Cusco City Tour (Half Day)

based on 18 reviews

Duration:4 minutes to 30 minutes (approx.)
Location: Cusco, Peru

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Discover the magic and beauty of Cusco, the capital of the Incan Empire. The flawlessly built Incan roads spread to all regions from the “Plaza” which was thought of as the center of the world. Visit the Temple of the Sun, the Convent of Santo Domingo and the famous Cusco Cathedral with its Cuzqueno paintings.

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1.
Originally named Intikancha or Intiwasi, it was dedicated to Inti, and is located at the old Inca capital of Cusco. Mostly destroyed after the 16th century war with the Spanish conquistadors, much of its stonework forms the foundation of the Santo Domingo church and convent. To construct Coricancha, the Inca utilized ashlar masonry, which is composed of similarly sized cuboid stones. The use of ashlar masonry made the temple much more difficult to construct, as the Inca did not use any stone with a slight imperfection or break. By choosing this masonry type, the Inca intentionally demonstrated the importance of the building through the extent of the labor necessary to build the structure. Through the arduous labor needed to construct buildings with ashlar masonry, this form of construction came to signify the Inca's imperial power to mobilize local labor forces. The replication throughout Andean South America of Inca architectural techniques such as those employed at Coricancha further illustrates the Inca's control over a vast geographic region. Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui rebuilt Cusco and the House of the Sun, enriching it with more oracles and edifices, and adding plates of fine gold. He provided vases of gold and silver for the Mama-cunas, nuns, to use in the veneration services. Finally, he took the bodies of the seven deceased Incas and enriched them with masks, head-dresses, medals, bracelets, sceptres of gold, placing them on a golden bench. The walls were once covered in sheets of gold, and its adjacent courtyard was filled with golden statues. Spanish reports tell of its opulence that was "fabulous beyond belief". When the Spanish required the Inca to raise a ransom in gold for the life of the leader Atahualpa, most of the gold was collected from Coricancha. The Spanish colonists built the Church of Santo Domingo on the site, demolishing the temple and using its foundations for the cathedral. Construction took most of a century. This is one of numerous sites where the Spanish incorporated Inca stonework into the structure of a colonial building. Major earthquakes severely damaged the church, but the Inca stone walls, built out of huge, tightly interlocking blocks of stone, still stand due to their sophisticated stone masonry. Nearby is an underground archaeological museum that contains mummies, textiles, and sacred idols from the site.
2.
The term Sacsayhuaman means in Quechua “place where the hawk is satiated”. The name is surely due to the presence of these birds. It is presumed that it was a fortress, although it is also believed that it could be a ceremonial center. Due to its structure with a military aspect, the Spaniards, on their arrival in the 16th century, would have named it a ‘fortress’. When the Spanish attack was repulsed there during the Inca rebellion in Vilcabamba, the place served as an Inca fortress. The architecture in Sacsayhuaman has sacred buildings such as residential buildings, towers, shrines, warehouses, roads and aqueducts. That is why, the shape and harmony of the landscape is similar to other sacred Inca places such as Machu Picchu. The main wall of Sacsayhuaman is built in zigzag with giant stones up to 5 meters high and 2.5 meters wide (between 90 and 125 tons of weight). The south side is bounded by a polished wall approximately 400 meters long. The east and west are limited by other walls and platforms. According to the Peruvian chronicler Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, Sacsayhuaman was the greatest architectural work that the Incas built during its apogee. Sacsayhuaman offers an amazing view of Cusco. You can see the summits of Ausangate, Pachatusán and Cinca. These summits were considered sacred to the Incas. The archaeological complex itself has very amazing places, some of them with history and meaning.
3.
The Incan Empire was completely destroyed by European forces in the 16th century. Many of their massive temples, fortresses and cities were left standing, but without any clues as to their purpose. Qenqo Temple, fifteen minutes from Cusco is similarly mysterious and a dark account has formed in the historical vacuum. In Quechua, Qenqo means labyrinth or zig-zag and the temple is named for the crooked canal cut out of its rock. Although it is clear the canal carried some sort of liquid, researchers have been forced to guess at its purpose, and at what liquid it transported. Hypotheses range from carrying holy water, chicha (corn beer), or blood. All three indicate that Qenqo was used for death rituals, possibly to embalm bodies or detect whether a person lived a good life by the course the liquid followed. Qenqo is a unique temple in its construction as well, having been entirely carved out of a gigantic monolith. Stretched across a hillside, the temple is carved out of rock and marries the man-made tunnels with natural chambers. One of these chambers features 19 small niches and is set up as an amphitheater. Once again, the purpose of the theater has been lost over time, but most agree the area was used for some type of sacrifice to the sun, moon and star gods who were worshipped at the site.
4.
Puca Pucara houses enclosures such as inner squares, canals, aqueducts, baths and a well-known ancient road, which should have been part of the network of Inca roads known as Qhapaq Ñan; The buildings are built with rocks of different sizes (small and medium). Puca Pucara presents the surface of the rocks very uneven, compared to other archaeological sites. The name Puca Pucara means red fort , and is due to the location of the archaeological group and to the existence of some semi-circular enclosure; Red is the color of the earth. The name of this place was used from the twentieth century. The constructors of the Inca Civilization built three walls of irregular plant, that establish the three levels of the site. The first wall presents a sinuous path, which carefully avoids cutting the protruding rocks. From the north end at the back of the outer wall, you can find a total of 6 rooms of different sizes; Arranged irregularly in order to avoid touching the stones that make up the wall. To the west you will find a high place of trapezoidal form that can be entered from an outside staircase. In ancient times the square was surrounded by buildings on two sides. The 9 rooms regularly laid out in this place do not appear to have been in any way fortified enclosures. The second wall is located around the central elevation. These first two walls, have wide platforms to the east and south of the site. At the back of the second wall, it is possible to find 3 different rooms of the typical Inca architecture, since 2 of them do not have the common rectangular but trapezoidal floor. The third wall is surrounding the summit and there is no trace of the buildings that could exist in this place. The buildings were built with stones of many sizes between medium and small, the surface of the rocks is very uneven compared to other archaeological remains of the Inca civilization. The urban layout presents an adequate and functional layout. According to some chroniclers, in pre-Hispanic times, when the Inca prepared to visit the baths located in Tambomachay, his entourage composed of soldiers and dancers, they remained in Puca Pucara , which simultaneously operated as barracks and tambo(hostel). Rumors exist about a chincana (tunnel), supposed to function as a channel of communication between these 2 Inca towns.
5.
Tambomachay is an Inca archaeological site located just outside Cusco. Its precise function is unknown, but it may have served as a ceremonial site, an Inca spa, or a military outpost—or perhaps a mix of all three. Tambomachay sits on a hill about 4 miles north of Cusco, at about 12,150 feet (3,700 meters) above sea level. The structure consists of three stepped terraces of precise Inca stonework, with trapezoidal niches built into some of the retaining walls. The whole thing is built over, or into, a natural spring, which continuously feeds a series of small aqueducts, canals, and waterfalls built into the terraces. The site is also known as El Baño del Inca, or the Bath of the Inca. This refers to one of the long-held theories about the site’s function: that it was a spa of sorts for the Inca ruler, and maybe for the wider Inca nobility. It’s a secluded and tranquil spot, and the constantly flowing water would certainly have provided for all the Inca’s spa-break needs. But there was probably more going on at Tambomachay than just high-altitude bathing.

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Posted By : Catherine C
Great trip around Lima’s districts including Milaflores and Burranco. Kral was a great guide steering us through the traffic although most was on cycle paths.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-01-06 08:33:59

Posted By : Happiness47828795745
Jorge and Rubin are great. Had a wonderful time. Very attentive and informative. I would definitely recommend
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2023-09-06 06:33:05

Posted By : 814estefanyb
Excellent experience, the guide was very friendly and had very good information about Macchu Picchu, excellent views, transportation, and accompaniment throughout the trip.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2023-09-05 16:29:27

Posted By : kbruder0102
The entire experience was amazing! Everything was perfect. The tour guide, Mauro was very knowledgeable and extremely kind! You can tell that Mauro loves what he does!
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Posted On : 2023-07-19 16:21:00

Posted By : jettarae
I had such a good time I needed to see museum and Rueben came to my hotel we went for a cappuccino and beautiful croissants by The Alma Square.Its a good place to get a hotel recommend cheap my hotel Casona Arrambides. Then we went to the museum which I didn't want to leave.Rieben wanted to show me some important sites and then lunch back to hotel by 2 basically 1/2 felt like a full day.Yhanks Rueben you ate the best guide.Comi g back next June and asking for you for a 2 day hike and stay 4 nights in Aqua Calientes
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Posted On : 2023-06-20 22:03:49

Posted By : JamesWhittacker6
Our Cusco City Tour with Happy Gringo Tours was a delightful exploration of local culture and history. The guide`s profound knowledge and story telling made each site come alive with captivating tales. The attention to detail, organization, and customer care were top notch, contributing our seamless experience. happy Gringo Tours, we were able to truly immerse ourselves in the beauty and heritage of Cusco. An absolute must do for any Cusco visitor.
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Posted On : 2023-06-19 12:38:30

Posted By : hilmill
We had a wonderful visit to Cusco and enjoyed seeing the Cathedral, Plaza De Armas, and local ruins outside the city. Bonus for us — we were there for the Festival of Corpus Christi! If you’re looking for a local guide, we highly recommend Huber - he was knowledgeable, friendly and fun to be with!
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Posted On : 2022-06-15 18:57:14

Posted By : jamesrolerson
Our tour guide was very proficient with the history of the city. We temple of the sun Koricancha, archeological sites, markets, and other interesting places with Inkan history. Marko has a vast knowledge to share. We really enjoyed his sharing the culture, traditions and history of the places we visited.

We highly recommend to see Cusco with Happy Gringo!
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Posted On : 2021-12-29 22:15:34

Posted By : Stephanie_G
Great tour. It includes going to 4 Cusco ruins. Unfortunately there were a few things out of our control, like for example when we were on tour we got soaked as it started to rain. One of the ruins were closed due to the Transformers movie being filled and the location was closed. Overall great tour of Cuzco. Only wish I would seem more sights and maybe the group a little smaller.
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Posted On : 2021-10-07 10:32:56

Posted By : HazelS_G
It seems our tour operator lumped our group of 3 with a larger group. They arrived late. The guide tried to provide information about the sites but needed to herd the larger group who strayed and did not pay attention to meeting times. Since we followed the arranged meeting times, we spent a lot of time waiting on the can for everyone else. We were the only English-speaking travelers which put us at a disadvantage.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2021-09-23 10:12:42

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Cusco City Tour (Half Day)

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Tickets

Cusco City Tour (Half Day)

WHAT'S INCLUDED ⟱

WHAT TO EXPECT ⟱

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

ADDITIONAL INFO ⟱

CANCELLATION POLICY ⟱

Partner Resources

How it works

Travel

Insurance

Adventure

Contact

WHAT'S INCLUDED

WHAT TO EXPECT

ADDITIONAL INFO

CANCELLATION POLICY