What's on in Ollantaytambo (Sacred Valley), Peru through the year

Busy — Summer / year-end holidays in Peru, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Sacred Valley rainy season (1 Dec – 31 Mar (usually))

Busy — Summer / year-end holidays in Peru, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Closure

  Inca Trail closed

  1–28 Feb

  The classic trek starts at Km 82 down the valley from here, and the whole route shuts for February maintenance every year. The town keeps its trains and its ruins; the trekking groups go elsewhere. Source ↗

Still on: Sacred Valley rainy season (1 Dec – 31 Mar (usually))

Busy — Summer / year-end holidays in Peru, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Sacred Valley rainy season (1 Dec – 31 Mar (usually))

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in April.

Peak crowds — Andean dry season, Senor de Choquekillka

• Season

  Andean dry season

  1 May – 30 Sep · usuallyCrowded

  Clear days, frost at night and dust on the terraces by August. The town works as the staging post for Machu Picchu in these months and the square is a car park of minibuses by nine.

• Festival

  Senor de Choquekillka

  23–26 MayMajor festivalCrowded

  The town's own festival over Pentecost: four days of seventeen dance troupes, bullfights and fireworks in a village of a few thousand, with everyone home for it. The date moves with Easter. Source ↗

Busy — Andean dry season, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Andean dry season (1 May – 30 Sep (usually)), Senor de Choquekillka (23–26 May)

Peak crowds — Andean dry season, Fiestas Patrias

• Holiday

  Fiestas Patrias

  28–29 JulNational holidayCrowdedBook early

  The national holidays on 28 and 29 July land inside the school winter break and the valley fills with Peruvian families. Trains to Machu Picchu are the tightest of the year. Source ↗

Still on: Andean dry season (1 May – 30 Sep (usually))

Peak crowds — Andean dry season, Mid-year break (Fiestas Patrias) in Peru

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Andean dry season (1 May – 30 Sep (usually)), Fiestas Patrias (28–29 Jul)

Busy — Andean dry season, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Andean dry season (1 May – 30 Sep (usually))

Busy — October break in Peru

Nothing new starts in October.

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in November.

Busy — Summer / year-end holidays in Peru, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  Sacred Valley rainy season

  1 Dec – 31 Mar · usuallyMonsoon

  Afternoon rain over the terraces from December, with the valley greener than at any other point and the guest houses half empty. Landslides shut the road or the rail line for a day or two.