Cusco & Sacred Valley · Travel Medicine
Half of travelers feel Cusco within hours of landing. Diamox is how you skip it.
Get the prescription before you fly, no appointment. Sent to your pharmacy so you can pick it up and pack it the same week.
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Cusco sits at 11,150 ft and most travelers arrive directly from sea-level Lima, which is exactly the kind of rapid ascent CDC flags for altitude illness. As many as half of arriving travelers feel some degree of acute mountain sickness, with headache, nausea, and loss of appetite typically starting four to eight hours after landing. Acetazolamide, started the day before you fly, cuts the rate and severity of AMS substantially. The first 48 hours in Cusco are when the medication matters most, and that includes the early Sacred Valley transfers when you are still acclimatizing.
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Orders are reviewed and prescriptions sent to your pharmacy within 24 hours.
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+1 (302) 251-2302Rx at your pharmacy in three steps.
No appointment. No waiting room. Answer a few questions and a licensed provider reviews within hours.
Your destination, dates, health history, and current medications. Takes about 2 minutes.
A licensed clinician reviews your health profile, checks for interactions, and approves your prescription.
- Allergy screen passed
- Drug interactions clear
- Prescription approved
Your approved prescription is sent electronically to the pharmacy of your choice. Pick it up when your pharmacy has it ready.
Skip the appointment. Get the same Rx.
Both columns cover the visit and prescribing only. Your pharmacy bills the medication itself on either side.
Medications in the Cusco & Sacred Valley plan
Cusco & Sacred Valley medication FAQ
- Cusco sits at 11,150 ft, well above the 8,000 ft threshold where altitude illness becomes a real concern, and CDC notes that as many as half of travelers landing in Cusco develop some degree of acute mountain sickness within four to eight hours of arrival. The Sacred Valley is slightly lower and is the standard acclimatization stop, but you still pass through Cusco coming in and almost always sleep at Cusco elevation at some point on the trip. CDC explicitly recommends acetazolamide prophylaxis for travelers flying directly into Cusco from low elevation. If your itinerary is short, packed, or includes a same-day Sacsayhuamán climb, the medication is worth having.
- CDC dosing is 125 mg every 12 hours, starting 24 hours before you ascend and continuing through the first two days at elevation. If your itinerary keeps climbing after Cusco (Inca Trail, Salkantay, a side trip to Lake Titicaca at 12,500 ft), continue the medication while you ascend. Most travelers feel the difference within the first 24 hours in Cusco compared to friends going without.
- Three prescriptions. Acetazolamide (generic Diamox) to prevent altitude sickness. Rx-strength ibuprofen for the altitude headache and sore legs from stair climbs through the citadel ruins. Meclizine (Antivert) for motion sickness on the winding Sacred Valley road transfers and the train down to Aguas Calientes. Diamox does the prevention work. The other two manage the symptoms that frequently show up anyway in the first 48 hours.
- Orders are reviewed by a US-licensed provider and the Rx is sent electronically to your pharmacy within 24 hours. Most travelers can pick it up the same day.
- After your provider approves the Rx, it's sent electronically to whichever pharmacy you choose during your visit. Your pharmacy will tell you when the medication is ready for pickup. You can use your pharmacy insurance to cover the medication itself.
- If a provider can't safely prescribe (rare, usually due to a contraindication), the visit fee is refunded in full. You only pay if the Rx is sent.
Get the Rx before you fly to Cusco.
Start the medication the day before you ascend. Pick it up at your pharmacy before your flight, and you'll be covered through the first nights in Cusco and the early Sacred Valley days.