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Cusco itinerary

Every place in “12 Top Places to Visit in Cusco, Peru”. Save places in the guide to make this list yours.

  1. 1

    Plaza de Armas - Colonial Heart of the Inca Capital

    Plaza de Armas occupies the exact site where the Inca emperor Pachacuti laid out Huacaypata, the ceremonial core of the empire. The square is framed by stone arcades, the Cusco Cathedral on its northeast side, and the…

    Address
    Plaza de Armas, Cusco 08000, Peru
    Nearest transit
    Central location - most city buses and colectivos pass within one block. Taxis from Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport take 15-20 minutes and cost 15-20 PEN (3.50-4.70 EUR).
  2. 2

    Cusco Cathedral - Baroque Masterwork on Sacred Inca Ground

    Construction of the Cusco Cathedral began in 1559 using stone blocks pulled from the Sacsayhuaman fortress, and it took nearly a century to complete. The building sits on the foundations of Kiswarkancha, the palace of…

    Address
    Plaza de Armas s/n, Cusco 08000, Peru
    Nearest transit
    Directly on the northeast side of Plaza de Armas. Walk from any central hotel in under 10 minutes.
  3. 3

    Qorikancha and Santo Domingo - Inca Gold Temple Beneath a Spanish Church

    Qorikancha was the most sacred temple in the Inca Empire, its interior walls once sheathed in 700 sheets of solid gold, its courtyard filled with life-sized gold and silver replicas of corn, llamas, and human figures…

    Address
    Plazoleta Intipampa, corner of Avenida El Sol and Calle Santo Domingo, Cusco 08000, Peru
    Nearest transit
    10-minute walk southeast from Plaza de Armas along Calle Loreto and Calle Pampa del Castillo. Any bus heading south on Avenida El Sol stops within one block.
  4. 4

    San Pedro Market - Cusco's Largest Traditional Food Market

    Mercado Central de San Pedro has operated on this site since 1925, housed under an iron-frame roof designed by Gustave Eiffel's engineering firm. The market fills a full city block with over 1,000 stalls organized…

    Address
    Calle Cascaparo s/n, near Calle Santa Clara, Cusco 08000, Peru
    Nearest transit
    7-minute walk southwest from Plaza de Armas along Calle Marques or Calle Santa Clara. Adjacent to the San Pedro train station.
  5. 5

    San Blas - Artisan Quarter with Cusco's Steepest Streets

    San Blas is Cusco's oldest residential neighbourhood, a tangle of narrow cobblestone lanes and whitewashed adobe houses climbing the hillside above the historic centre. The district has been home to artisans and…

    Address
    Barrio de San Blas, Plazoleta San Blas, Cusco 08000, Peru
    Nearest transit
    Steep 10-minute uphill walk from Plaza de Armas via Calle Hatunrumiyoc (passing the Twelve-Angled Stone). No direct bus service - taxis can drop you at Plazoleta San Blas for 5-7 PEN.
  6. 6

    Calle Hatunrumiyoc and the Twelve-Angled Stone - Inca Masonry at Its Finest

    Calle Hatunrumiyoc is a narrow pedestrian lane whose left wall is an original Inca construction - the outer wall of the palace of Inca Roca, the sixth Sapa Inca. The wall extends for roughly 100 metres and features…

    Address
    Calle Hatunrumiyoc, Cusco 08000, Peru
    Nearest transit
    3-minute walk northeast from Plaza de Armas. Head along Calle del Triunfo past the Cathedral, turn left onto Hatunrumiyoc.
  7. 7

    Sacsayhuaman - Megalithic Inca Fortress Above Cusco

    Sacsayhuaman is the single most impressive feat of Inca construction you can see in the Cusco area. Three parallel zigzag walls run for roughly 400 metres across a hillside overlooking the city, built from limestone…

    Address
    Sacsayhuaman Archaeological Park, Cusco 08000, Peru
    Nearest transit
    30-minute steep uphill walk from Plaza de Armas via Calle Suecia and the Resbalosa steps. Taxis cost 10-15 PEN (2.30-3.50 EUR) one way and take 10 minutes.
  8. 8

    Q'enqo - Carved Rock Shrine and Underground Altar

    Q'enqo (also spelled Kenko) is a ceremonial site built around and into a massive limestone outcrop. The name means "zigzag" in Quechua, referring to the channels carved into the rock's surface - thought to have been…

    Address
    Q'enqo Archaeological Site, road to Pisac, Cusco 08000, Peru
    Nearest transit
    4 km from Plaza de Armas. Most visitors walk 15 minutes east from Sacsayhuaman along the road to Pisac. Taxis from the centre cost 15 PEN (3.50 EUR).
  9. 9

    Sacred Valley of the Incas - Ollantaytambo, Pisac and the Urubamba River

    The Sacred Valley follows the Urubamba River through a wide, fertile corridor between Pisac and Ollantaytambo, flanked by steep mountains and dotted with Inca ruins at nearly every turn. Pisac offers two draws: an…

    Address
    Valle Sagrado de los Incas, Urubamba Province, Cusco Region, Peru
    Nearest transit
    Colectivo minibuses to Pisac depart from Calle Puputi in Cusco (1 hour, 10 PEN / 2.30 EUR). Colectivos to Ollantaytambo leave from Calle Pavitos (1.5-2 hours, 15 PEN / 3.50 EUR). Guided Sacred Valley tours with hotel pickup cost 80-150 PEN (19-36 EUR).
  10. 10

    Machu Picchu - The Inca Citadel That Needs No Introduction

    Machu Picchu was built in the mid-15th century under Inca emperor Pachacuti, abandoned roughly a century later, and remained unknown to the outside world until Hiram Bingham's 1911 expedition brought it to international…

    Address
    Machu Picchu, Aguas Calientes (Machupicchu Pueblo), Urubamba Province, Cusco Region 08680, Peru
    Nearest transit
    Train from Ollantaytambo (1.5 hours, 65-90 USD round trip via PeruRail or Inca Rail) or Poroy station near Cusco (3.5 hours). From Aguas Calientes, buses ascend to the citadel entrance in 25 minutes (24 USD round trip). The Inca Trail (4-day hike) arrives directly at the Sun Gate.
  11. 11

    Rainbow Mountain (Vinicunca) - Striped Andean Peak at 5,200 Metres

    Rainbow Mountain, known locally as Vinicunca or Montana de Siete Colores, was hidden beneath glacial ice until accelerated melting in the 2010s exposed bands of mineral-rich sediment in red, gold, green, and turquoise…

    Address
    Vinicunca (Montana de Siete Colores), Cusipata District, Quispicanchi Province, Cusco Region, Peru
    Nearest transit
    No public transport to the trailhead. Guided day tours depart Cusco at 03:00-04:00, drive 3 hours to the Quesiuno or Phulawasipata trailhead, and return by late afternoon. Tours cost 80-150 PEN (19-36 EUR) per person including transport, breakfast, and lunch.
  12. 12

    Inca Trail to Machu Picchu - Four-Day Trek Through Cloud Forest and Mountain Passes

    The classic Inca Trail is a 43-km trek that follows original Inca stone pathways through three high mountain passes, subtropical cloud forest, and a succession of archaeological sites before arriving at Machu Picchu…

    Address
    Km 82 trailhead (Piscacucho), Ollantaytambo District, Urubamba Province, Cusco Region, Peru
    Nearest transit
    Licensed tour operators provide transport from Cusco to the Km 82 trailhead (2-hour drive via Ollantaytambo). The trail can only be hiked with a registered agency - independent trekking is not permitted.

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