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This Sacred Valley Trek includes a visit to the market and ruins of Chinchero and a gentle walk down through farmland to the famous Sacred Valley of the Incas.
As far as Sacred Valley Treks go, this is a nice introduction with beautiful scenery, interesting cultural experiences and a gentle downhill hike.
This is an excellent acclimatization hike because you visit Chinchero village before embarking on a gently descending Sacred Valley trek. The scenery is picturesque and attractive. Our Descending the Sacred Valley trek gives you the chance to walk through typical farms (chacras) operating in the valley and catch a glimpse into the lives of the people living there.
High quality personalized experience
Unique, off-the-beaten track routes
Experienced staff
Verified sustainability practices
$20 of every trek donated to Threads of Peru
We offer you the opportunity to personalize your trip and make your experience more comfortable through our Optional Extras and Upgrades. All options are available during the reservation process; please ask your sales consultant for more information.
Important!
Cusco can experience every season in a single day, so you should be prepared for sun and rain, cold and hot weather! We recommend a hat, sunscreen, sunglasses, sweater, rain gear or plastic poncho, winter hat or toque and gloves. In addition, you should bring:
You can also see What To Bring for our comprehensive recommendations on what to pack for a trek in the Andes. For more great suggestions, check out our blog about How to Prepare for a Trek in Peru.
Remember that scans of the student card (for students) or passports (for children) need to accompany the booking in order to be eligible for the discount.
Our whole trekking team know the Sacred Valley region like the back of their hand! They are some of the warmest, endearing and wonderful people you are ever likely to meet.
Our guides are all licensed and receive regular training. They share their experience, professionalism, knowledge and enthusiasm with our passengers on every trek.
Get to know our team!
Want to join a trek? Ready to confirm a departure date of your own, but interested in having others join you? Then Trekkers Wanted is for you! Our innovative Trekkers Wanted system matches people up who are interested in hiking the same trek, bringing costs down and multiplying the fun for everyone!
Read More about Trekkers Wanted, post your trek or search for confirmed departures!
Our Sacred Valley Trek begins as we travel from Cusco by private transport for about 45 minutes to the quaint mountain town of Chinchero (population 900; 3800m / 12,467 ft). Chinchero is often visited for its colorful market days and colonial church. Market day is Sunday and still quite an authentic experience. Other days vendors still set up stalls for tourists who visit every day.
On arriving in Chinchero, we will visit the Historic Precinct (a Colonial church built atop Inca Foundations) before continuing on to visit an awana wasi (weaving house) where the Chinchero weavers will do a small demonstration about their weaving techniques.
After these visits, we will delve deeper by leaving the well-constructed Inca plaza and discovering the extensive terraced ruins of Chinchero. From here we descend by the Inka Ñan, (the network of Inca roads that linked their ancient towns) through a spectacular valley with views of the snow-capped peaks that were worshiped by the Incas.
After lunch (box lunch) by a mountain stream, we have a rare glimpse into traditional life in the Sacred Valley. We pass through farmland once cultivated by the Incas who left magnificent terraces still in full production today. Hiking from Chinchero to Urquillos takes about 3 hours.
Before crossing the Urubamba River we will be picked up in our private transport and taken to Pisaq, where we will visit the Pisaq ruins. If we have enough time, before returning to Cusco we will make a brief stop at the market.