A week around Cusco and the Sacred Valley of the Incas

We started our Peru tour in Cusco in August/September 2019. This is perhaps a bit unusual, as you are supposed to acclimatize slowly to the altitude. However, I must say that it wasn't really a problem and I would do it again.

First, we explored the Plaza de Armas and tried our first guinea pig. I have to say it was actually quite delicious, although the restaurant right on the Plaza de Armas was not very good, but very expensive. However, we wanted to enjoy the great view as a start to the vacation, so we bit the bullet. I recommend going to the side streets instead. Here we found very good and affordable restaurants thanks to TripAdvisor, which offered real highlights. Especially the Organika was amazing. 😍

Next, we visited Sacsayhuaman.

IMPORTANT: Here you can buy the tourist ticket, which gives you access to various attractions. So keep it safe. It is valid for 1 week or so.

The view from Sacsayhuaman is simply beautiful and you should definitely see it. The ruins themselves are not that spectacular, but we saw our first wild llamas here.

Funny fact: There is a colorful rock that looks like a slide. You absolutely have to climb up and slide down. But be careful, the rock is very slippery.

Afterwards, we visited various artist districts and Coricancha.

The highlight came on the third day. A visit to the alternative Rainbow Mountains with the travel company Exploor at an altitude of about 5000 m. There is no mass tourism here and we had the mountains to ourselves at the beginning. At the hotspot, a Peruvian band was even filming their music video, which was quite amusing. The view was breathtaking and I will never forget this place. The trip was topped off with a llama that we were allowed to lead. 😍 It was supposed to be an alpaca trek, but the local guide had a different opinion. 😉

Next up was the journey to Machu Picchu. So we took a minibus to Ollantaytambo. There we visited the ruins and an old grain storehouse. The grain storehouse is located on the mountain opposite the ruins and offers a fantastic view of the ruins. At 4 pm we took the train directly to Aquas Calientes.

So Machu Picchu, probably the most famous place in Peru. We had already bought the tickets 2 months before the trip, as we wanted to make sure to enter at 6 o'clock.

We traveled by buses. Yes, we wanted to save our energy for the uphill hike. When we arrived at the top, unfortunately my ticket was not valid from 6 o'clock as printed, but only from 7 o'clock according to the computer. That caused some stress and sadness to miss the sunrise. At 7 o'clock, we were finally allowed to enter. And after a short photo session, we started the climb to the big mountain, Machu Picchu Mountain. After a hike of about 2 hours, we made it. Exhausted, we were able to enjoy a great view of Machu Picchu. ❤️ It is simply impressive and was one of the most beautiful experiences of the trip. Across from it is Huayna Picchu, whose ascent is much steeper but only half as long. However, we wanted to go all the way to the top, so we chose the higher mountain.

Afterwards, we explored the ruins. This is only allowed in the direction of the indicated circular route. If you change direction, you will be redirected by staff back to the regular path.

Note: There are only toilets outside the ruins. With tickets including the mountain, you are allowed to leave the ruins once and re-enter. But we didn't dare and it was also not really possible to take a shortcut beforehand due to the circular route and then start over again.

Since we still had time before the return journey, we visited the hot springs of Aquas Calientes. That was simply fantastic after this tough day.

To be able to visit Maras and Moray, we took the train back to Ollantaytambo. There we found a private driver who visited both attractions with us.

Maras and Moray are very interesting and I can only recommend them. First, we went to Moray. The estimated time for the circular walks in Moray is not quite accurate and is rather pessimistic. We were able to see everything within 1-1.5 hours. The driver did not give us any more time. 😂

In Maras, I was able to expand my salt collection. 😉 The view of the thousands of salt fields is simply amazing.

We ended in Chinchero. There is not much to see here except for a small ruin. However, only from here cheap minibuses go back to Cusco.

Another tip for Cusco: Visit the Chocolate Museum. Here you can take a free tour and get many free samples. We then did a chocolate workshop for a small fee. That was really fun. I even read a tip for that: Chocolate with salt from Maras. I tried it of course and I can say: Don't do it. 😂

All in all, a week in and around Cusco was enough for us to see the most important sights. I wouldn't recommend going shorter. Rather, you should plan two more days for one or the other attraction. Contrary to all expectations, the time was very enjoyable and not too stressful despite the tight schedule. We were still able to enjoy everything very well and had a lot of fun.

In conclusion, I can only say that Cusco and its surroundings are simply incredible and definitely worth at least one trip. We will never forget the time and in my opinion, it is the most beautiful corner of Peru. ❤️