The Best Time to Visit Peru
Curated by Our Guild Explorers · Updated August 2026
Short answer: the Andean dry season runs May to September, and that is when Cusco, the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu, Arequipa and Lake Titicaca are at their clearest — and their busiest and dearest. April and October are the shoulders, and to our eyes the best value in the year. The catch that surprises everyone: the coast runs on the opposite calendar, so Lima is grey and cool exactly when the mountains are sunny.
The one thing that matters more than the month
Peru has two climates running in opposite directions at once, and almost every disappointed trip we hear about comes from planning around only one of them. In the Andes — Cusco, Machu Picchu, Arequipa, Puno — May to September is dry and November to March is wet. On the coast at Lima, December to April is warm and sunny and June to October is under a permanent grey sea fog.
If your heart is set on Machu Picchu, plan for the mountains and treat Lima as a stopover. If you want the coast, Paracas and the Nazca lines as well, come in April or October, when both halves of the country are tolerable at once.
The Seasons at a Glance
Peru does not really have four seasons. It has a dry one and a wet one, and a coast that ignores both.
Dry season — May to September
The classic window and, for most first trips, the right one. Bright sun almost every day in Cusco and the Sacred Valley, crisp views at Machu Picchu, and reliable condor mornings over the Colca. The cost is company — June to August is the peak of the peak — and genuine cold after dark, with Cusco often near freezing overnight and Puno colder still. Bring layers, not a coat: the same day can run from 30°F at dawn to 68°F at noon.
Shoulder — April and October
Our favourite months. The rains have just stopped or not quite started, the terraces are green rather than straw-coloured, the light is superb for photographs, and you can still get a Machu Picchu circuit at six weeks’ notice. Expect the occasional afternoon shower and pack a light waterproof; expect also to have Ollantaytambo largely to yourself at nine in the morning.
Wet season — November to March
Mornings are frequently clear and the rain arrives after lunch, so a wet-season trip is far from a washout — but cloud can sit on Machu Picchu for a whole morning, and mountain roads occasionally close. Hotel rates fall sharply. This is also the only time the coast is at its best, so a November-to-March trip built around Lima, Paracas and Nazca, with the Andes as the shorter half, is a genuinely good plan that almost nobody makes.
The February exception
The four-day Inca Trail closes for the whole of February every year for maintenance. Machu Picchu itself stays open, the train from Ollantaytambo keeps running, and the Lares and Salkantay routes are unaffected — but if the trek is the point of your trip, February is the one month to avoid outright.
Month by Month
What each month actually feels like in the mountains, on the coast, and in the wallet.
January
The height of the mountain rains. Cusco is green, mild by day and often wet by mid-afternoon; Machu Picchu is atmospheric in the mist and quiet on the circuits. Lima, meanwhile, is at its sunny best and the beaches south of the city are full of Peruvians on holiday. Good value everywhere in the highlands, and worth two days at Machu Picchu instead of one.
February
The wettest month in the Andes and the one month the four-day Inca Trail shuts entirely. The citadel, the train and the alternative treks all run. Lima and the coast are hot and bright. Cusco’s Carnival is boisterous and very wet in more ways than one. The lowest hotel rates of the year in the Sacred Valley.
March
The rain begins to tail off in the second half of the month and the countryside is at its greenest. The Inca Trail reopens on 1 March. Still a gamble on any single Machu Picchu morning, but prices are low and the ruins are uncrowded. The coast is still warm; this is the last good month for Paracas and the Nazca lines before the fog arrives.
April
One of the two best months in the year. The rains are largely over, the landscape has not yet dried to straw, the crowds have not arrived and the prices have not climbed. Holy Week (Semana Santa) is a major holiday in Cusco and Ayacucho — magnificent to witness, but book well ahead if your dates fall across it.
May
The dry season opens and, for many Guild readers, this is the sweet spot: reliably clear days, green from the rains just past, and the high-season crush still a few weeks away. Nights turn cold. The Colca condors become dependable. Book Machu Picchu circuits at least two months out from here on.
June
Bright, cold-nighted and busy. The Inti Raymi festival on 24 June fills Cusco entirely — a genuine spectacle, and a week when hotel rates double and rooms vanish six months ahead. Superb visibility at Machu Picchu. If you want the classic Peru photograph, this is the month it was taken in.
July
The driest, clearest and most crowded month, with Peruvian national holidays at the end of it adding domestic travellers to the foreign ones. Overnight temperatures in Cusco and Puno drop to freezing; the Altiplano can go below it. Everything must be booked well ahead, including the train and the bus up the switchbacks.
August
Much like July, a shade warmer by day and noticeably dustier, with wind on the Altiplano. The last of the true peak. Machu Picchu circuits and Huayna Picchu permits sell out weeks in advance; the Inca Trail is fully booked months ahead. Lima remains under its grey blanket, which catches out visitors expecting a beach day either side of the mountains.
September
An underrated month. The weather is still firmly dry, the queues have thinned, wildflowers appear on the Altiplano and rates begin to slide. Nights are milder than July. If you cannot travel in April or October, this is the next best answer.
October
The other of the two best months. Mostly dry with the first afternoon showers creeping in towards the end, comfortable temperatures, thin crowds and honest prices. On the coast the fog begins to lift and Lima starts to warm. Bring a light waterproof and expect to use it once or twice.
November
The rains return in earnest towards the end of the month, but early November is often still fine and is the cheapest good weather of the year. Machu Picchu is quiet. Lima is warming up. A sensible choice for travellers who care more about elbow room and price than about a guaranteed cloudless morning.
December
Wet in the mountains and glorious on the coast. Rates are low until Christmas, then climb hard for the holiday fortnight, when Peruvian families travel. Cusco’s Santurantikuy craft market on Christmas Eve is one of the loveliest things in the Andean year. Book the holiday weeks early or avoid them.
The Cheapest Time to Go
Where the savings actually are, and what they cost you.
November through March are the value months
Sacred Valley and Cusco hotel rates fall well below their June-to-August level, international fares soften, and Machu Picchu circuits can be had at short notice. The countryside is green and the crowds are gone. The price is rain most afternoons and the real possibility of a cloudy morning at the citadel — which is why we would always add a spare day at Aguas Calientes in these months.
Two catches worth knowing
First, Christmas and New Year are expensive and busy everywhere, because Peruvians travel then too. Second, cheap does not mean quiet at Machu Picchu on a public holiday; the daily ticket cap means the site is never empty, only less full. And in the wet months, allow slack in the itinerary for a road or a rail line closed by a landslide — it is uncommon, but it happens.
The genuine sweet spot
If you have any flexibility at all, take April or October. You pay a little above the wet-season rate and get most of the dry-season weather, half the crowds, greener country and better light. It is the recommendation we give friends, and the one most experienced Peru hands give too.
Crowds & Weather
Three things about Peru’s calendar that are not obvious from a weather chart.
The daily cap changes how crowds work
Machu Picchu is not like other great sites: the number of tickets sold each day is limited, and entry is staggered by hour across three numbered circuits. High season is therefore less about crushing crowds inside the citadel and more about availability — the circuits, trains and buses simply sell out. Book early and the site itself is manageable in any month.
Altitude does not have a season
The height of Cusco and Puno affects visitors in every month of the year, and the dry season’s cold, thin air can make it feel worse. Whenever you travel, build the itinerary to sleep low first — two nights in the Sacred Valley at about 9,400 feet before Cusco at 11,150 — and give yourself an easy first day. This matters more than the month you choose.
The Peruvian holiday calendar
Three dates fill the country: Semana Santa (Holy Week, March or April), Inti Raymi on 24 June in Cusco, and Fiestas Patrias at the end of July. Each is worth seeing and each doubles prices in the affected towns. Christmas and New Year do the same. If your dates are fixed and fall on one of these, book several months out rather than several weeks.
Best Time by Region
Peru is large enough that the right month depends on where you are going.
Lima & the coast
Warm and bright from December to April; grey, cool and fog-bound under the garúa from June to October. It rarely rains in either case. If Paracas, the Ballestas islands or the Nazca lines are on your list, come in the coastal summer — they are dismal under fog.
Cusco & the Sacred Valley
Dry, sunny and cold at night from May to September; wet afternoons from November to March. The Valley is warmer and about 1,700 feet lower than the city, which makes it the better first stop in any month.
Machu Picchu
Open every day of the year. April to October gives the best chance of a clear morning; June and July are the most reliable and the most heavily booked. In the wet months allow a spare day, because a single misted morning can cost you the view entirely.
Arequipa & the Colca canyon
Arequipa is famously sunny for most of the year and, at 7,660 feet, a gentler place to acclimatise than Cusco. The Colca is at its best from May to November, with the most dependable condor mornings; January to March can bring cloud and closed sections of road.
Lake Titicaca & Puno
The dry season gives the extraordinary light the lake is known for, at the price of the coldest nights in Peru — well below freezing in June and July. Puno at 12,550 feet is the highest most visitors sleep, so come here after Cusco rather than before it, and never straight from the coast.
The Amazon at Iquitos
Hot and humid in every month. December to May is the high-water season, when boats reach deep into flooded forest and wildlife concentrates on the banks. June to November is low water, better for walking trails and beaches. There is no bad month, only different ones.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best time to visit Peru?
For a first trip taking in Cusco, the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu, the dry season from May to September is the reliable answer, and April and October are the value shoulders that most seasoned travellers prefer. June to August is the clearest and busiest stretch. If Lima and the coast matter to you as much as the mountains, December to March gives you sunshine on the coast at the cost of afternoon rain in the Andes.
Is Machu Picchu open in the rainy season?
Yes. The citadel itself is open every day of the year. It is the four-day Inca Trail that closes for the whole of February for maintenance; the alternative Lares and Salkantay routes and the train service to Aguas Calientes continue to run. January and February bring cloud and afternoon downpours, and a morning can be lost to mist, so allow two days at Machu Picchu rather than one if you travel then.
When is the cheapest time to visit Peru?
November, and then January to March. Hotel rates in Cusco and the Sacred Valley fall well below the June-to-August peak, flights are cheaper, and the countryside is green rather than dusty. The trade is rain most afternoons in the mountains. April and October cost a little more but give you most of the dry weather with few of the crowds, and are the best value in the year to our eyes.
What is the weather like in Lima?
Lima almost never rains, but it is grey for half the year. From roughly June to October a thick coastal fog called the garúa sits over the city, with temperatures in the low sixties and no sun for weeks. December to April is Lima’s summer: warm, bright, and the right time for the coast, Paracas and the Nazca lines. Pack a light jacket for a Lima evening in any month.
When can I see condors at the Colca Canyon?
Andean condors are seen at the Cruz del Cóndor viewpoint year round, but sightings are most reliable from May to November, and best in the early morning between about eight and ten o’clock when the first thermals rise out of the canyon. Dress for near-freezing at dawn even in the dry season; Chivay sits at almost 12,000 feet.
How far ahead should I book for Peru?
For June, July and August, book four to six months ahead. Machu Picchu entry is sold by timed slot on a numbered circuit with a daily cap, the Inca Trail permits for the high season are gone within weeks of release, and the good Sacred Valley hotels are finite. For April, October and November, six to eight weeks is usually comfortable. Book the entrance ticket, the train and the bus as three separate things, because they are.