We started our trip to Peru in the Andes. We stayed in Cusco and visited several other towns and Inca ruins around the Sacred Valley (including, of course, Machu Picchu!).

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Top Tips and Advice for Visiting Cusco and the Sacred Valley

– Altitude sickness is for real, so plan to take it easy for at least your first day or so! Cusco is at an elevation of 11,000 feet above sea level, which is higher than the majority of the Sacred Valley sites (including Machu Picchu), and very likely higher than where you live, too. Drinking coca tea (which many hotels offer at reception) can help, so go ahead and try that too!

– Think beyond Machu Picchu and be sure to explore other Inca sites in the Sacred Valley. Ollantaytambo is really interesting because it was in the process of being built when the Spanish came, so you can see some details of how the Incas constructed their cities. Moray (the Inca agricultural lab) and the salt ponds at Maras are two really unique sites that make a good day trip from Cusco. Pisac has a market as well as the archaeological site. If you want to stay nearer to Cusco, you can check out Tambomachay, Puka Pukara, Qenqo, and Sacsayhuaman.

– Enjoy Cusco’s restaurants – whether you want to try traditional dishes like ceviche or lomo saltado or you want American fare like McDonald’s or KFC, Cusco has you covered. There are tons of great restaurants in Plaza de Armas especially, and many elsewhere in the city too. Two we especially liked were Barrio Ceviche in Plaza de Armas and Sepia near Qoricancha.

– Purchasing a Boleto Turistico (tourist ticket), which gives access to most of the museums in Cusco and most of the Inca sites in the Sacred Valley as well, is a good idea and could save you a lot of money, depending on how long you’re there. You can purchase them at the COSITUC office (103 Avenida del Sol, not far from Plaza de Armas).

– We got into Lima quite late and had an early flight to Cusco. I wouldn’t say this was a bad plan, but it turns out you can’t get into the domestic departures area until 1:30am, so we ended up missing out on a few hours of sleep we were expecting. This is another reason, besides altitude sickness, to be sure to spend your first day relaxing/recovering once you arrive.

– All over Cusco you can see women in traditional dress walking around with baby alpacas. They will allow you to pay a small fee to hold/pet the baby alpacas and take your picture with them. It doesn’t cost too much, but be sure to agree on a price ahead of time or you could end up spending more than you expected.

– We spent our whole time in Cusco, which was convenient because there’s so much to do there, but consider spending a couple of days in another city, such as maybe Ollantaytambo on the way to Machu Picchu. It’ll let you have a change of pace and also might be a chance to spend time at a slightly lower elevation than Cusco’s.

– Many people gloss over Cusco and the Sacred Valley on their rush to go to Machu Picchu, but there are so many other great things to see. I’d say you should at least plan one day for acclimatization, a full day for Cusco, and another day to do a Sacred Valley tour – so, at least three days in the Sacred Valley –  in addition to whatever time you have planned to see Machu Picchu.

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Day 1: Arrival, Plaza de Armas in Cusco

We flew into Lima on a Saturday, arriving late in the evening. Our flight to Cusco the next day was quite early in the morning, so we had planned to just stay overnight and sleep at the airport. A small wrench was thrown in our plans, though, because we weren’t allowed into the “domestic departure” area until 1:30am. We ended up passing the time until then at an airport restaurant, where we had several drinks, a really good cheesecake, and Ryan had “huevos Gaston” or Gaston eggs. Ryan also tried his first algarrobina (a cocktail made with a syrup from the Black Carob tree) and I tried a tía camu, which was a blend of orange, lime and camu camu (an Amazonian cherry-like fruit) juices.

Finally we were able to enter the domestic departures area and get a few hours of sleep before our 5:20am flight from Lima to Cusco. The flight was actually quite delayed, landing 1 hour 40 minutes after the scheduled arrival time, but it was okay since we needed to catch up on sleep anyway. We took a cab to our hotel, which was called Casa de Mayte. It was really cute, with an enclosed courtyard and a terrace upstairs with a great view of the city. We also had a pretty good view from our window, and found the woman at reception very helpful.

The altitude started to get to us right away in Cusco, and being low on sleep didn’t help either. We both had altitude headaches, and we ended up sleeping for about three and a half hours before getting into our room. Once awake and feeling a little better, we ventured out, taking a short walk to Plaza de Armas.

The plaza is gorgeous, with two old cathedrals (Catholic and Jesuit), a fountain topped by an Inca warrior, and landscaped flowers. It’s surrounded by shops, tour agencies, and restaurants with balconies, and on one side you can get a glimpse of the mountains in the distance.

We had our first meal in Cusco at one of the restaurants overlooking the plaza. The place had free salad bar and pisco sours with our meals. I had trucha au gratin (trout with cheese) and Ryan had lomo saltado (a Peruvian sirloin stir fry), and both were pretty good. On our way back to our hotel, we bought a watercolor painting of Machu Picchu from a man selling them in the square, then made our out-of-breath way back to the hotel. We chilled out there for a while, finding one channel with English movies (subtitled in Spanish, of course) so we watched the end of a Harry Potter movie and Frozen.

That evening we decided to venture out again, partially to pick up drinking water, shampoo and Sublime bars (the necessities) at a drugstore. Then we found an ice cream shop called Dulce Vita Italiana, and we had some really good ice cream, hot chocolate, and pie before turning in for the night.

We took it really easy our first day in Cusco, partially because we were tired from our flights and partially because we were trying to adjust to the altitude, and I definitely recommend you do the same when you first get there. We were still able to sample our first Peruvian food and visit the heart of the city, the Plaza de Armas.

 

Day 2: Museums, Plazas & Massages in Cusco

We started the day by getting cash in Plaza de Armas and purchasing boletos turisticos (tourist tickets that get you into many museums and archaeological sites in the Sacred Valley) before heading to the Museo Histórico Regional. This museum is located in the old family home of Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, so there was some information about him. Besides that, the museum focused on, as promised, the history of the region. It started with pre-historic times, the Incas, and the Spanish Conquest. Some of the most interesting things the museum had included the Legend of the Qoa (a feline Inca mythical creature that shot lightning bolts out of his glowing eyes), a room dedicated to Tupac Amaru, and a room about cuisine which featured a Last Supper painting of Jesus and his disciples eating cuy.

Unfortunately the museum didn’t allow photography inside, so I don’t have any pictures, but I’d say it’s definitely worth a visit while you’re in Cusco!

We sat for a while in the Plaza de Recogido, enjoying the fountains, when we were approached by two women in traditional dress with baby alpacas. This is a common sight while in Cusco, and it’s super tempting to pet or hold the alpacas every time you see them around, but you’ll have to pay for the privilege so it’s important to resist! This time, however, I decided to give in so I could hold the baby alpaca and have my picture taken with the women. They were so soft and fluffy!

Then we walked on to Plaza de San Francisco, hitting ChocoMuseo on the way. Normally I hate free “museums” that are just trying to sell a product, but ChocoMuseo was actually pretty good! They had displays explaining the history, production process, and global impact of chocolate, and they allowed you to sample all of their products with no pressure to buy anything (but of course we did anyway!).

Next we had lunch at a restaurant in Plaza de San Francisco at a place called Tabasco. The food wasn’t amazing, but it was super cheap–only about $12 USD for us both to have a three course meal. I had pumpkin soup, grilled trout, and ice cream while Ryan had quinoa soup, grilled steak, and a chocolate banana. We returned to Plaza de Armas and had a couple of pisco sours at another restaurant overlooking the plaza, Mistura Grill. The bartender chatted with us for a while, and we had fun talking about drinks and our relative countries.

After our drinks we decided to take advantage of some of the very cheap massages available in Cusco. We went to a place with good reviews called Nueva Vida and both had one hour massages for only 60 soles ($18 USD) total, including tips. Feeling relaxed afterward, we decided to keep the relaxation going by heading back to the hotel. The altitude was still getting to us a little bit, so it was good to rest.

Then when we got hungry we returned to the Plaza de Armas to try Peru’s national dish, ceviche. Ceviche is raw fish that is soaked in lime or citrus juices and served in a sort of salad with salt, garlic and vegetables. We read some reviews online and chose Barrio Ceviche for this meal. We were quite happy with them too – the staff was wonderful, the decor very modern in a fun, nautical way, and the ceviche was fantastic! However, we did get filled up on it very fast. Be sure to leave room for it if you go!

On the way back to the hotel we took a few night pictures of the cathedrals in the Plaza, then went to bed so we would be rested up for our next day in Cusco.

 

Day 3: Tambomachay, Puka Pukara, Qenqo & Sacsayhuaman

On our third day in Cusco, we decided to check out all four of the Inca sites that are very close to Cusco (the Inca capital). We started by taking a cab to the one with the highest elevation, Tambomachay. The air was quite thin up there, but the site was pretty cool. The Inca stonework everywhere we went was impressive–the way the stones fit together perfectly–and this site had fountains that are still flowing after all these years. They think that this site may have been an Inca spa.

We walked down the road to the next site, which was called Puka Pukara (meaning “red fortress”). It was quite a big fortress, so it was fun to explore. Of the four sites we visited that day, this one had the most beautiful views of the valley.

Qenqo was a little further down the road, so we took a cheap taxi down to that site. Qenqo was nestled in a bit of forest and had more interesting stonework, plus an altar where llamas were sacrificed (if we overheard the tour guide from someone else’s group correctly) and a stone Inca calendar.

We continued down the road and saw Cristo Blanco on the way to Sacsayhuaman. Cristo Blanco is a large white sculpture of Jesus that overlooks the city. There were some great views of the city of Cusco from there as well. We continued to Sacsayhuaman, which is the largest of the four sites. It also had some of the largest stones of any Inca site we visited–ones that make you wonder how they were cut and placed there! We didn’t have much energy by the time we got to Sacsayhuaman so we only explored maybe half of the site before deciding to return to the city for lunch.

On the walk down from Sacsayhuaman we had some delicious fresh-squeezed orange juice, then had lunch at Mistura Grill, the restaurant where we’d had drinks the day before. There was a performer playing traditional Andean music, that was pretty cool. Ryan had ají de gallina and I had cordero al pisco with fettucine. The office for Inca Rail was close by, so we stopped by to pick up our train tickets for Machu Picchu in two days. Everyone had told us we would need our passports to pick up our tickets, but we ended up not needing them.

We also did a little shopping in the Plaza – I picked up some earrings and a llama pendant – and then we priced out the private tour of the Sacred Valley that we were planning for the next day at some tour agencies. Our hotel had given us a price of $150 and the cheapest agency we could find was $180, so we chose to go with the hotel’s guy, which was easier anyway. It had been a little bit rainy while we were having lunch and shopping, but then we were rewarded with a rainbow in the plaza afterward, which was fun. 🙂

We stopped by the ice cream shop again on the way back to the hotel and I tried some local flavors–strawberry, tropical, and lucuma (a native fruit that tastes a little bit like apple). All were delicious of course. We returned to the hotel and had dinner at a pizza place with a brick oven right next door. We enjoyed the American 80s music soundtrack and some strong pisco sours while we waited for our chorizo-and-bacon pizza, which was fantastic.

 

Day 4: Chinchero, Moray, Maras, and Ollantaytambo

On day four of our time in Cusco, we hired a driver and guide to take us to some sites around the Sacred Valley. His name was Manuel, and he was a great guide who gave us lots of extra information about the Sacred Valley and the sites we were visiting. The valley is beautiful so it was also fun to just sit back and enjoy the scenery as he drove us around.

Our first stop was the town of Chinchero. It was raining a little, so Manuel took us to an alpaca wool weaving place before visiting the nearby Inca site. There we were treated to a dyeing and weaving demonstration, where a young woman showed us the traditional natural dyes, cleaning techniques, and loom as well as some of the traditional designs and how they were linked to Inca mythology. It was really interesting and I’m glad we were able to stop there for a bit. We ended up buying an alpaca scarf and a lapis lazuli ring for my collection there as well. Then Manuel took us to an overlook where we could see the Inca site of Chinchero. There were tons of terraces, and you could see where the Spanish had built over some of the Inca temples on the site.

Next we continued on to the Salineras (salt ponds) of Maras. Some of the salt-drying ponds here were originally built by the Inca, and they are still used today! It was definitely one of the more unique landscapes I had ever seen, too! Not too far from Maras is the Inca archaeological site of Moray. This site is basically concentric rings of terracing, and it’s theorized that it was used as their agricultural lab, because the climate from the lowest terrace to the top one is dramatically different. It was really unique compared to some of the other ruins we had been seeing, and Manuel said that it’s his favorite.

We ate lunch in Urubamba, at a place called Paka Punku. The meal was served buffet style, so we were able to try many different Peruvian dishes, and while we ate a traditional Andean band performed with panpipes, drums, and other ancient instruments. The music was really good, and we ended up purchasing a CD from them.

Finally, we went on to our final stop of the day, the archaeological ruins at Ollantaytambo. The village of Ollantaytambo is known as the “living Inca” town because so many of the houses (and the water channels running through the town) were originally built by the Inca. The site overlooks the town and is very large and impressive–and steep! It has a few fountains that are still running from Inca times and the usual impressive Inca stonework. One really interesting thing about the site is that it wasn’t complete when the Spanish found it, so we are able to observe some of the Inca construction techniques, like ramps and hubs on the stones that ropes were tied around to move them. Definitely make time to see this site while you’re in the Sacred Valley!

The drive back to Cusco was only two hours, and we only stopped once, at a mountain overlook with some really cute alpacas. All day we saw lots of animals–donkeys, pigs, sheep, alpacas, dogs, etc. as well as people farming with oxen and plow. We drove some of it along the Urubamba River and at different times went through villages, farmland, and mountains. Near Maras we saw cacti that looked like silly straws, and at other points we could glimpse snow-capped peaks. It was a wonderful day, and I’m glad we were able to enjoy so much of the Sacred Valley before heading to Machu Picchu the next day!

 

At this point we took two days and one night, spending them at Machu Picchu/in Aguas Calientes, before returning to Cusco. You can read about the Machu Picchu segment of the trip here.

Day 5:  Sick/Lazy Day & Cusco Cathedral

On our first day back in Cusco after Machu Picchu, we both still felt pretty sick from getting food poisoning, so we really didn’t do much. We stayed at the hotel watching the one English channel for quite a while–it seemed to play the same few movies over and over, including Fast & Furious 7, The Hangover 3, and Harry Potter 8. When we were ready for lunch we decided to go somewhere that we knew our stomachs could handle, so we walked to the McDonald’s in Plaza de Armas. We had McPollo deluxes and cones, which were pretty much the same as they are in the U.S.

One unusual thing that happened while we were there was that it started hailing. It must not fail that often because there were gaps in the roofline of the McDonald’s and we ended up having to go to the second floor to avoid being hailed on. We did duck outside to see what the hail was like out there and the plaza was quickly filled so that it looked like it had snowed.

Before going back to the hotel we decided to visit the Cusco Cathedral (Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of the Assumption). Photos weren’t allowed inside, but it had three different parts to it, all of which were decorated to the gills. The Cathedral is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and holds a lot of Cusco art. Many of the stones it was built on were actually taken from Sacsayhuaman, since the Spanish were trying to replace the Inca religion with Catholicism.

Day 6: Museo del Sitio de Qoricancha & Santo Domingo

The original plan for our last day in Cusco was to take a trip to visit the Inca ruins and market at Pisac, but since we still didn’t feel too well and the weather wasn’t great we decided to stay in Cusco. We visited Museo del Sitio de Qoricancha and the little park that’s outside of it. The museum was small, but had some really nice artifacts, including some Inca mummies. You have to go through the museum to get into the park (so either pay admission or use your boleto turistico), which was really nice. The walls of the park actually had gold on them during Inca times. Someone had made some snowmen out of the hail the day before in the park, and interestingly, they hadn’t melted. It must be the altitude!

We had lunch at a nearby restaurant called Sepia that was quite good. An appetizer of tequeños with guacamole, arroz chaufa, and seco de res made up our meal.

After lunch we toured the other part of the Qoricancha site, the Church & Convent of Santo Domingo. Qoricancha was the most important Inca temple, but the Spanish took most of it down and built their Convent of Santo Domingo on top of it. Much of the stone structure of the original temple, with some of the best Inca stonework, is still intact underneath. At one point the walls of the Inca temple of Qoricancha were covered with gold and the courtyard filled with gold statues, but of course after the conquest all the gold was gone. Much of it was actually used to ransom Atahualpa’s life from the Spanish. The courtyard of Santo Domingo was pretty and some of the rooms were filled with some beautiful religious art.

We headed back to the hotel then, where we packed up and prepared for the next segment of our trip, five days in the Amazon!