Cusco City Tour

You'll be picked up at your hotel at 1:30pm for a tour of Cusco's historical monuments, with transport between the sites provided by tourist bus.

In the Plaza de Armas, or Main Square, of Cusco, we'll see the 17^th century baroque Cathedral built on the site where Inca Wiracocha's palace once stood, in part with stones taken from Sacsayhuamán Fortress. It boats an altar of solid silver, paintings by the lauded Cusco School (including Zapata's last supper with Andean guinea pig gracing the table),the largest bell in South America, known as the María Angola, and various chapels filled with masterpieces of precious materials, including the Señor de Temblores (Lord of the Earthquakes), credited with saving Cusco during the 1650 earthquake.

We'll then move backwards in time to the prior religious center of Cusco and most sacred spot in Cusco during Inca times, Qoricancha (Golden Temple), the Temple of the Sun, where offerings were rendered to the supreme Inca deity, Inti (Sun). Though its gold was looted by the Spanish, you'll still get a chance to see some of the finest Inca stonework in Cusco.

We'll then move along the outskirts of Cusco, where you'll marvel at the massive stones which form Sacsayhuaman Fortress before we continue on to Qenqo (Labyrinth/Zigzag), a shrine dedicated to the earth deity Pachamama and astronomical calendar, Tambomachay (Resting Place), the "Inca Baths" with its artificial waterfalls, canals, and aqueducts channeled through the terraced rocks, supplied by nearby springs, and Puka Pucara, believed to have been a fortress protecting the entry to Tambomachay.

You'll be dropped off at your hotel around 6pm.