Machu Picchu Weather

Machu Picchu lies just above the cloud forest of the Andes' eastern mountains, at 2,350 m.a.s.l. A subtropical climate, it gets strong sunshine during the day, though it gets quite cool in the shade and, specially, at night, when temperatures can drop to around 8ºC (48ºF).

Average temperatures are though quite mild, rarely rising above 30°C (86ºF) nor dropping below 11°C.

The dry season runs from May to October (winter in the southern hemisphere) and is usually considered the best period for visiting Machu Picchu. Nights though get the coolest during this period, particularly in July and August.

The rainy season, from November to April, brings heavy rains, with most precipitations coming down in January and February. It’s usually clear and dry most mornings with outbursts of heavy rain in the afternoons. During this period, some roads might be closed by landslides or flooding, in particular those leading to villages off the beaten track.

However, don't take the climate differences between the dry and rainy seasons too seriously, that is, as if one was the “good” season and the other the “bad” one. You could well get more pleasure during the wet season, with less tourists around and a more mystic atmosphere.

“To my surprise -wrote Johan Reinhard for National Geographic-, I later found that it didn't matter whether the weather was perfect or Machu Picchu was shrouded in mist. In perfect weather you see clearly how its well-planned architecture blends with the spectacular scenery of the surrounding peaks and gorges. Misty conditions wrap the stone engineering in a soft cloak of magic and mystery.

Below you can see current weather conditions for Machu Picchu (and not Machu Piccho, as suggested by Accuweather.com) and a 4-day forecast. A 15-day forecast is also available.

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