Sacred Valley Tour from Cusco: Pisac, Ollantaytambo & Inca Ruins

Its attractiveness and picturesque town offers an elaborated craft in their fairs of Thursdays and Sundays with a long and colorful tradition. Pisaq is one of the most visited places in the Sacred Valley of the Incas, for its a surprising archaeological monuments only comparable with Machu Picchu. It has an enormous system of Incan andenería that ascends up to the abysses, which resemble enormous hanging gardens. In spite of the step of the centuries, it can still be used for the agriculture. The archaeological place, located in the high part, it is conformed by neighborhoods. The Intiwatana, the biggest pre colombus cemetery in the continent, also its cultivation platforms (andenes) and the masthead turrets of vigilance. Pisaq attends settlers of near towns and thousands of visitors. One of the attractiveness of these fairs is the parade of the authorities or Varayocs who go to the town to listen the mass in Quechua, main language of the region. In the high part they are the Inca ruins of Písaq with a great system of andenerías and with an important solar clock in stone or Intihuatana. Today Pisaq is one of the most important Archaeological Parks in the region and constitutes one of the best tourist destinations; their name possibly derives of a partridge type very common of this well-known area as "p'isaqa". Some specialists suggest that the prehispanic city had the form of a "p'isaqa" that represented the local fauna.

The charming town of Urubamba is enveloped by tall Andean peaks in the heart of the Sacred Valley. Unlike Ollantaytambo and Pisac whose Inca ruins are the main draw, the appeal of Urubamba is the surrounding natural beauty and its laidback vibes. The host of beautiful hotels are the perfect place to disconnect and treat yourself to a luxurious spa treatments. Adventure-packed sports and tours are just a short ride away! We will stop here for lunch.

Ollantaytambo is a lovely village that preserves the designs of Inca buildings located at an altitude of 9160 feet in the province of Urubamba. Among this place's most impressive attractions are the ceremonial temple in worship of water and a fortress that guarded the entrance to the valley to repel any invasions. The temple has a set of terraces lying one atop the other which visitors scale via a steep stairway. The fortress is a stone colossus that was built between two mountains to protect the valley. The area also holds the Temple of Inti (the sun god), Incamisana, the baths of the Ñustas (princesses), the Cachiccata funerary towers, and a group of tiered and very steep terraces on the side of a hill. Ollantaytambo also contains the mountain called Pinculluna or Tunupa, which holds the vestiges of Inca architectural structures which seem to have been a storehouse for various foodstuffs. Ollantaytambo is also a meeting place for nearby communities, such as the Huayruros de Willoc, who can be recognized by their red and black ponchos and hats.

Chinchero is a small Andean Indian village located high up on the windswept plains of Anta at 3765m about 30km from Cusco. There are beautiful views overlooking the Sacred Valley of the Incas, with the Cordillera Vilcabamba and the snow-capped peak of Salkantay dominating the western horizon. Chinchero is believed to be the mythical birthplace of the rainbow. Its major claim to tourism is its colourful Sunday market which is much less tourist-orientated than the market at Pisac. The village mainly comprises mud brick (adobe) houses, and locals still go about their business in traditional dress. The village may have been an important town in Inca times. The most striking remnant of this period is the massive stone wall in the main plaza which has ten trapezoidal niches. The construction of the wall and many other ruins and agricultural terraces (which are still in use) are attributed to Inca Tupac Yupanqui who possibly used Chinchero as a kind of country resort. In the main plaza an adobe colonial church, dating from the early seventeenth century, has been built upon the foundations of an Inca temple or palace. The ceiling and walls are covered in beautiful floral and religious designs. The church is open on Sundays for mass. Half an hour's walk from the village brings you to Lake Piuri which once fed Cusco with water. It takes about 3 hours to walk around the lake passing through small picturesque villages.