Cusco Tourist Places | Upon arrival in Cuzco you will find many Cusco Tourist Places, some are in the historic center, others are in the sacred valley. Below we mention the best attractions with all the details about opening hours, price, how to get there, location, etc.
Contents
- Plaza de Armas of Cusco in the historic centre of Cusco
- San Pedro Market in the historic centre of Cusco
- San Blas neighborhood in the historic centre of Cusco
- Sacsayhuamán on the outskirts of Cusco
- Pisac ruins and Market in the Sacred Valley
- Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley
- Choquequirao in the Cusco Region
- The Rainbow Mountain in Cusco
- Machu Picchu in the Cusco Region
- How to visit the most popular tourist places in Cusco?
Plaza de Armas of Cusco in the historic centre of Cusco
In pre-Hispanic times it was the nerve center of the Andean civilization called the Empire of the Incas (1100 AD to 1532 AD), the original name is Aucay Pata which means The Most Important Place and around it were palaces, temples, armories , schools and in the central part there was a truncated pyramid where ceremonial activities were carried out.
San Pedro Market in the historic centre of Cusco
The market was built at the beginning of the 20th century, in the year of 1929 where a Slaughterhouse or Camal previously existed, the slaughterhouse was relocated and in its place the market designed by Alexander Eiffel (the same man who designed the tower) was built. Eiffel in Paris, France). In this place you can find almost everything cheap, you can buy food, fruits, juices, gifts, etc.
The market is open every day from 7am until 5pm, it’s free!
San Blas neighborhood in the historic centre of Cusco
In the Inca period this neighborhood was known as “Toco Cachi”, which means Salt Mine neighborhood. When the Spaniards arrived at Cusco city in 1534, the entire neighborhood was redesigned and renamed as San Blas, Despite the romanization of the neighborhood, today it still looks very beautiful, colonial, traditional and bohemian. Almost all the houses are painted white and blue, these colors represent Cusco city.
Sacsayhuamán on the outskirts of Cusco
Sacsayhuamán is an archaeological complex dating back to the beginning of the XV century, it was ordered to be built by Pachaquet (9th emperor), the complex was used as a fortress to protect Cusco city, it was also part of the Inca city wall to protect the capital city of the Inca empire; This site had also religious functions; Cusco city had a shape of Puma that could only be seeing form the air, the heat of the Puma was Saqsayhuama. Today, the most outstanding feature is the presence of mega-lithic pieces that weigh up to 200 tons.
It is open every day from 7am until 5:30 pm.
To access the place you have to buy the Tourist Ticket (It is a ticket that costs approximately 42 USD and includes 16 tourist attractions, you can buy it at any tourist attraction that requires you to have this ticket)
How to get to Saqsayhuaman? We suggest you take a taxi (one way), pay about 3 USD – total price, inside this archeological site you will find Authorized Tourist Guides, normally they charge from 10 to 15 USD pp. It is not mandatory to hire a Guide, you can also do a city tour of Cusco that includes this place.
Pisac ruins and Market in the Sacred Valley
The Pisaq archaeological site dates back to the Inca period, built on top of a mountain, because the ancient peruvians used to use the fertile valleys for agriculture (not to building cities), therefore most pre-hispanic cities were were erected on top of the mountains
To Access Pisaq, you will need to buy the Tourist Ticket (see above)
The Pisaq market is one of the few millennial, pre-Hispanic and 100% original markets that is still in operation, bartering is still carried out in this place.
Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley
We refer to the living city and the Ollantaytambo archaeological complex.
The living city of Ollantaytambo is the only active Inca city that still operates, not only do people maintain their tradition but also the urban layout of the Inca period is maintained.
The Ollantaytmabo archaeological complex shows you the great advance of the Andean man in the carving and transfer of cyclopean stone pieces.
Choquequirao in the Cusco Region
It is one of the Archaeological Jewels that Cusco has as a region, it was discovered at the end of the 20th century, it functioned as a home for the last Incas who exercised resistance against the Spanish.
The entrance is approximately 15 USD, buy it at this link through a travel agency.
Consider that the only way to access this place is through a paid or organized tour, the price can vary from 400 to 700 UDS, it is a tour of 4 or even 5 days.
The Rainbow Mountain in Cusco
Yes, a multi-colored mountain that has become fully known not long ago, a unique natural spectacle in the world. Vinicunca mountain, which is about 4200 m.a.s.l. is the protagonist, also known as the “Rainbow Mountain”
The Entrance is approximately 5 USD, the entrance is paid by the community members on site, we do not recommend visiting this tourist attraction via travel agency.
Machu Picchu in the Cusco Region
It is not necessary to mention this place to you, because 99.9% of the visitors that come to Cusco, come to this city because they want to know this Jewel of Peru in the world of tourism.
We recommend going to this place by Train, if you want to save money you can do it by bus, but don’t expect a good quality in terms of transportation.
To access this place you have to pay an entrance of approximately 50 USD, you can buy it at this link.
How to visit the most popular tourist places in Cusco?
There are many ways, you can take a paid group tour, a private tour and if you only want to know some of the tourist sites in the center of Cusco, you can take a Free Walking Tour in Cusco, to see timetables, meeting point, route see and Book via website for our tours. At the end of the tour an average Donation of 7 to 10 USD per person is left. Reservations are mandatory.
See the comments of the free tours below:
