A Guide to Sacred Valley: Best Things to Do and See
Peru's Sacred Valley is, together with Cusco, a gateway to Machu Picchu. Read our Sacred Valley travel guide that includes the best things to see and do, but also tips on when is the best time to visit, where to stay, or how to get around. Explore the beautiful ruins of Pisac, Ollantaytambo, Moray, Saqsaywaman, Chinchero, or Maras Salt Mines.
Before our trip to South America, we had planned many things, but there was one thing we certainly did not intend. The fact that out of almost two months spent in Peru, we will be based about three weeks in the Cusco area.
Cusco and Sacred Valley are some of the most visited places in the whole of Peru, that's no secret, but we found these places so captivating that we decided not to leave before exploring as many sites as we could and before we see the best this area has to offer.
Without any doubt, Sacred Valley must be on your Peru travel itinerary.
Sacred Valley boasts mysteries, Incan history, an uncountable number of ruins, stone terraces, and the beautiful natural settings in the photogenic valley carved by Urubamba River is hard to match.
The combination of engineering skills of Inca civilization, history, and incredible landscape have been catching travelers' attention for decades.
What also put the Sacred Valley and Cusco on every traveler's bucket list is the proximity to Peru's iconic site, Machu Picchu, and nearby trailheads of some of the most beautiful hikes in the world.
If you're planning on hiking the original path to Machu Picchu, the Inca Trail, or want to enjoy the spectacular views along just as beautiful Salkantay Trek, Cusco, and, by extension, Sacred Valley are the best places you can base yourself in before and after treks.
Simply put, this valley, dotted with many top attractions, that stretches for roughly 100 kilometers is a destination that cannot be missed.
As we've had enough time to explore the Sacred Valley, we've decided to share all our knowledge with you, our readers, so you can start planning the trip.
This Sacred Valley travel guide includes practical tips, and, most importantly, we share the best things to see and do.
WHAT TO DO IN CUSCO
No post about the best things to see and do in the Sacred Valley cannot start without at least a short introduction to Cusco, which is, thanks to the excellent tourist infrastructure and genius loci, the only place the majority of travelers consider for staying.
The city of Cusco is a major tourist hub for all travelers visiting Peru. The city is interesting on its own, but only after taking one of many day trips from Cusco you can appreciate the beauty of this former Inca region.
And here we encountered a problem which bothered us for all the time we spent in the country. It is not an unknown fact that Peru (as most South American countries) has an extensive corruption problem.
But this issue is particularly glaring here, in Cusco, a city where the income from tourism yearly comes up to millions of dollars, and we couldn't stop wondering where all the money goes.
Definitely not into the infrastructure or cleaning of communal areas. It is probably naive, but we feel that money (and we are not talking about an insignificant amount) from tourism should be seen somewhere and that local communities should thrive thanks to this income.
Nevertheless, when we overlook this fact and start focusing on the brighter side - the history and architecture itself, we must admit that there is something about Cusco.
The city center of Cusco is full of churches, narrow cobblestone alleys, and spacious plazas. The city is listed in UNESCO, although many buildings from Inca's period were destroyed by Spaniards who arrived in the 16th century and built churches and houses in European and colonial style.
An interesting fact is that constructions that remained left from Inca times survived several devastating earthquakes until today. In contrast, the new ones from the Spanish times had to be rebuilt repeatedly as they did not last.
Not only architecturally but also historically is Cusco an extraordinary city. It was the capital of the Inca Empire from the 13th until the 16th century.
From this place, the Incas ruled the vast empire, and during this time, Cusco also flourished - many notable constructions were built, and many legends from that time remain until today.
One of those legends, for example, says that the city was built in the shape of a puma, an Incan sacred animal.
Well, the easiest way, before you start exploring the Sacred Valley, is to climb to a hill overlooking the city and see whether it is true or not by yourself.
VISITING SACRED VALLEY
One hundred kilometers long valley stretches from Pisac Ruins and Pisac Town (20 kilometers from Cusco) to Machu Picchu's citadel.
At Inca's times, the valley was not only an important area for constructing several checkpoints (nowadays ruins or archaeological sites) and the main path from Cusco to Machu Picchu.
But thanks to stable temperatures all year round, sustained source of water (from Urubamba river) and two distinct seasons - wet and dry - the area was (and still is) perfect for agriculture.
Incas were people skilled in plant cultivation, and when traveling in the valley, you can notice agriculture terraces, which, for us, are lovely to look at, but local people still use them to grow crops.
BEST THINGS TO SEE AND DO IN THE SACRED VALLEY
Nowadays, visiting the Sacred Valley is basically about admiring the fruits of Inca civilization labor, combined with views of deep valleys, hilly countryside, and snow-capped mountains in the distance.
When exploring Sacred Valley, be prepared for one thing. You will see lots of ruins and terraces.
Honestly, we never got tired of them and always looked forward to seeing new ruins no matter we had already visited a few well-known sites in the country, such as the massive stone-walled Kuelap in Northern Peru or the largest pre-Columbian adobe city in South America, Chan Chan to name a few.
Here's a list of places and top attractions you shouldn't miss on your way to explore Sacred Valley.
PISAC RUINS & PISAC TOWN
One of our favorite archaeological gems of Sacred Valley was Pisac Ruins.
The Inca ruins lie atop a hill above Pisac Town - the central part is located on the very top, but other former buildings or sometimes rather piles of stones are scattered over the grassy land.
Because of the atop position, the primary purpose of Pisac Ruins was to protect Cusco from possible attacks.
There are two ways how to visit Pisac Ruins, by car or hiking. If you have a half-day and you are reasonably fit, we strongly recommend you the latter option as it is very scenic.
But you need to get to Pisac first. There is a road leading directly to the archaeological site's entrance, so you can either take a tour from Cusco (tours usually combine several sites including Pisac and cost around $25 when booked in Cusco), take a taxi from Cusco, or arrive by minivan to Pisac town and here take a cab to the gate.
What do we see as a disadvantage?
Because parts of ruins are all around the path leading to Pisac, you won't be by no means able to see everything, only the most crowded section of ruins.
Instead of traveling by car, we decided to hike from Pisac town to Pisac Ruins.
The whole trail leads uphill, so it is a good way how to prepare yourself for other treks high in the Andes. The distance from town to the highest point of ruins is 4 km, and it should take you about two hours one way.
Of course, you can arrive at the entrance by car and walk only downhill. By hiking this trail, you will enjoy beautiful views, an almost abandoned trek, and more ruins.
Pisac town is famous for traditional markets, so if shopping is your thing, you shouldn't forget to make a stop here.
It is easy to get to Pisac independently. Take a colectivo from Puputi street in Cusco for S/5. Vans leave when full from 7 AM.
To get back to Cusco, catch a regular minivan on the main road intersecting Pisac.
OLLANTAYTAMBO
There is a big chance you will visit Ollantaytambo more than once during your stay in Cusco because most travelers take a train to Aguas Calientes from here, a town that serves as a base for visiting Machu Picchu.
But there is another reason why to visit Ollantaytambo separately - the Ollantaytambo Ruins.
A former Inca administrative center and a control point for the entrance to the Amazon corner of the Inca Empire lie approximately two hours' drive from Cusco.
For that reason, it is better to combine this site with other attractions on the way.
Ollantaytambo Ruins is a vast site characterized by an extensive set of agricultural terraces which are higher and broader than usual Inca's terraces.
Another distinguishing element are the old storehouses, you can see from the ruins when looking on the other side of the valley; and also the Temple of the Sun standing on the top.
The most impressive feeling is when you stand on the top of the ruins, look on the other side of the valley, and when you realize that all large stones come from the quarry on the other side of the valley, approximately 5 kilometers away.
But the most jaw-dropping moment comes when you understand that Inca people did not use animals or wheel to move stones from one place to another and created everything by human labor and power.
From Cusco, you can get to Ollantaytambo by colectivo for S/10 from Calle Grau. We visited those ruins with a tour that included all sites below plus Pisac (this one we visited separately).
The tour costs S/80 per person and includes lunch.
MORAY
Well, by now, you've probably seen so many ruins that you cannot distinguish one from another. But we can promise that you will remember Moray Ruins because they look different.
Like an amphitheater. That's also what scientists at first thought when they discovered Moray Ruins; that Incas probably played a theater here.
Although terraces of Moray Ruins have a circular shape, they had a different purpose.
It is not a secret that Incas were geniuses in agriculture and plant cultivation, and nowadays, it is believed that they used those ruins as an agricultural laboratory.
Each level of the terraces has a different temperature, different microclimate, and the design and orientation to the sun suggest that Incas experimented with plants and crops here.
Experiments have also shown that the soil comes from several Peruvian regions, and although this region of Peru suffers from flooding in the rainy season, Moray Ruins never flood. Pretty cool fact, right?
The easiest way how to visit Moray Ruins is to take a Sacred Valley Tour from Cusco.
Otherwise, you must take a minivan from Cusco to the village of Maras for S/7, and it takes about an hour. From here, you must get a taxi for S/50 (this price usually includes a stop at Maras salt Mines as well).
SACSAYHUAMAN
When you walk to Cusco's main square and look up, you will see a large white sculpture of Jesus Christ.
At the same elevation but only a bit to your left lies the most significant Inca's Ruins within Cusco, Sacsayhuaman.
It is a favorite trip for people staying in the city only for a day or two as it is easily reachable either by public transport (take a colectivo going to Cristo Blanco or a minivan to Pisac and ask to be dropped off at Sacsayhuaman) or walk approximately a half an hour uphill from the city center.
By the way, the correct pronunciation is something very similar to 'Sexy Woman'.
Sacsayhuaman was a fortress, and even Spaniards who arrived in Cusco in the 16th century admired Incan precise work with the stone.
Until today, some of the stones are so closely spaced together that not a single piece of paper fit between them.
There are another three ruins within 8 kilometers from Cusco and although Sacsayhuaman is the most impressive you can take a bus to Pisac and ask a driver to drop you off at the furthest ruin from Cusco - Tambomachay and from here walk back to the city via Qenqo, Pukapukara, and Sacsayhuaman.
As most places near Cusco lie in the altitude - the city itself is located almost 3400 meters above sea level, visiting ruins nearby are perfect for proper acclimatization.
CHINCHERO
A beautiful adobe church and a colorful market will tell you that you're near Chinchero Ruins. By now, you might have understood that there are way too many things to do in the Sacred Valley, which is probably why the site of Chinchero a little bit overlooked.
The village of Chinchero and those ruins are usually visited during Sacred Valley Tours from Cusco and are often ignored by independent travelers because public transport is unreliable here.
The ruins at Chinchero consist of a series of nested terraces built for farming and agricultural purposes, and some are still in use today.
The soil at Chinchero is fertile and one of the bests in the Sacred Valley to produce potatoes.
Still, the main reason why the Inca Tupac, a son of the famous Pachacutec, used Chinchero was way different as he kept it as a sort of country resort: to relax and muster the strength to rule the Inca Empire.
Well, we don't blame him as the settings of Chinchero couldn't be better.
When the weather is perfect (as was during our visit), you can see many high mountains around, including one of the most significant ones, Salkantay.
MARAS SALT MINES
The only place we visited in the Sacred Valley, which is not a ruin, are salt mines in Maras, but it still has a connection with the Incas, who used this place to mine the salt more than 500 years ago.
Nowadays, there are still thousands of salt ponds belonging to hundreds of families who live nearby.
Traditionally the salt mines had been available to any person wishing to harvest salt; the person had to be a member of the community and the size of the pond he got depended on the size of the family.
Despite the fact that the salt mine is still in use and it is possible to buy the salt in the nearby shops, today the principal source of income is tourism.
Boleto Turistico is not valid here, and you must pay the S/10 entrance fee.
It is possible to harvest salt only during the dry season, so when we arrived in mid-November, no people were working, but still, the view of thousands of salt ponds was incredible.
ENTRANCE FEE TO SACRED VALLEY
You surely couldn't think that a tourist attraction of such importance would be for free.
Technically, when entering the Sacred Valley, you don't need to pay anything - you can travel freely in a car, by bus, or by train and experience the beauty of the country.
But you must pay an entrance fee when visiting every single ruin in the valley, and the price is pretty steep.
If you're planning on visiting multiple sites, the best option is to buy an integral ticket. The ticket costs S/130, and it is valid for ten days and allows you to visit 16 sites (museums and ruins within Cusco and Sacred Valley).
In case you don't have that much time or want to visit only a couple of sites, you can buy a partial ticket.
It costs S/70, but it is valid for only one or two days (depending on the circuit).
But here's the catch. Peruvian government smartly divided all sites into three circuits, so it means that if you want to visit two sites that are not in the same circuit, you must purchase either two tickets or buy the ten-days pass straight away.
In general, almost all Sacred Valley sites require purchasing Boleto Turistico; only a few of them can be visited on a separate ticket.
HOW TO GET TO SACRED VALLEY
The traditional access point to the Sacred Valley is Cusco, so you need to get there first. Luckily, Cusco is well-connected with all major cities in Peru.
Buses run to Cusco regularly from Lima, but it’s actually better to fly in from Lima to save time.
Many bus companies also run from Nazca (home to mysterious Nazca Lines), Arequipa (read more about Arequipa and Colca Canyon day tour), Puno, or Copacabana in Bolivia (visit famous Isla del Sol), etc.
From Cusco, you can either take an organized tour to Sacred Valley or public transport.
The only downside of taking public transport is that every destination in Sacred Valley has a different bus station.
So you always have to figure out which bus station is the right one. Also, when pressed for time, it is better to take a tour and see more places in one day as visiting all sites separately would take you much longer.
You can visit the tourist information center iPeru on the main square (in the BCP bank building) to get more information.
GUIDED TOURS
We've already mentioned that there are several ways to explore Sacred Valley, and no matter how we like exploring places on our own, we opted for the tour as it seemed to us quite reasonable.
The price was not that high, and it was time-efficient.
We've handpicked the most popular tours, so you can check it out and decided whether you want to go this way.
Remember, traveling independently is still an option. Like us, you can combine these transport options.
Sacred Valley Day Tour | The most popular way for most people to visit the Sacred Valley is with a tour, where you can see most of the attractions in only one day. You can join one of the best-rated tours from Cusco.
Moray and Salt Mines Half-Day Tour | Another popular way how to visit one of the best attractions in Sacred Valley is on a half-day tour.
Quad Bike Tour | A thrilling quad bike to Moray and Salt Mines is a popular alternative to a traditional tour.
Rafting Tour | Or you can do something more adventurous and enjoy the Sacred Valley from a completely different perspective while rafting on the Urubamba river.
WHEN TO GO
Cusco city lies at a high altitude, same as other attractions you can visit on day trips from here. When traveling, you should always be ready for all weather conditions.
Although the dry season from May to October usually promises sunny days, it is also Peruvian winter, and it can be chilly, especially in the mountains.
On the other hand, November to April is the rainy season, so that you will need some protection for sure, but temperatures are higher.
Travel Insurance
We never leave home without travel insurance that was designed to cover our expenses if something goes wrong during the trip.
Travel insurance protects against theft, flight delays, injury, illness, cancellations, and much more.
World Nomads provides travel insurance for travelers to cover their trip essentials, including sports and adventure activities.
SafetyWing is affordable travel insurance for backpackers, long-term travelers, and digital nomads.
Travel smarter and safer!
WHAT TO PACK
Here are a few essential things you should pack for exploring Sacred Valley.
A quality daypack is undoubtedly a must-have when traveling outside Cusco for a day. Make sure your backpack fits extra clothes, water, and snacks.
It is worth investing in a daypack with a back support and waist strap.
Packing layers is essential as the weather can change literally any minute.
A fleece jacket, the same as a down jacket, always comes in handy. To be protected against rain and wind, pack a good-quality jacket that will keep you warm when you stop for a break.
Sun is powerful higher you go, do not forget a quality sunscreen. We used 50+ SPF, and it worked well.
Finally, it is impossible to drink tap water in Peru. But staying hydrated is important for preventing altitude sickness.
In order to keep your plastic waste to a minimum, use a traditional reusable water bottle.
Or consider purchasing more modern gear such as water bottle with integrated filter or SteriPen.
We've also written an in-depth South America packing list where you will find more useful tips and advice on what to pack.
WHERE TO STAY IN CUSCO
We've already shared that we think that Cusco is one of the best places to stay before you start exploring Sacred Valley.
Of course, you can find a hotel in smaller towns in the valley, but the truth is, we would opt for these alternatives only in case you're looking for a more peaceful experience.
When choosing a hotel, always consider several criteria. In this case, how far your hotel is from the bus station or whether travel agencies offer a pick-up and drop off at your accommodation.
We've handpicked the best three hotels in Cusco for every budget category; feel free to get inspired.
Budget | Cusco Bed and Breakfast - Spacious and clean rooms, comfortable beds, very quiet at night, excellent location.
Mid-range | Tierra Viva Cusco Centro - Providing a tranquil environment, beautiful rooms and also has one of the top-rated locations in Cusco.
Luxury | JW Marriott El Convento Cusco - The hotel features impressive interiors, has a charming colonial courtyard, luxury rooms, and Cusco’s cathedral or main square are only three blocks away.
Travel Resources
Here you can find links to all the travel resources we use and which you might find helpful when planning your next holiday.
Accommodation: When looking for accommodation, we usually search hotels via Booking.com or Hostelworld.
Tours: Although we love to travel independently, some places are better to visit with a guided tour.
We prefer GetYourGuide for its easy-to-use interface and solid reputation. Another great alternative is Viator.
Rental Cars: When going on a road trip, we always use Rentalcars.com, a reliable site for booking a rental car in advance.
Flight Tickets: When looking for flight tickets, you can search Skyscanner to find the best price.
Travel Insurance: World Nomads and SafetyWing cover against risks of travel.
