Cusco City Half-Day Tour ( small group)

Highlights

Inclusions

Itinerary

1. Built during the reign of the Inca Pachacutec to honor the Sun, the Tawantinsuyos' most important divinity, Qorikancha translates as "Court of Gold." Conquistadors' jaws must have dropped when they saw the gold-plated walls of the temple glinting in the sunlight.

   40 min

2. Dominating the Plaza de Armas, the monumental cathedral is one of Cusco's grandest buildings. Built in 1550 on the site of the palace of the Inca Wiracocha and using stones looted from the nearby Inca fortress of Sacsayhuamán, the cathedral is a perfect example of the imposition of the Catholic faith on the indigenous population.

   40 min

3. This immense ruin of both religious and military significance was built using megalithic limestone rocks, some of them weighing as much as 120 tons, The name itself can be translated as “speckled head” and some say that the city of Cusco was laid out in the shape of a puma, with Sacsayhuaman forming the head.

   50 min

4. ​It was one of the most important wak'as (holy places) in the Incan Cusco. Many wak'as were based on naturally occurring rock formations. It was believed to be a place where sacrifices and mummification took place.

   25 min

5. ​Tambomachay might have fulfilled an imortant religious function linked with water and the regeneration of the soil. It is calculated that it was built around 1500 a,C., in close relation to Puca Pucara.

   35 min

6. ​Means in Quechua “red fortress”, and it took this name because of the colour of the stones used for its construction. It occupies a very strategic space over a natural mountain spur for facilitating observation and control over the valley of Cusco.

   Passes by

Cancellation

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.

Reviews

Ratings come from 1 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.

Know before you go

How it compares in Cusco

• Its from-price is 75% below the median of the 182 city tours we list in Cusco.
• It is shorter than most of them.
• By number of reviews it ranks 106 of 182.
• The operator lists free cancellation on it.

About Cusco

Cusco, the old Inca capital high in the Peruvian Andes, blends massive stone walls with colonial churches and is the gateway to Machu Picchu.

The Plaza de Armas is the heart of the city, framed by the cathedral and the Jesuit church of La Compañía. Inca stonework survives throughout the centre, most famously at the Qorikancha, the sun temple on which the Spanish built a monastery, and in the twelve-angled stone on Hatun Rumiyoc street. San Blas, the artisans' quarter, climbs steeply with workshops and cafés.

Top-ranked sights in Cusco: Aguas Calientes, Machu Picchu, Ollantaytambo Ruins.

See all 4460 experiences in Cusco