The Sacred Valley has long been home to attractive colonial towns, isolated villages, handicraft markets and Inca citadels such as Pisac, Ollantaytambo and Urubamba.
Visit the salt pans and terraces of Moray, which were made by building retaining walls filled with fertile soil. At the base of the terraces, there is a rainwater storage system. The whole system allowed the Incas to cultivate more than 250 types of vegetables.
The tour begins with the pick up of the group at 6:30 am, we will go to our first point to visit Chinchero, we will visit its traditional market and the archaeological center. There, we will be able to observe the impressive Inca architecture, the cultivation areas, we will admire the incredible agricultural terraces, there, we will spend about 1 hour, exploring this Inca citadel.
Next, we will visit the archaeological site of Moray, also known as “The greenhouses of the Incas”. It consists of an evolving bowl of ecological terraces. The terraces are carved out of a huge basin, which were excavated by the Incas for agricultural purposes. The terraces have varied microclimates depending on the depth of the basin. It is believed that the Incas used them to discover the ideal growing conditions for their different crops. We will also visit the salt mines known as SALINERAS DE MARAS. This place was of great importance in the PRE INKA – INKA- COLONIAL times and nowadays. The inhabitants of the town benefit from the salt extracted from these mines.
We will continue our tour heading to the village of urubanba where we will have a delicious lunch (buffet) finally we will arrive to Ollantaytambo, having time to explore the ancient and bustling Inca town next to the huge Inca ruins, with a tour provided by our guide. We will then take the train to Aguas Calientes, where we will spend the night in a hotel.
Starting off with excitement on your last day, we will take the bus to the archaeological site of Machu Picchu, and arrive for the guided tour, making sure to visit every corner of the World Cultural Heritage Site. On your 2.5 hour tour, your guide will lead you through the ruins and its various main streets.
Machu Picchu is made up of more than 200 houses, plazas, granaries, palaces, temples and observatories. The most significant buildings are; the temple of the sun, the main square, the temple of the three windows, the temple of the condor and the Inti Watana. Other points of interest are the funerary rock, the main gate, the Acllahuasi, the royal mausoleum and the house of the princess, among many other wonders.
Finally, you will descend to Aguas Calientes, have lunch on your own and then board the train at 14:55 for the return trip with the Expedition train to Ollantaytambo train station, where you will enter our private transportation, for your return to the city of Cusco and we will go directly to your hotel.