Cuzco

I visited Cuzco in May of 2024. Echoing the previous reviewers, it is a lovely living town with a visible exceptional blend of pre-Columbian and Colonial design, boasting a number of superb points of interest.

The central plaza is the focal point of the historic center, presided over by two magnificent churches. La Compania is primarily interesting from the outside, while the cathedral unusually feels like being made up of three side-by-side churches and offers an additional highlight of the "Andean" Last Supper painting, featuring guinea pig as the main course and Francisco Pizarro as Judas. Balconies of the buildings surrounding the main square - and all around the town - are another visual highlight.

Quite a few other churches are worth stopping by or stepping into, but most importantly just walking around the central precincts of Cuzco (or climbing up to San Blas or San Cristobal) brings you to many fetching corners and perspectives.

Qorikancha is one of the top attractions in Cuzco, consisting of the Santo Domingo monastery built on top of the Inka temple. If you are into history and ethnography museums, both Museo Inka and Museo de Arte Precolombiano will be of interest to you with their superb collections. Keep in mind that none of the three attractions in this paragraph, nor the cathedral, are included in the Boleto Turistico.

Saqsaywaman and Qenqo are included in the Boleto and are located on one of the higher elevations right at the edge of …

WHS#27

Cuzco is like the most quintessentially South American city, and yet, there's no other quite like it. It's truly an amalgamation and conglomeration of indigenous and colonial cultures; amalgamation because all these aspects have formed a single fused culture of today's Cuzco, but also a conglomeration in that each specific origin is distinguishable and provides interesting contrasts to the experience of visiting here. It's got this historic core made up of several neighborhoods of colonial architecture with some traces of the precolonial Inca city, surrounded by the modern city of Cuzco. This historic core is off limits to big tour buses and modern concrete buildings, but not from fun things to do even for those less interested in the rich history of the city; it's a great culinary destination with everything from excellent contemporary Peruvian cuisine and chocolate museums to traditional Andean delicacies and street popcorn. The hotels all seemed to lack elevators, but there was a nice laundry shop and a grocery a few steps away from my hotel. It's a living, modern city just as much as it's one of the most important historic centers of Native American culture, and I'm so glad I was able to visit in April 2016.

I arrived and left by Peru Hop, which I highly recommend. This is how I found out that tourist buses weren't allowed into the historic centre, since we had to transfer into smaller vehicles at the office in the modern city. They have an …

Visit: June 2019. With all the interesting places around the town (hub to Machu Picchu, Sacred Valley) it’s easy to forget that Cuzco is actually a really nice town. There are numerous colonial towns in South America and they are not easy to tell apart. Cuzco is different. The colonial town is built on the old Inca town and the large Inca stones still build the foundation of many houses. The narrow cobblestone streets make Europeans feel home. Such a pity cars are still allowed to drive through these streets and make them dangerous to walk. Its location between hills and the special Inca touch make it easily the most scenic town in Peru. Even though it is possible to see the town’s highlights within a day, thanks to its infrastructure Cuzco is the perfect base to discover the area. Roam the countless travel agencies for good deals on Manu NP tours and day trips to the Sacred Valley. I even found a cheap bus trip to Machu Picchu there.

Avoid the time between around October and March if possible. The rainy season is not very pleasant. June till August the weather is mostly nice. It’s also festival season, where countless parades and the famous Inti Raymi take place. Celebrations take the whole day and are primarily from locals for locals, but it’s fun to dip in for a while and soak up the culture.

Cuzco is on the route of the Peru Hop buses, that also covers …

I visited this WHS in June 2019 and allowed 5 nights to explore the historic centre and the several sites around Cusco. It was a very welcome change from Lima even though there were many more tourists here. There are so many sites to see though and different festivals going on in June that it rarely felt crowded or congested except close to the main square.

If you intend to visit different sites around the Sacred Valley, make sure to buy the bolleto general which costs 130 soles and is valid for 10 consecutive days. It would cost way to much if you were to pay around 70 soles for each and every site. Apart from several minor monuments and museums (most interesting being the one of Qorikancha in Cusco), it will give you access to several Inca sites, namely Sacsayhuaman (best to visit before sunset), Qenqo, Puka Pukara and Tambomachay (these 4 can easily make up a worthwhile half day); Pisac and Ollantaytambo (quite a way from Cusco but a worthwhile stop on the way to/from Aguas Calientes and Machu Picchu); Moray and Chinchero (another worthwhile trip which we did on our way back from Machu Picchu and also included Maras salt pans and rural area); as well as Tipon and Pikillacta (which we combined with Rumicolca for an interesting visit of the Qhapac Nan and a combination of Wari and Inca structures).

At over 3400m above sea level, it is worth taking it easy for the …

Cusco is a unique blend of a colonial city with the traditions of the Inkas. The colonial buildings often are set on top of Inka foundations and the city has a unique mountain feel to it. Personally, I enjoyed the San Blas Barrio the most which is tucked on a hillside to the North East of the historic city center.

Cusco is also a pretty touristy place as it serves as hub for the area. You will find plenty of Western tourist amenities. For instance, Cusco was the only place along my trip I managed to take a Yoga class.

For a Peruvian city Cusco felt comparatively dirty. I found both the central districts of Lima and Arequipa better upkept. In addition, the original Inka/colonial town layout is very narrow and illsuited for the amount of traffic the city nowadays has. This, though, is a problem Cusco shares with Arequipa and Lima. More pedestrian precincts would be a nice improvement.

Getting There

Cusco is well connected by both busses and planes to all parts of Peru and some parts of the world. Seeing the distances involved I would counsel to making use of the airport. From the airport you can either take a cab or a collectivo. The collectivo run directly in front of the exit. If you are a train aficionado there is also a train connection to Puno. 

Altitude Sickness

Cusco may very well be your first stop on your trip above 3000m. As such altitude sickness may …

I have spent 6 month in Peru, in 2013. The city of Cuzco is undoubtedly of the most astonishing treasures of the country. It was the capital of the Inca empire. It embodies the association between the Inca culture and the colonial influence. Inca are present through the impressive walls that survived eathquakes, the layout of the city, the Temple of the Sun (combined with Santo Domingo church buildings) and the Sacsahuayman fortress above the city. Colonial architecture can be seen through the magnificent cathedral, churches, convents and secular building. Some of the religious buildings are fine examples of colonial art and real masterpieces, notably the Cathedral, Church of la Merced, Santa Catalina and the Iglesia de la Compania. Wherever you go in the ton you can be amazed by the traditional buildings, huge monuments and typical landscapes.

Altitude and cold can be surprising so prepare yourself.

I first arrived in Cuzco from Arequipa after the bustrip-from-hell: 17,5 hours, driving over mountain passes at night in the snow. Cuzco then appeared to me as a dusty and chaotic large city. I ended up spending 4 nights there in total, before and after my trips to Machu Picchu and Manu National Park. The city nowadays essentially is a transportation hub for the region. It certainly has its merits but I did not like it that much.

In an hour or two you can visit the main sights of the historical center - the bling Cathedral, the disappointing Coricancha temple, and the original streets. What is left of the Inca times are merely some walls and sometimes the street pattern. Maybe the impression would have lasted more if I had seen Cuzco before Machu Picchu and Ollantaytambo.

Probably not included in the WHS are the Inca ruins of Sacsayhuamán. This is a walled complex on the northern outskirts of the city. It was used as a military fortress and had ritual functions as well. Its main defensive wall has an elaborate zigzag shape. It's a nice hike to get there from the city center, and the construction has been done as perfectly as the Incas knew how to do it.

The high-elevation of Cuzco will become apparent as soon as you walk up some stars. The city is beautiful, impressive Inca ruins dot the landscape in and around Cuzco. The sense of history and the past resonates strongly as you walk the streets of Cuzco, where Inca streets and structures still exist, though by in large Spanish buidlings were long ago built on top of them using Inca materials as the foundation. When I travelled here, we were lucky enough to arrive during festival time, men, women, and children dancing in the streets and playing music. Overall a wonderful experience.

I do not include Sacsayhuamán here. While its strange that its not included in the City of Cuzco WHS or the Qhapac Nan WHS, I hope it might be nominated individually as its own WHS in due time.

Very interesting city with great food and extraordinary art and churches. Plan a day for the city along and extra for the surrounding ruins. You may have altitude sickness problems. The city was more interesting than expected and I wish I had scheduled extra time.