One hour from Cusco is the Sacred Valley of the Incas. It is a must to visit the Incan fortress of Ollantaytambo, made up of a group of fortified dwellings, constructed on the highest part of the mountains situated in the region.

Other places of interest to visit include Chinchero, with its market (on Sundays) and the ruins of an Incan palace; Maras, where you can find some interesting salt works, and Moray (7km from Maras) where there are some mysterious ruins made up of a succession of circles, which was an important Incan experimental centre of agriculture; Pisac, a small settlement situated in the sacred valley, has a market which, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, is transformed into a brightly coloured square, caused by the large quantity of handicraft articles that have been brought from all over the Andes range.

One of the most important archeological sites in all of South America, situated at 120 km from Cusco, is Machu Picchu, world heritage for humanity (UNESCO). Discovered by the anthropologist Hiram Bingham (1911), its history and function is still a dark mystery. Situated at 2,400m between the peaks of Wayna Pichu and Macchu Picchu, it was in a difficult locale, and also being in a very high region above the valley explains why it was not discovered by the Spanish colonials. On both sides of Machu Pichu are abysses, and below flows the river Vilcanota, called Urubamba in the region of the Sacred Valley.