How to Budget for Peru: Our 7-Day Cost Breakdown

We spent one whole week in Peru, exploring the Scared Valley and of course Machu Picchu and kept track of every dollar we spent. In this Peru Cost Breakdown, I’m breaking down exactly how much I spent on flights, accommodations, tours, food, transportation, and more, so you can get a realistic idea of what one week in Peru might cost.

Whether you’re planning your own adventure or just curious about the budget side of things, this will give you a full picture of what to expect.

One Week in Peru: Cost Overview

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Flights

Flight prices vary depending on the time of year, the airline you choose, and your departure city. We flew round-trip from Atlanta to Cusco with a layover in Lima and paid $1,222.78 per person for the flights. From our location, that’s pretty typical. We didn’t find any options under $1,000 all year. We also few on Latam Air, which is typically the cheapest airline.

Accommodation

For accommodation, we spent a total of $598.99, or $299.50 per person. We stayed at Muru Homely Hotel in Cusco for 7 nights, which cost $537.04. We also spent one night in Aguas Calientes at Hotel Raices for $61.95.That stay overlapped with our time in Cusco. We chose to keep our room at Muru so we didn’t have to check out, haul our large suitcase with us, and check back in the next day. It was worth the extra cost for the convenience in our opinion.

Transportation

We used Cusco as our home base and mainly walked or used the occasional Uber to get around the city. All of our tours included transportation, so we didn’t have to worry about getting to and from most activities. To reach Machu Picchu, we took a combination of train and bus.

Uber

We used Uber five times during our stay and spent a total of $27.73, including tips. Around the main areas of Cusco, most rides cost less than $2. You can expect to spend around $5 USD for an Uber ride to or from the Cusco airport.

Train

We took the train with Peru Rail from Cusco to Aguas Calientes and back, and spent $132.30 per person. They offer different train cars and experiences—we chose the Expedition option, which is the most affordable, and found it to be very comfortable. The other option is to take Inca Rail, which is roughly the same price as Peru Rail.

Bus

Once you arrive in Aguas Calientes, you’ll have the option to either walk to the entrance of Machu Picchu (the free option) or take the bus. We knew we couldn’t handle the 1,600 stone steps, so we opted for the bus, which cost $24 round trip per person.

Taxi

We only took one taxi in Peru (we preferred using Uber), from the airport to our hotel. It was arranged through our hotel and cost $15 total for both of us.

Excursions/Activities

We did three tours while in Cusco. I’ve included the costs and what each one included below:

Maras & Moray by Quad Bike from Cusco

This tour includes transportation from Cusco to Moray and Maras, and then back to Cusco. It also covers everything needed for the ATV riding experience, including a helmet. Since it’s just a half-day tour, no meals are included.

The tour costs $39 per person, plus an additional 20 soles (around $6 USD) for entrance to the salt flats. You’ll also need to purchase a tourist ticket for entrance to Moray, though the price of that depends on the type of ticket you choose (more on that below).
In total, we spent around $45 USD per person, not including the cost of the tourist ticket.

Humantay Lake with Breakfast and Buffet Lunch

This tour includes transportation from Cusco along with a buffet breakfast and lunch. The base cost is $39 per person, with an additional 25 soles (about $7 USD) required for the entry ticket. There’s also an optional horse rental available for 80 soles (about $23 USD). We chose to rent a horse, so our total cost for the tour came to around $69 per person.

You can read more about the hike to Lake Humantay here!

Scared Valley of the Incas Tour

This tour includes transportation from Cusco, a buffet lunch, snacks, and an amazing tour guide. It’s a bit pricier than some other options at $106 USD per person, but it was my favorite out of the three tours we did!

We originally booked the Pallay Punchu Tour, but after struggling with the altitude at Lake Humantay, we knew we couldn’t handle that one. Luckily, Salkantay Trekking kindly allowed us to switch to the Sacred One tour, and we had so much fun! For this tour you also need a tourist ticket, which is not including in this price.

Tourist Ticket

There are four different tourist tickets available, each with different pricing. Since we planned to visit several ruins, the General Tourist Ticket made the most sense for us. It cost around $37 USD per person and gave us access to all the sites on the tours.

Cathedral Visits

Iglesia de la Companía de Jesús It cost 10 soles per person, or around $2.75 USD.

Basílica Catedral de Cuzco: Entry cost 40 soles per person, or around $11 USD.

Spa/Massages

We got massages once at Cusco Spa for around $14 USD per person. We also treated ourselves to a facial and foot massage at Kantu Spa, which cost around $27 USD per person.

Machu Picchu Tickets

We purchased tickets for Circuit 2 at Machu Picchu, which cost $41.83 USD per person.

Food

Since we didn’t have a kitchen in our hotel, we mainly ate our meals in restaurants. Breakfast was included in our hotel so we did that most days and a few of our tours includes meals as well.

Restaurants

At restaurants (including snacks, pastries, and coffees) we spent around $375 USD for the week. We shared a few meals since we weren’t always super hungry, but overall, the meals were generally cheaper than what you’d find here in the US.

Groceries

We only bought a handful of groceries, including chips, bread, jam, cocoa candies, and a few other snacks. This category also includes water, since we purchased bottled water every day because the tap water isn’t potable. In total, we spent around $39 USD on groceries.

Misc/Souvenirs

We bought quite a few souvenirs, including sweaters, hats, shot glasses, key chains, and some snacks to take back for our family to try. In total, we spent around $100 USD on souvenirs. This is a rough estimate since we paid mostly in cash, so it was a bit harder to keep track.

Total Cost for a Week in Peru

In total, we spent $2,312 per person for one week in Peru. Honestly, this is a bit higher than what our trips usually cost for a week, but the main reason was the high flight prices. And even though we “saved” by not renting a car, the train tickets still added a significant cost.