Cusco
Cusco was the centre of Tawantinsuyu, laid out according to tradition in the shape of a puma, and the Spanish built directly on top after 1533 — the Santo Domingo convent sits on the Qorikancha sun temple, whose walls were once sheathed in gold. Two major earthquakes have since shown which masonry holds: the Inca courses did not move.
Why go
The Inca capital, still standing under the Spanish one — walls of fitted stone carrying colonial façades. The gateway to Machu Picchu — and to the Sacred Valley, which is the better half of the trip. Twelve-angled stones — masonry cut so precisely that no mortar was used and earthquakes do not move it. Quechua as a living language — spoken in the markets and the villages above the city.
The character
Cusco was the navel of Tawantinsuyu, the Inca empire, laid out — according to tradition — in the shape of a puma, with the fortress of Sacsayhuamán as its head. The Spanish took it in 1533 and built on top rather than clearing: the Santo Domingo convent sits on the Qorikancha, the sun temple whose walls were sheathed in gold, and along Hatun Rumiyoc the Inca stonework carries colonial upper storeys. Two major earthquakes have since demonstrated which of the two builds better — the Inca courses did not move.
At 3,400 metres the city is high enough that most visitors feel it, and the local response is coca tea and a slow first day. Cusco today lives on the Machu Picchu trade, which brings crowds, touts and inflated prices to the centre; the antidote is the Sacred Valley below, where Quechua villages, salt terraces and Ollantaytambo's stonework are cheaper, lower and often better than the famous site itself.
Places of character
Qorikancha — Inca temple walls beneath a Dominican convent; the clearest image of the conquest. Sacsayhuamán — cyclopean zigzag walls above the city, with stones of over a hundred tonnes. San Pedro Market — the working market for fruit, cheese, juice and lunch counters. San Blas — the artisans' quarter uphill, with a pulpit carved from a single cedar trunk. Ollantaytambo — an Inca town still on its original street plan, an hour down the valley. Maras and Moray — salt pans worked since Inca times, and circular agricultural terraces.
The way to do it
Give the altitude two days before doing anything strenuous — the Sacred Valley at 2,800 metres is a better place to acclimatise than Cusco itself. Book Machu Picchu and the train months ahead. Eat at the market. And keep two days for the valley, which most itineraries reduce to a stop.
One perfect day
Coca tea, then Qorikancha at opening, standing where the gold-plated temple met the convent. Walk up Hatun Rumiyoc reading the joints in the wall, then San Blas for the workshops. Late morning at San Pedro market for juice and a plate of whatever is being served. Afternoon up to Sacsayhuamán on foot — half an hour of climbing at altitude — and along the ridge to Q'enqo with the city below. Down as the light goes. Dinner of alpaca and a pisco sour, and an early night, because the valley starts at six.
Grand hotels
Belmond Palacio Nazarenas — a convent built on Inca foundations, with oxygen piped into the rooms. Inkaterra La Casona — a sixteenth-century manor on a quiet plaza, eleven rooms.
When to go
Best expression: May and September — the dry season shoulders, clear and outside the July–August peak. Consider: June for Inti Raymi, the sun festival re-enacted at Sacsayhuamán. Avoid if possible: January to March, the wet season, when the Inca Trail closes in February.
The frame
Ideal stay 5 nights including the valley · Minimum 3 nights · Best arrival by air from Lima, ninety minutes · Airport CUZ, 5 km · Walkability the centre, steeply and slowly · Best without a car yes, with taxis and valley transport