Peru is a special country for me. It’s the first place where I went backpacking on my own. I joined a volunteer activity in Lima in the spring of 1999, and traveled to various places during my stay. Among these, Cusco was my favorite. When I left for Cusco, I told my colleague that I’d be back in four days. However, as soon as I saw the town from the airplane window and after landing at the airport, I immediately fell in love with it and ended up staying a week.
I had an amazing time in Cusco. While the first things I did were to visit Machu Picchu and stroll around the townI later explored the town and its suburbs in greater depth following advice from other travelers and my guidebook. So, here are the top 7 things that I enjoyed and would confidently recommend seeing and doing in Cusco.
- Go to Machu Picchu and climb to the top of Huayna Picchu
- One-day drive in Cusco valley
- Stroll in the beautiful town of Cusco
- Visit Sacsayhuaman
- Visit Inca ruins beyond Machu Picchu
- Go to local markets
- Shop for pretty souvenirs
Also, given that the air is quite thin due to the high altitude, the final piece of advice would be to not expect to cover too many things and places in one day. Instead, it’s a good idea to plan a more relaxed itinerary. If you end up with spare time, there are many things to do in the town, such as sipping coffee on the terrace of a cafe in the Plaza de Armas the (central square).
1. Go to Machu Picchu and climb to the top of Huayna Picchu
After traveling to Cusco, everyone, without fail, goes to Machu Picchu. It’s the best-known ruin of the Inca Empire, perched within the steep-sided mountains of the Andes. Despite having read many articles about it and seeing many amazing photos, walking on the site for real was still an incredible experience. It’s well known that you can go there on a one-day trip from Cusco. If you’re confident you have the stamina, why not plan to climb up to the top of Huayna Picchu for a great view of the entire city?
After descending from Huayna Picchu, you’ll still have enough time to go around the site. The ruins cover a vast and include not only buildings that were used for rituals, but also for living and farming to grow crops. It’s amazing how every facility and building was thoughtfully designed to ensure the entire city functioned well.
By the way, there are some amazing views from the train on the way up to Machu Picchu. Be sure to ask for a window seat!
2. One-day drive in Cusco valley
The best bit of advice given to me by other travelers was to do a one-day drive in Cusco valley. So I hired a taxi and asked the driver to go to some places that I wanted to as well as a couple of that he recommended. Of course, while destinations such as ruins or churches are always worth visiting, the views from the car window were consistently breathtaking. Beautiful mountain ridges, lakes reflecting the greenery, fields full of abundant harvests – I could be never tired of seeing those things!
The small Andahuaylillas Church was particularly fascinating and was a pleasant surprise on the drive, though it’s not mentioned in the guidebook as a major attraction. While it has a pretty and decent exterior design, like other churches in the valley, the interior decoration of mural paintings is extremely beautiful, rich in the local influence of Andean religious art.
If you ask the taxi driver in advance, he may take you to see some unnamed Inca ruins on the way.
3. Stroll in the beautiful town of Cusco
The town of Cusco is beautiful and full of ambience from the ancient Incas. Make sure you leave enough time for a stroll around the town – explore the pretty streets, drop by museums or galleries, sip a coffee, and so on. The town’s finest Inca stone architecture will transport you back to the time of the Incas. Don’t miss Calle Loreto, where you walk between the stone-built Inca walls, and look out for the Twelve Angled Stone (La Piedra de Los Doce Anguios). Also, visit Iglesia de San Blas (church) and the narrow street where white buildings line both sides. Be amazed by the perfect stone architecture and engineering of the Inca Empire at Qorikancha (Temple of the Sun). Finally, wander through the local San Pedro Market where you will find local products as well as souvenirs.
4. Visit Sacsayhuaman
Sacsayhuaman is a fortress-temple complex from the ancient Inca Empire. Personally, along with Machu Picchu, this was the most impressive ruin due to its fine stone-walls. The walls of the main fort especially, which form beautiful zigzag curves in order, are beautiful and dynamic. The huge stones measure up to 5 meters high and 2.5 meters wide, were cut to fit together perfectly with no mortar – how they did it remains a mystery to this day! The ancient site is vast, but it’s worth walking around to see some of the key sacred buildings such as the towers, shrines, residential buildings, roads, and so on. There is also a spectacular view of Cusco from the hill.
5. Visit Inca ruins beyond Machu Picchu
The sacred valley is home to many other Inca ruins, including Ollantaytambo, Pisac, Pikilacta, Qenqo and Puka Pukara. Of those, Ollantaytambo would definitely be the priority. It’s a living Inca town as well as an Inca archaeological site. Like at Machu Picchu or Sacsayhuaman, there are many unsolved mysteries with regard to Inca’s engineering – some of the massive stones were brought from the other side of the river and carried up to the highest point of Ollantaytambo. Explore the site with a local guide, or your guidebook, and learn more about those amazing facts relating to the Empire. You can visit as a part of a one-day drive in the valley, but be sure to allow several hours to explore the huge site.
6. Go to local markets
There’s always a local market around a town’s landmark, such as a church, and Cusco and the villages in the vallley are no exception. If you’re on a one-day drive in the valley, ask the taxi driver to drop by some of them. You’ll see a bit of local life up close.
7. Shop for pretty souvenirs
Traditional Andean textiles are quite high-quality and pretty. Cusco is the best place to purchase alpaca products, such as bags, sweaters and ponchos. Enjoy your shopping time!
Hopefully, this page has provided some ideas and information to help you plan a trip to Cusco!