Cusco is recognized as the 'Archaeological Capital of America'.
Cusco, Cuzco or Qosqo are the names by which the ancient capital of the Inca Empire is known. It is a center for archaeological scholars from all over the world who come to Peru to discover the wonders of Machu Picchu and the other ruins scattered throughout the valley.
It was an important administrative center for the Spanish Empire (Viceroyalty of Peru), and can be seen in the large number of manifestations of colonial art and architecture that can be found throughout the city and especially its Plaza de Armas. Today, Cusco is the largest tourist center in the country, receiving more than one million visitors a year.
Cusco is the oldest urban settlement in all of the Americas, more than 3,000 years old, but pre-ceramic samples have been found as old as 5,000 years. The origins of the first inhabitants of the city are lost in legend. Inca legends say that the founders of the city were Manko Qhapaq and Pachakuteq.
At the top of the mountain, large and impressive stone blocks joined together, the most important political and religious center of the Inca empire: Machu Picchu.
Located in the heart of the Peruvian Andes, the sacred Inca citadel built around 1450 and discovered in 1911, still hides enigmas and mysteries about its real purpose that remain hidden to this day and arouse the interest of both visitors and archaeologists from around the world.
Due to its strategic location on top of a high mountain, there are several theories about what it could have meant to the Incas. Some argue that it was built as a great mausoleum for the Inca Pachacutec, while others claim that it was an important administrative and agricultural center whose cultivated areas were used for the sustenance of its inhabitants. However, it is also considered that it was used as a necessary link between the Andes and the Peruvian Amazon or as a resting place for the Inca governor.
The truth is that Machu Picchu is one of the greatest symbols behind the impressive architecture and engineering of the Inca Empire. Although its origin is still under study, the value and transcendence it represented in its time, as well as its imposing design, have earned it to be considered one of the seven wonders of the modern world.
The tour to the Sacred Valley of the Incas in Cusco, is one of the most classic and incredible tours, where you can explore small villages outside the city of Cusco and also its archaeological sites.
The Sacred Valley of the Incas is located 15 km (9 miles) north of the Inca capital of Cusco at 2,800 meters (9,186 feet). The Sacred Valley was once the Inca empire’s main point for the extraction of natural wealth, and one of the most important areas for corn production in Peru.
We have to admire the advanced agricultural techniques of the Incas and their system of andenería (terraces): system of platforms composed of small groups of farmland, arranged in the form of tiers on the hills, where crops are planted. The valleys were also a place of worship to the Pachamama (mother earth).
The Sacred Valley is a must-see destination in Peru and has become one of the most important tourist centers in the country. There are numerous impressive Inca ruins, such as Ollantaytambo, Pisaq and Moray. The Sacred Valley also has two of the most important handicraft markets in the Cusco region: Pisaq and Chinchero.
The Inca Trail is not the only route to Machu Picchu. The city of Machu Picchu was connected by a network of roads known as Qhapaq Ñan.
The great adventure of the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu is for those who live passionately, always looking for a new experience!
The Inca Trail is a fascinating dream to fulfill and is the most famous trek in all of South America. The beauty of the views and the archaeological sites surrounding the Inca Trail are unsurpassed.
This tour is ideal for those who are full of energy to hike to Machu Picchu on the trip of a lifetime with the Classic Inca Trail 4 days 3 nights.
The Inca Trail Peru is a well established trek that takes travelers from km. 82 (the starting point 40 minutes from the town of Ollantaytambo) to Machu Picchu through the Sun Gate (also called Inti Punku).
Se trata de la montaña de los Siete Colores, también conocida como Vinicunca o Arcoíris.
Also known as the “Hill of 7 colors”, vinicunca, and colorful mountain, gift of nature for the enjoyment of our eyes. This unique mountain is located more than 100 km from the Imperial City of Cusco, belonging to the town of Pitumarca, is one of the main tourist attractions of Peru recently discovered and made known in 2016.
Vinicunca means “mountain of colors”. It is also known as Rainbow Mountain, Cerro Colorado or in English as Rainbow Mountain. It is located at 5200 meters above sea level and belongs to the Ausangate snow-capped mountain in the Vilcanota mountain range, it is the fifth highest mountain in Peru.
Its coloration is natural due to the large amount of sedimentary stones in erosion, what makes it so beautiful and impressive is how these stones are formed to give it the appearance of a rainbow (7 colors).
Although it is commonly called Rainbow Mountain (Cerro Colorado or Seven Colors Mountain), its real name is Vinicunca, which comes from Quechua.
If you are looking for a hike out of the ordinary, here are the hikes you are looking for
In Cusco you will find countless activities and tourist routes that you can explore; many of them include a visit to Machu Picchu, whether you are looking for a quiet and classic tour or adventure experiences with a touch of immersion with the coexistence with local people.
Live exciting moments in real contact with nature that remains untouched by the hand of man, all well preserved; walk in contact with nature, and the local fauna; if you are patient you will see many animals that come out to walk trusting; since each one is prohibited.
Enjoy hikes of 2 to more days; enjoy good food along the route; professional local guides and discover the magic of visiting this beautiful country that awaits you.
Exciting adventures, all over Peru, wide variety of experiences.
Peru has become in recent years the most fashionable destination in South America. There is no shortage of reasons: an impressive variety of ecosystems, breathtaking landscapes, beautiful cities full of history, culture, traditions, beaches, fauna, flora… and, of course, its delicious and famous gastronomy.
From the Amazon to the desert, from the high peaks of the Andes to the Pacific, passing through the valleys and high plateaus, the country enchants with its incredible contrasts. Although the reasons to visit the country are really endless, we want to show you some compelling arguments for you to embark on the exciting adventure of discovering it. Are you up for it?
Every place on Earth is fascinating and unique, but Peru is one of those countries that manages to be above average. This place has so many natural and cultural treasures that have fascinated people for hundreds of years, and still fascinate them today. There are thousands of reasons to go to this great destination, here are just some of the reasons why you should visit Peru.
1 Day from $ USD 100.00
Cusco City Tour – Half Day
Visit the archaeological complexes of Saqsayhuaman, Qenqo, Pucapucara and Tambomachay, as well as the Cathedral Church, the Temple of the Sun (Koricancha). To enter all these places and many other tourist attractions of the city is necessary a tourist ticket (BTG), plus admission ticket to the church of the Cathedral and the temple of the Koricancha.
Cusco, considered one of the most important cities in Peru, is the center of the Inca empire, Cultural Heritage of the World and is one of the most visited places today, for the amount of important archaeological remains and tourist attractions, with Inca walls, colorful costumes, colonial churches built on Inca palaces, legendary Inca roads and all the beauty of a glorious past that surrounds visitors who come to Cusco.
With a great diversity of customs and traditions, Cusco still preserves its Inca walls and stone-floored streets that blend with the Colonial architecture and this makes Cusco one of the most famous and recommended city tours on a visit to Peru.
Cusco City Tour, the most visited tourist circuit of Cusco, is waiting for you…! Come to Cuzco, Cultural Heritage of Humanity, to discover the great historical and cultural legacy of the Incas, to enjoy unique and unforgettable moments, and to be amazed by the architectural wonders of this enigmatic Inca city that, despite the passage of time, continues to amaze all the globetrotters of the planet.
Before starting your Cusco city tour, you will be picked up from your hotel. You will begin your tour at the iconic San Pedro Market, where you will explore the colors, aromas and traditions of contemporary Cusco. Cusco, also known as the Imperial City and declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Continue to the Koricancha Temple, an ancient Inca palace and center of worship to the Sun God, on top of which the Dominican order built a church that still stands today. You will continue ascending to the Sacsayhuaman Fortress, an imposing example of Inca military architecture. After this tour you will delve into the Inca architecture visiting the archaeological site of Q’enko, to finally be transferred to the Plaza de Armas, where you will visit the Cathedral, the most important catholic temple of the city.
1, Easy
With the “City Tour in traditional Cusco”, you can visit the Cathedral of Cusco, the main temple of the city of Cuzco, built on the palace of the Inca Wiracocha, with part of the stones of the fortress of Sacsayhuaman. It houses countless treasures collected over the centuries from silver and gold precious artifacts to paintings and statues that are now considered colonial masterpieces as well as paintings of the Cusco school.
QORICANCHA, Quri Kancha, Golden Temple. It was a sacred place where they worshiped the Inca god: the Inti (Sun), so you could only enter fasting, barefoot and with a load on his back as a sign of humility, as indicated by the Inca high priest: Willaq Umu.
In addition, you will see the main archaeological centers of the city. SACSAYHUAMÁN, is an Inca ceremonial fortress located 2 kilometers north of the city of Cusco. QÈNQO (Q’inqu or labyrinth, is an archaeological center that at the time of the Inca Empire was another center dedicated to ritual. PUCA PUCARA, is a military construction located near Cusco, is composed of large walls, terraces and staircases and was part of the defensive complex of Cusco in particular and the Inca Empire in general and receives its name in Quechua “Red Fortress”, due to the red color that the rocks acquire during twilight. Puca Pucara is another example of military architecture that also served as an administrative center, has platforms, overlapping terraces, stairways and passages.
TAMBOMACHAY or Tampumachay (tampu mach’ay = resting place, in an archaeological site that was intended for the worship of water and for the potentate of the Inca Empire could rest. It consists of a series of aqueducts, canals and several waterfalls that run through the rocks. Here there was also a kind of royal garden, whose irrigation came from a complicated system of canals especially also constituted a control area of people coming from the Antisuyo, because there was a control tower.
The City Tour is the only tour that is performed within the city of Cusco and its surroundings, the time it takes is 4 to 5 hours approx. many travelers visit Cusco in order to make the tour to Machu Picchu as Cusco is the city that is the step paera enter the Sacred Valley of the Incas and therefore the Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, we recommend taking the City tour to have more clear as it was the worldview of the Incas.
Enjoy the traditional Cusco City Tour
MAIN POINTS OF VISIT
The Boleto Turistico del Cusco, officially called “Boleto Turistico del Cusco,” is a ticket that allows you to gain access to multiple attractions in and around Cusco and the Sacred Valley. The full ticket is the most popular, but there are also several partial tickets for sale as well. In 2014, Peru’s Ministry of Culture changed the rules for tickets, so read carefully about the types of tickets available, what tickets include and how much they cost!
This partial Cusco Tourist Ticket includes only 4 tickets. The attractions are the 4 main attractions located just outside of Cusco, and not in the city itself. Please note that this ticket is valid for 1 day only!
Validity: 1 day
Price (2023): S /. 70 (US $ 22)
Includes: Saqsayhuaman, Qenqo, Pucapucara and Tambomachay.
The Partial City Tour Ticket allows access to the following places included in this tour (Sacsayhumana, Kenko, Tambomachat and Puca Pucara). The cost of the ticket is S/70.00 soles per person and can be purchased during the City Tour (only cash accepted in soles).
Booking a City tour in the city of Cusco is very simple because it does not require a purchase well in advance, the spaces for the City tour in Cusco are always available and any traveler can buy them either arriving to the city of Cusco or from their country of origin, however, book a trip or a tour in Cusco in advance will always be one of the best options if you want to travel without worries. To book a city tour with us you can write us to our reservation center by Whatsapp +51 901 557 125 or to our Email. Remember also that booking a trip or a tour in Cusco with a travel agency will make you concentrate on enjoying and not worry about getting guides, income, transportation, etc.
Cusco is a beautiful city and a city tour in Cusco will allow you to see many of these places in and around the city.
Within the city of Cusco you will know or you will be able to know places like:
There is not really a good or bad season to do or book a City tour in Cusco, but if you can recommend or it is advisable to book a tour of Cusco in dry season, to book one in rainy season you should be sure to go forewarned and bring rain ponchos or umbrellas. The dry season is from March to October approximately, and the rainy season is from November to February. January and February in the highlands of Peru are the months where the rains are more intense.
We must also consider that the high season of tourism is between the months of April and August and can even extend until September, in high season in the city of Cusco, most places are crowded with travelers and can be a little uncomfortable or very saturated to know or walk through these places with calm and tranquility.
A city tour is the perfect plan in Cusco for the first day or for the first few days you are in the city of Cusco. Remember that Cusco is at 3399 meters above sea level and for people arriving for the first time to the city the altitude can affect them.
A city tour in Cusco allows you to calmly get to know the city and will help you to acclimatize your body to the altitude so that you can carry out your activities or subsequent tours with more tranquility having already the correct acclimatization.
After the city tour of Cusco the recommendation is to do a one day tour of the Sacred Valley of the Incas, then do a full day tour of Machupicchu and by the 4th or 5th day of your trip depending on your availability you can do a tour to the Colored Mountain or a tour of the Humantay Lagoon. Remember that the latter require a regular/high effort because they are trekking routes and require a good acclimatization. You can also opt for other places like Maras and Moray or the southern valley of Cusco.
The clothes you need to bring for a city tour in Cusco will depend entirely on the season in which you travel, remember that, for the dry season, the sun hits very hard in all tours in Cusco and it is very important to bring everything you need to prevent sunstroke or skin related problems. But for the rainy season in case you do a tour on that date you will need clothes to avoid getting wet from the rain but at the same time be warm because at that time it is very cold in the city and thus prevent respiratory diseases.
Ideally, you should ask your travel agency what kind of clothes you should bring for the time when you are already in Cusco because the weather can be variable.
Try to bring a backpack or small bag that does not bother your trip and that is not too heavy, within this consider the following:
Also, do not neglect your belongings, although it is true that Cusco is a very safe city and offers all the necessary guarantees to travelers who visit it, we can not neglect.
The answer is yes and no.
Yes, if you want to forget about getting them at the last minute, remember that when you book a tour with our travel agency we take care of everything.
No, since the places in Cusco are always available to visit and do not require a reservation too far in advance, many travelers choose to buy their tickets on the same tour at the entrance door of each place to visit, but sometimes there are queues or people waiting and that could delay your plans.
The answer is Yes, so that you can focus on enjoying the tour and the places, by worrying about the income, or hiring a guide or looking for mobility from one point to another, we are sure that you will not be able to take a good memory of the city. Travel agencies like us can and have all the staff and logistics necessary to make a City tour in Cusco very well organized.
Usually the tour or the City Tour is only half a day and you can do it in the afternoon or in the morning depending on your arrival time, your acclimatization or your schedule. That means that if you do it in the morning you will have enough time to have breakfast at your hotel or the place of your choice and it will end before or almost by lunch time.
If you do the city tour in Cusco in the afternoon, it starts after lunch and ends before dinner time.
The tours usually end in the center of the city of Cusco, and in this area there is an incredible variety of places to have lunch or dinner with prices for all travelers and services that are very well established by the businesses of the city.
There are some sites that do not allow you to take pictures or you must keep distances or signs for the Inca walls, etc.. It is advisable to respect those sites that are properly marked or our guides will not give recommendations.
In Cusco, I am your travel specialist, with more than 10 years of experience organizing adventure trips.
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