Skip to main content
Gate8 GLOBAL 🇵🇪Your destinationPeru▾
Home› Peru›Attractions

Peru's Best Attractions

Machu Picchu is the headline — but it's not the only reason to bring your camera.

Machu Picchu is the unmissable one — but book tickets and trains months ahead in peak season (June-August), since timed-entry slots and the Huayna Picchu add-on genuinely sell out. Rainbow Mountain (Vinicunca) is the second most-photographed attraction in the country, a demanding high-altitude day trip from Cusco that trades a comfortable hike for a genuinely otherworldly view. Both reward planning around altitude, not just around tickets.

Peru's attraction list is short and legendary rather than long and padded — which is refreshing, but it also means the one or two things everybody comes for are exactly the ones that get oversubscribed. Here's the honest version: what to book, how far ahead, and the altitude reality most Instagram posts conveniently leave out.

Machu Picchu
Attractions

Machu Picchu

Book months ahead in peak season — this is the single biggest planning mistake to avoid.

Rainbow Mountain (Vinicunca)
Attractions

Rainbow Mountain (Vinicunca)

Genuinely stunning, genuinely tough — a serious altitude day, not a casual walk.

Questions people actually ask

Do I need to book Machu Picchu tickets in advance?
Yes — for anything in June-August, book Machu Picchu entry tickets, the train, and especially Huayna Picchu at least 3-4 months ahead. See our full Machu Picchu guide for exact booking windows by ticket type.
Is Rainbow Mountain worth the altitude?
For most reasonably fit travelers, yes — but it's a genuinely tough day (a start around 3-4am, a steep trek that peaks near 17,100 ft / 5,200 m, higher than Cusco itself). Spend at least 2-3 days acclimatizing in Cusco first.
What's the single biggest attraction-planning mistake in Peru?
Assuming you can book Machu Picchu, the Inca Trail, or Huayna Picchu at the last minute the way you might for most attractions elsewhere. Peru's headline sites run on a hard-capped, advance-permit system — see our booking-window callouts on each page.