door of your destination, which is great but, they are also an expensive option, a very expensive option.

In relation to Taxi costs, and depending on your destination, it may be around 9500 JPI to travel to the city center (2018 prices), with the possibility of a night surcharge (usually between 10pm and 5am) of about 20% of the value of the trip. Taxis in Tokyo are reputed to be safe, and there is no big risk of being tricked into paying more, as in other destinations.

The trip in Uber is slightly cheaper, and you can save around 1000 JPI on your trip. Both alternatives are comfortable, safe but with the inconvenience of the price being much higher than the alternatives.

Final decision

Our final decision, as we mentioned at the start of our post, fell on the monorail trip. The reasons ware financial but also for being fast access to our destination. Of course, the decision taken by each traveler will have to take into account several factors, but we assure that it is an airport with good access to downtown, all of them safe and efficient.

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 in the city of Tokyo clicking here, it won't cost you any money and, it helps us to support our blog.

We would also like to invite you to leave your opinion and questions and, in the case you want to discover more about Tokyo, we invite you to check our Itinerary for 4 days in the great city. Come back often to our Non Stop family Travel Blog and, if you enjoyed this article, don't forget to share it with your friends.

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