Day 1: Cathedral – Qoricancha – Sacsayhuaman – Q’enqo – Puca Pucara – Tambomachay

Pickup from your hotel in Cusco’s historic center between 1:00 and 1:30 PM. We begin our walking tour through the Plaza de Armas, the heart of the ancient Inca capital, originally known as «Huacaypata».

First stop: the Cusco Cathedral, built in 1560 on the palace of Inca Wiracocha. This masterpiece of Andean baroque and Gothic architecture houses over 600 paintings from the renowned Cusco School, magnificent silver and gold works, and a history that bridges the Inca and colonial worlds. Our guide will reveal the hidden details of its canvases and the Andean symbolism present in the sacred art.

We continue to Qoricancha, the Temple of the Sun, the most sacred site of the Inca Empire. Its perfectly polished stone walls were once covered in solid gold plates. The Spanish conquistadors built the Santo Domingo Convent directly on its foundations, creating a fascinating overlap of two civilizations that can be appreciated today.

We board our tourist bus and ascend to the hills of Cusco. First stop: Sacsayhuaman, the monumental Inca ceremonial fortress with three enormous zigzag walls up to 300 meters long. The largest stones weigh over 128 tonnes and stand up to 9 meters tall, assembled with a precision that continues to amaze engineers and archaeologists. From here you’ll enjoy a spectacular panoramic view of the entire city of Cusco.

We continue to Q’enqo («Labyrinth» in Quechua), a ceremonial center dedicated to Pachamama (Mother Earth) with underground passages, a sacrificial altar and carved rock formations that reveal the spiritual sophistication of the Inca civilization.

We visit Puca Pucara, the «Red Fortress», an Inca military checkpoint whose iron-rich stones glow red at sunset. It served as a rest stop and watchtower for Inca troops.

Last stop: Tambomachay, the «Baths of the Inca», a temple dedicated to the worship of water. Its stone-carved aqueducts and fountains still channel crystal-clear water after more than 500 years, demonstrating the Inca mastery of hydraulic engineering.

We return to Cusco arriving approximately at 6:00 PM, dropping you off at Plaza de Armas or nearby.