Search Flights from Santiago to Machu Picchu

A Merino Benitez Airport, 16 kilometers west of Santiago city center, can be quickly reached by taxi or metro. Passengers can also go to the airport with special vehicles that can be rented from car rental companies.

Taxi

Taxis that can take you from Santiago to Merino Benitez Airport in about 20 minutes, are applying a high tariff on weekends, holidays and night time.

Metro

With the metro that you can take from the Los Heroes metro station in Santiago you can reach the Barrancas stop which is just 10 minutes away from the airport. To use the metro you can buy tickets from the counters around the station. From Barrancas stop you have to take an 8 minute taxi ride to the airport.

Car Rental

Avis, Budget, Enterprise and Alamo car hire companies provide you the option to rent a car with or without a driver.  You can rent a car from these companies at any time, or arrange a private vehicle to pick you up from wherever you are and take you to the airport.

Airport Information

There is a four-storey terminal building at A Merino Benitez Airport, which covers a large area. The terminal building, which is undergoing renovations, is planned to be opened in 2020 with much wider features. The current terminal building has duty free shops, luggage space and parking space on the ground floor. On the first floor there are rest rooms reserved for VIP companies, on the second floor, shops, restaurants and entrance doors are located. On the third floor of the building, there is also a check-in area reserved for the customers of restaurants and VIP passengers.

You can find bank ATMs, telephone operator shops, pharmacies, travel agency shops, health care room and insurance offices spread over different floors of the building. In the terminal there is a reserved area for those who are VIP passengers. In this section you can access VIP lounges of Latam, Pacific Club, Voyage, Delta Sky Club, American Airlines and Avianca companies.

There are many restaurants, cafes and bars in the airport for travelers to meet their eating and drinking needs. These are La Pausa, Cybo Bistro, Fritz, Gatsby, Ruby Tuesday, Subway, Telepizza, Johnny Rockets, Pronto Copec, McDonald's, Cafe Danes, Bakery & Co, Cafe On Time, Cinnabon, Dunkin Donuts, Starbucks, Tamarugo, Patagonia Cafe, Espression Lavazza , Vinum and Heineken Star Lounge.

Among the places you can shop at the airport are stores ranging from cosmetics to clothing, technology and music to jewelry. Among these are Bath & Body Works, MAC Cosmetics, Punto Musical, Samsung, MacOnline Express, Garmin, Gizmobies, Fotokina, MOW, La Cava del Vino, Kubox, Jugueteria Alemana, BirttShop Chile, Licantai, Toc's, Rumbo Sur, Piedra Linda, Sol y Mar , Piedras Australes, Jewelery Me, Swarovski and Hugo Boss.

Since Machu Picchu Airport is close to flights, you need to land at Alejandro Velasco Astete Airport which is one of the closest airports to the city. This airport is located in the city of Cusco. You can benefit from taxi, car rental or transfer services as well as bus and train for travelling to Machu Picchu from the airport.

Train and Bus

It is possible to reach Machu Picchu from Alejandro Velasco Astete Airport by using Peru Rail trains. Firstly, you need to reach the railway station in Cusco where the trains in three different sizes and price tariffs provide this transportation. After arriving at the station, you get on the Machu Picchu train. Since it is not possible to reach Machu Picchu city center by train directly, you can reach Machu Picchu city center by having a short bus travel after getting off the train at the last station. You can reach the city center in about 20 minutes by bus after getting off Aguas Calientes. After arriving at Aguas Calientes, you can reach the city center in about 20 minutes by bus. Travelling to Machu Picchu from Cusco by Peru Rail train lasts about 4 hours and 15 minutes.

Another option is to reach Ollantaytambo from Alejandro Velasco Astete Airport by bus or taxi and then get on the trains directly going to Machu Picchu from Ollantaytambo. Reaching Ollantaytambo from the airport lasts about one and half an hour and it costs 40 dollars. You can get to Machu Picchu by getting on your train with Inca Rail. The cost of this train travel is approximately 60 dollars for economy class by 2016. The trains of both train companies depart from Ollantaytambo station in the Sacred Valley or Poroy station that is 20 kilometers away from Cusco.

Taxi

There are many taxis waiting outside the terminal building of Alejandro Velasco Astete Airport. Since the distance between Machu Picchu and the airport is not short, we advise you to share your taxi with other passengers. Travelling to Machu Picchu from the airport by taxi lasts about 1,5-2 hours.

Car Rental

If you don’t want to lose time with the means of public transportation, another transportation option is to rent a car. You can rent a car from Hertz car rental company located at Alejandro Velasco Astete Airport terminal. Travelling to Machu Picchu from the airport by renting a car lasts about 1,5-2 hours.