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Peru Tourist Guide
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SOUTHERN PERU:
Cusco:
Cusco City
Sacsayhuaman, Kenko and Tambo Machay
The Sacred Valley
Aguas Calientes (Machu Picchu village)
Machu Picchu (The Site)
Inca Trail
Treks around Cusco
Manu Reserve (Jungle)
Tambopata Reserve (Jungle)
Salkantay
Choquequirao
Lares
Ausengate
Rafting
San Blas
Cusco - The Sacred Valley of the Inca's
The Urubamba Valley (El Valle Sagrado)
Most people who visit Cusco also travel to nearby Urubamba Valley, known as the Sacred
Valley because of its spiritual importance to the Incas. The valley is known for its Inca
ruins, picturesque villages and colorful Indian markets.
Pisac
Often travelers begin their visit to the Sacred Valley in Pisac, a colonial town 19 miles
north of Cusco that is famous for its ruins and its large market, attracting artisans from
throughout the region. A pleasant walk takes visitors to the ruins of agricultural terraces,
rooms, temples and ceremonial baths as well as views of hundreds of tombs carved out of cliffs.
Ollantaytambo
Eleven miles from Cusco above the town of Ollantaytambo are the ruins of the same name
consisting of an Inca temple and ceremonial center. Ollantaytambo was called a fortress by
the Spanish. Visiting the ruins, one can only marvel at the remarkable ingenuity of the Incas
to be able to build monumental structures in such inaccessible locations without the benefit of
the wheel. To avoid having to transport the huge boulders to the site without having to ford the
river, the workers instead diverted the river around the boulders.
Other sights in the valley include the adobe village of Chincero where Inca legend says the first
rainbow appeared. Its main church sits atop an Incan ruin that may have served as a royal resort.
Many citizens still wear traditional dress, and the Sunday crafts market is off the beaten tourist
path. For walkers, nearby Lake Piuri offers an easy three-hour route through tiny lakeside villages.
Other towns of the Sacred Valley
Other towns of the Sacred Valley include Salinas, Moray and Maras where one can see salt mines,
and the towns of Calca, Yucay and Urubamba. All four of Southern Explorations' cultural tours to
Machu Picchu visit the Sacred Valley as do most of its Peru trekking tours. The ten-day Andean
Odyssey Multisport tour includes a daylong bicycle excursion through the valley stopping at the
salt mines and small towns on the way to Ollantaytambo. Southern Explorations also offers three
opportunities to add one day tour extensions in the Sacred Valley according to the traveler's
special interests. One tour spends a day in the town of Huilloc, a village famous for its weaving,
stopping at Ollantaytambo and Pisac on the way back. The other two tour extensions are rafting
trips on the Urubamba River. The first is for beginning rafters, stopping at Pisac afterwards.
The second is for more experienced rafters with an adrenaline-filled finale and a stop in
Ollantaytambo afterwards.
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