I’m going to break up my 14 days in Cusco and the surrounding area into 3 different blog posts because there is a lot of good photos/videos from this leg of the trip. Part one: Cusco city and the Sacred Valley; part two: Manu National Park; part three: Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu.
Getting In
I took the night bus from Arequipa to Cusco that left at 10:30. The first few hours I just listened to music and was struggling to get comfortable and fall asleep. Around 2:30 in the morning the person sitting next to me got off and I was able to stretch my legs across both sleeps and finally get some sleep. I arrived in Cusco around 8 in the morning and took a taxi to Wild River, my hostel for the next few nights. I wasn’t able to check into my room until 3pm but at least I could drop off my bag in storage.
The Lodging
I stayed in 2 different hostel over the course of my 7 nights in Cusco. The first 4 days I was in a party hostel called Wild Rover. A few people had told me it’s a big party spot and I wanted to be in a fun hostel for my birthday. Boy did it live up to its namesake. It was at the top of the hill which was a bitch to walk up to from the city but also meant it had incredible views from the patio attached to the giant bar.
It’s the type of hostel that has nightly drink specials and randomly hands out free shots. Fun, but dangerous. Also your tab is tied to your room number so it feels like everything is free until you check out. The first night I ended up hanging out with a group of crazy Brits and drinking way more than I anticipated. But I did show some slight self control by deciding to go to bed when they were kicking everyone out at 1am to head to the club. I wanted to be a tourist the next day and going to the club would have prevented that. My birthday 2 nights later was also wild but I’ll get to that further down.
2 nights solo at Wild Rover and 2 nights there with Matt was more than enough. We decided to get a chiller hostel for the rest of our stay in Cusco. We ended up spending 3 nights at Toucan Hostel just down the street which was cheaper, more low key, and had better beds and showers. It was the perfect spot between the jungle and Salkantay trek and for our last night after the trek.
The Food
Cusco has countless restaurant options ranging from the $2 meals at the market (which were always great) to fancy high end restaurants. I usually lean toward the cheap menú del dia places but I did have a few nice meals. On my second night in town I ate at Inkazuela and had the Inkazuela Carne Picante which was a delicious stew with Peruvian beef and spicy chiles, potatoes, avocado, and bean sprouts.
One night Matt found a spot called Kuskay which served Peruvian fusion food and had incredible service. I tried alpaca for the first time and I loved it! They cooked it at the perfect tenderness in this delicious sauce served with quinoa, cherry tomatoes and some greens. At this point I was used to terrible South American service, but this place was very attentive to providing good service. The waitress was very friendly and telling us how this location had just opened in the last 6 months. They even gave us a free desert and after dinner tea. It had great reviews on Google and I can see why. Would highly recommend going here.
The City
As the oldest living city in the Americas, Cusco has been inhabited continuously for over 3,000 years. It was the historic capital of the Inca Empire from the 13th to 16th century until Spanish conquest, and now is a major tourist destination. While we know that the Incas built Cusco city, one of the biggest mysteries today is how. It is unknown how the large stones were gathered and transported to the site, or how they managed to build with techniques so far advanced for their time. The city is one of those rare places that seems able to preserve its unique character and enduring appeal despite its growing prominence on the international tourism radar. The architecture is a fascinating blend of pre-Columbian and colonial history and contemporary mestizo culture. The inner city of Cusco was laid out in the shape of a puma whose head was the fortress of Sacsahuaman
The city was very lively in the streets as Cusco is a top destination for both tourists worldwide and Peruvians due to its proximity to Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley. You hear English everywhere. Everyone in the street is trying to hustle and you can’t go 50 feet without someone offering you a tour, people trying to sell you their art, guys trying to clean your shoes, and girls offering masajes. Matt and I joked about how many times they must say masaje per day. The Plaza de Armas is surrounded by the Cusco Cathedral and the Iglesia de la Companía de Jesus and has gorgeous views of the mountain backdrops. The city is surrounded by hills and the center sits in the valley between it all. It’s a beautiful city both in the daytime and nighttime with all the lights on the houses in the hills.
I arrived on a Monday and there was a parade going on through the streets with marching bands and people dancing in traditional costumes. It felt like Mardi Gras. I’m not sure if it was a special holiday or if everyday was like this.
I slept in Cusco 7 nights but it was my home base for 2 weeks in between the jungle and Salkantay trek and I really did love the city. In spite of being very touristy, it had a great energy and charm to it. Outside of Huaraz, this would be my number two city that I would live in Peru if I did the digital nomad lifestyle. And it would be a tough decision because life here would be more lively than Huaraz. I could picture myself going to the market every morning and having drinks and dinner in the San Blas neighborhood in the evening. It’s nice when you spend a more extended period of time in one city and I really got to know it well. I never even needed to use the maps on my phone.
Booking Tours and Machu Picchu Scare
I spent the first morning trying to find the right Salkantay tour for Matt and I to go on, as well as getting info on the different tours to the jungle. It was overwhelming to find the right tour with so many agencies on every corner. Within one block there would be at least 5 agencies all selling the same services. I knew Matt was coming these dates for months and he asked if we should book Machu Picchu in advance but I was used to the backpacker style where you book things 1-2 days before so I said nah. Big mistake on my part. Getting a ticket to enter Machu Picchu is much different than any other type of excursion because it is so popular worldwide and there is a limited number of people that can enter every day.
I must have gone to at least 5 agencies in the morning getting info on the Salkantay trek and going to the jungle, and I quickly realized I fucked this one up as they all said there was no entrance tickets online to Machu Picchu in the next two weeks. I was proud of myself though because I spoke to all the agencies in Spanish. At this point I had enough of a foundation to have these types of conversations. Luckily the tour agencies know how to speak slowly and clearly to tourists so they are way easier to understand.
It was August 15th and Matt was arriving on the 17th (my birthday) and staying until the 30th. After a few days of getting him acclimated, we were going to start the 5 day Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu but now our schedule was going to have to change. Finally I decided to go to KB adventures in the center of town as it had been recommended to me by a friend. They said that they could book a ticket to enter Machu Picchu on the 28th but it would have to be at 2pm and without a guide. Fuck it, at least it gets us in! I made the executive decision to sign us up without consulting Matt on the schedule change. I knew he wouldn’t care. It would have been such a bummer for him to come all this way and us to not be able to enter Machu Picchu. We could have taken the risk of waiting in line in Aguas Calientes as they released a certain number of tickets per day but fuck that, I wanted a guaranteed spot. It was a huge relief to get this resolved and I booked us the Salkantay Trek for the 24-28. For only $250 the 5 day tour included our lodging, meals, guide, mule, train ticket from Aguas Calientes to Ollantaytambo, and bus from Ollantaytambo back to Cusco. Steal of a deal! Then it was $15 extra to rent a sleeping bag which was totally worth it.
Now that we had Machu Picchu covered, it was time to figure out our plans for the jungle. Originally we were going to do that after Salkantay but with the new dates, we had to reverse our plans. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise as it gave Matt more time to acclimatize. I had gone to a few different agencies for info on the jungle – we had to choose between going to Manu National Park and Puerto Maldonado – and there was one that I liked the best because you got to go on a boat further into Manu on the second day. I didn’t book it right away but once Matt got into town I laid out the options for him and he didn’t seem to care so I chose this one for us. It was 4 days and 3 nights in the jungle for $300. A bit pricey by Peruvian standards but with everything included it really was a great deal compared to this type of trip in America. Plus how often do you really get to go to the jungle.
Mercado Central de San Pedro
This might have been my favorite market in all of Peru. It was truly a one stop shop when Matt and I wanted to get supplies for our excursions. We would grab a delicious fruit juice to get started; then go buy nuts, fruits, and chocolates; then grab a meal for $2. It was also a prime place for him to buy souvenirs – you could find any alpaca good imaginable. Another good market for souvenirs was Mercado San Francisco. After a few loose juices, Matt was buying things left and right.
San Blas Neighborhood
This beautiful neighborhood is right by the plaza was a great place to walk around and wonder through narrow, uphill cobblestone streets with restaurants, bars, and shops. Almost everyday I was in Cusco I found myself walking around this neighborhood and finding a new bar or restaurant. My first day in town before Matt showed up, I met up with Kenza (my friend from the Santa Cruz trek in Huaraz) and found a nice spot in the neighborhood for tea and cakes. On my second day in town I had a few drinks at Cholos which had nice craft beers and a good outdoor seating ambiance. I liked it so much that I took Matt there the next day after we got back from Pisac.
The night before going to the jungle, Matt and I walked all the way up the hill to a cocktail bar that had been recommended to me called Limbus Restobar. We got seated at a high top on the patio which had an amazing view of the city. The cocktails were American prices at just over $10 (in the end you’re paying for the view), but they were crazy concoctions that came out in cool glasses so it was worth having one. I had a Pisco drink that came out in a smoking coffin and Matt had a rum drink in this giant tiki cup. The food was super shitty though as they brought us out wings that had clearly been cooked in the microwave.
The night before going on the Salkantay Trek, Matt and I were once again wandering around San Blas and we stumbled upon this open air space with a beer carousel. Lucky find! The craft beer wasn’t great but at least the views were.
My Birthday and the Nightlife
Matt showed up on my birthday and even though he was running low on fumes from traveling, and I had pushed him to hike that day, he still rallied to help make my 31st birthday a great one. After having traveled solo for a number of months, it was nice to get to share my birthday with a friend from home. And of course Wild Rover was the perfect place to get the party started. Aside from Matt, I had a few other friends that I had met show up to celebrate with me which was really nice. My French friend Kenza who I’d been seeing on and off since Huaraz came to Wild Rover as well as the French couple I met during the Colca Canyon trek.
The pre game ramped up quickly as Wild Rover gave me a few free birthday shots on top of the free shots they already give out. It just so happened to be another girl’s birthday too which was quite coincidental. Except she was turning 23…so quite a bit younger. We still had a good chat as Leo’s sharing the same birthday. Multiple other people I talked to also bought me shots and on the sidelines Matt and I were slugging beers. It was a lot of fun soaking in the birthday cheers, but also a dangerous level of drinking.
I was very drunk by the around 1am when we were leaving Irish Rover to head to Chango Club the main club in town that everyone goes to. Matt and I took a taxi there and before heading into the club we saw a place with live music so we popped in to have a beer and check out the band. Then we headed to Chango Club and my memory at this point is quite hazy. I remember dancing and having fun but not really many details. All the birthday shots got to me. At some point I was standing outside and someone from the hostel was heading back and said I look very drunk and should go back with them. I didn’t second guess it, but I had failed to tell Matt I was leaving. The next morning he told me he was looking around the club for me for awhile. Oops.
Sacred Valley
The Sacred valley contains the majority of the well preserved Incan ruins. It is called Sacred Valley because of its alignment with the molly way however, there is another reason for it to be called like that, and it is the fact that this valley has fertile soil not only now but since Incan times which is why they chose this agricultural valley as the center of their civilization. The major cities of the Sacred Valley include Ollantaytambo, Pisac, Maras, and Moray.
You can do a tour of the main Sacred Valley cities in one day, but typically I prefer to just explore things on my own. Even though it’s nice to have additional information and insight, you usually forget it right after the tour anyways. I just went ahead and Googled each place before I went to have a little knowledge on what I was seeing.
Ollantaytambo
Ollantaytambo was one of many settlements conquered by Pachacutec, the 9th Inca king who commandeered the transformation of the Cusco Kingdom into the powerful Tawantinsuyu or Inca Empire. Under his reign, Ollantaytambo served as a pivotal outpost for Inca nobles and agrarian laborers. Exquisite stonework is displayed alongside impressive agricultural technology that includes terraces, fountains, and irrigation canals that are still in use today.
I woke up around 8:30 a bit hungover after having partied with the Brits the night before during my first night at Wild Rover, but I was determined to make the most of my day. I walked to the market for a breakfast fruit drink then went to the street where Google said I could catch a colectivo. The colectivos usually don’t leave until they are full and this must not have been a very popular hour as we had to wait nearly an hour. Just enough time to let my throbbing headache simmer down. It was about an hour ride that dropped me off at a lovely square in the middle of town.
The ruins were a bunch of terraces built into the hill and since I didn’t have a tour guide I walked around them in about 20 minutes. I did stop a few times to appreciate the engineering ingenuity of the Incans and to soak in the views of the city with the massive mountains in the backdrop.
I would also occasionally overhear some facts from the guides if they were speaking in English. Overall it was cool to see but very popular, and I’m not sure it was really worth the hour colectivo ride. Luckily I had researched a trail nearby on AllTrails so there was a part two to my day.
Ollantaytambo-Pumamarca Trail (7.4 miles, 1900 feet elevation gain, out and back)
After grabbing some chicken on a stick from a street vendor in town, I began the 20 minute walk just to get to the trail. Now I was away from the crowds and felt like I was seeing the true Ollantaytambo. I reached the trailhead and it started out with a steep 15 minute uphill climb. But then it leveled out to a slight/incline flat trail winding through the countryside. It was super peaceful as I saw no one on the hike aside from a few stray dogs. It was just me and the sound of the wind. Now this is what I’m talking about. I much preferred this to the busy crowds. The trail ended with some cow fields leading up to the Pumamarca Ruins. They were quite intact and provided more good views of the surrounding area. Unlike the main ruins, I had these ones all to myself as I enjoyed a snack and appreciated where I was.
I didn’t chill for too long because I wasn’t sure how late the colectivos go and I definitely didn’t want to get stuck in Ollantaytambo. I made it back to the plaza around 3:30 and hoped for the best. You never know how long it will take to get a colectivo or if you get one at all. I got really lucky however and after about 10 minutes a guy drove by yelling out Cusco. Normally they wait for the van to fill up but it was just me and the driver for the first 30 minutes of the ride until we picked up some people further down the road. I sat in the front and we were having no some good Spanish conversations. He was from Cusco and explaining landscape/villages we drove through on the way back. It was like my own private tour. I didn’t always understand what he was saying but still got some good local knowledge. There was a few sections on the highway that was no longer even a road due to landslides and we would have to drive over crushed rocks and dirt. My colectivo driver explained to me that it’s always like that. He dropped me off in the main plaza and the ride was even cheaper than the one I had in the morning with the full colectivo. You really just never know.
Pisac
The Pisac ruins are among Peru’s most intact ancient sites, and a perfect example of ingenious Inca architecture. They are built on top of a mountain that towers over the small town of Pisac; the views of the countryside are spectacular and the ruins and their makers are remarkable.
Matt was fresh off the plane but he got a few hours of sleep in the hostel that morning. I knew he was exhausted but it was my birthday and I wanted to have a productive day before a party evening. Pisac is the closest of the Sacred Valley towns to Cusco so I figured it’d be a good spot for a short day trip. The colectivos also run way more frequently so when we got to the street they leave from there was already one ready to go. This ride was a rare occasion where I’ve seen a grumpy South American. There was an old Peruvian guy complaining that the price of the colectivo kept getting more expensive and that he’s not a gringo and shouldn’t be paying that price.
After the 40 minute colectivo ride, Matt and I walked around the main area in town perusing some of the shops in the market. It’s known to be a hippy town and it did have a very tranquil energy to it. After the hike, we went to this vibe-y Indian restaurant with comfy seating, vegan food, and ads for yoga and ayahuasca retreats everywhere.
Ruinas de Pisac Hike (2.1 miles, 1529 feet elevation gain, point to point)
I had read that most people taxi up to the top of the ruins then hike down but we started from the bottom. I felt bad because the altitude ending up kicking Matt’s ass since he had just gotten off a long day of flying and didn’t have any time to acclimate. At this point I didn’t even think twice about it since I had been high up in Peru for weeks. I’m proud of him for powering through but the struggle was real.
It was straight uphill either on a steep path or stairs of death as we worked our way up the sweeping terraces that the Incans used to grow crops along their mountain-perched cities. It truly is a work of agricultural and architectural ingenuity and testament to the Incans’ engineering abilities that were way ahead of their times. There was a lot of cool ruins along the way that you could wander through. Definitely a much better experience than Ollantaytambo. A short bit into the hike we encountered the fortress that overlooks the valley toward Cusco.
Once again I couldn’t help but be in awe at how the Incans were able to bring these massive stones this high up in the mountains. And after this many years the ruins were still in great shape standing the test of time and Mother Nature. The views of the valley were absolutely incredible throughout. Even though Matt was dying he was able to get his first taste of how magical it is to hike in the Peruvian Andes. It truly is a place with an energy and beauty unlike anywhere else in the world. When we got to the top we took a taxi down rather than finishing the hiking loop. If I was by myself I would have hiked down as well, but I was okay with it since Matt was a trooper to make it this far. Plus I needed him to have energy that night for my birthday celebration.
