The panoramic circuit plus the summit climb: 14 official stops and the highest view over the sanctuary.
Circuit 1A is the panoramic route of Machu Picchu combined with the climb up Machupicchu Mountain. It has 14 official stops inside the citadel and a maximum stay of 7 hours, which is what makes room for the summit trail. This guide walks you through every stop, in order, with tips from travelers who already did it.
Follow the trail — tips by travelers who were just there
Photo viewpointThe first viewpoint after the entrance climb. From here the citadel opens below with Huayna Picchu behind it — the panoramic frame that gives Circuit 1 its name.
Good to know: Circuit 1 is officially called the "Panoramic Circuit" precisely because of these upper platforms.
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Photo viewpointA few terraces higher, the widest angle of the whole route: the citadel, the terraces and the Urubamba valley in a single frame.
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The great trench that separates the agricultural terraces from the urban sector of the city.
Route 1A does not enter the Temple of the Sun: it passes above it, at the official viewpoint that looks down on the only curved building in Machu Picchu.
The quarry of the city: half-carved granite blocks abandoned mid-work, as if the stonemasons had just stepped away.
The main religious sector, home to the Temple of the Three Windows — its openings face the sunrise over the Vilcanota range.
The famous "hitching post of the sun", a carved ritual stone at the highest point of the urban sector. Access is often limited to the morning hours.
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A monolith carved to mirror the silhouette of the mountain behind it, at the northern end of the urban sector.
Good to know: This is where routes diverge: Huayna Picchu and Huchuypicchu start near here, but they belong to Circuit 3 tickets — not to 1A.
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An enclosure of twelve trapezoidal niches on the eastern side — one of the clearest examples of Inca niche architecture in the city.
The granite storehouses — qolqas — that kept the food supply of the city, built on the eastern slope.
Two carved stone basins believed to have reflected the night sky for observation — also known as the "mortar room".
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A natural rock formation completed with Inca stonework into the shape of a condor in flight — head carved on the floor, wings rising behind.
Good to know: Fountains in this sector still run on the original Inca spring channels.
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The small plaza named after its native pisonay tree, on the way out of the urban sector.
Roofless rooms and corridors on the way to the exit — your last look back at the citadel. Note: there is no re-entry once you leave.
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Official Ministry ticket · real-time availability