From Cusco: Maras Moray Chinchero Half Day Tour – Cusco, Peru

EXPERIENCE:

Early in the morning, we will pick you up from the hotel located in the city of Cusco to start a fascinating tour to the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Our first stop will be at the town of Chinchero, situated 17 miles from Cusco city.

Here, we will visit a local workshop to appreciate the ancestral techniques to create amazing textiles. Every Sunday the colorful and wonderful Chinchero market is open, where you will discover a great variety of handcraft and clothes.

Then, we will visit the salt mines of Maras located on an open hill in Urubamba’s valley. The salt pans of Maras have an impressive process created by Incas, where a subterranean stream evaporates salty water and it emerges at a spring. The flow is then directed into an intricate system of tiny channels constructed so that the water runs gradually down onto the several hundred ancient salt ponds. The water leaves salt on the land, which is exposed to the sun.

After visiting the salt mines near the village of Maras, head to the Moray ruins which are made up of three coliseums thought to have been used by the Incas as a sort of open air crop laboratory. The coliseums consist of several enormous circular terraces, the largest of which is about 30 meters (98 feet) deep. Admire these terraces which are arranged in concentric circles and are reminiscent of an ancient Greek theater.

The Sacred Valley of the Incas has extensive fertile lands perfect for cultivation, as well as impressive archaeological sites. This place will show us the lifestyle of the Inca Empire and its advanced construction techniques.

At the end of the tour, we are going to back to the city of Cusco and drop you off at your hotel.

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS:

Visit a local textil shop in a traditional community
Admire the salt mines of Maras
Explore the circular terraces of Moray
Opportunity to visit unique archaeological sites
Learn about the Inca Empire

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