Day 2 - Fly to Cusco, full day visit to Sacred Valley archaeological sites, check into Tambo del Inka.
Day 3 & 4 - Relax in Tambo del Inka.
We flew from Lima to Cusco on an early flight. I found it interesting that LIM only has 1 terminal and it’s used for both domestic and international flights. The security line was long; lots of people already around 5am. I do like that they allow large liquid bottles (500ml) thru security, unlike in most developed countries. After security, we popped into the Priority Pass lounge in the domestic terminal of LIM. It’s marginally better than the terminal with weak food offering.
The LATAM flight to Cusco was on time. Thanks to a
FT tip, we were able to bring a fullsize carry-on by just buying extra legroom seats with Basic Economy (and avoiding the check-in counter by not having check-in luggage). I slept most of the flight but woke up at the right time to catch this view:
Upon landing in Cusco, we were quickly found by the TaxiDatum driver to start our full day tour of Sacred Valley. This wasn’t a guided tour, just transportation. The driver spoke little English but we were able to communicate through our basic Spanish. First impression of Cusco: the hills are pretty.
The driver made a stop at an alpaca farm (I forget the name) that also sells souvenirs made of alpaca fur. I was weary at first but it turned out pretty fun. We got to feed their alpacas and llamas, and they even had vicunas and guanacos (supposedly rescued). There was no charge for this. The agent who gave us the “tour” was not very pushy about selling products, though I did buy a baby alpaca scarf for my mom. They are very soft! This was the first of our many experiences in Peru that reflects the gentleness of the people: it would have been a bigger, scammier, and/or more aggressive tourist trap in many places in the world, but here we could have taken the free tour of the farm, fed the cute animals and not buy anything (we saw people who didn’t buy anything and there was little pressure). The Peruvian people are a major reason that Peru is high on my list of countries to revisit.
A typical full day tour goes to Chinchero and maybe the animal sanctuary (not the farm described above) along with Pisac, Ollantaytambo, Moray and Maras. We didn’t want it to be too crammed and had a day set aside for Ollantay later, so our itinerary was Mirador Taray, Pisac, Moray and Maras, with Museo Inkariy if time (sadly no). We took pics at the breathtaking Mirador Taray:
Then we explored Pisac. What an amazing archaeological site with terraces and ruins. We made good use of the 1.5 hours we had. I would love to return and see the whole site.
We had lunch in Pisac. There we got a taste of no-frills Peruvian food at low prices: about 10 soles ($2.5 USD) for a simple dish. I’m getting hungry thinking about it! I really liked Pisac town - it’s a backpacker base with good infrastructure and friendly locals; right up my alley. “Sadly” we had a 5-star hotel to check into.
Next, we checked out Moray, which felt like the highest point on our Sacred Valley itin. The terraces are believed to be experimental laboratories used by Incan scientists to plant crops from different climate regions; this is possible because of the microclimate within each terrace, with temperature differences between the levels. Very interesting history accentuated by high-elevation mountains in the background. The herd of sheep added to the mountain vibe, which I loved. Mountain is my happy place. If I had to pick one type of nature to enjoy, it would be mountain.
Lastly, we went to Maras salt mine. We saw the breathtaking scenery from the viewing platform. I heard it used to be possible to walk thru the salt mine, which would have been amazing.
With the tour finished, it was time to settle down. Waiting for us was Tambo del Inka, a legendary
SPG Marriott property known for making people not want to leave. It had this effect on us, though that competed with our eagerness to see Machu Picchu next. For more impressions on Tambo del Inka, see my
review post here.
