Sacred Valley
Pisac, Ollantaytambo and the Inca terraces along the Urubamba.
Duration
8 hrs – 10 hrs
Difficulty
●●○○○
Best time
Early morning departure
Open
Every day
Entry price
70 PEN
The Urubamba valley runs at two thousand eight hundred metres, six hundred lower than Cusco: the Incas grew maize here and built their largest agricultural sites. Many people sleep a night here before Machu Picchu, precisely for the gentler altitude.
Pisac has monumental terraces and a market; Ollantaytambo is the only Inca town still lived in on its original plan, with its street channel and its temple terraces; Moray, with its concentric bowls, was probably an agricultural laboratory, each level having its own microclimate.
Getting there
Colectivos from Pavitos street in Cusco to Pisac and Ollantaytambo, one to two hours. The train for Machu Picchu leaves from Ollantaytambo.
What the price covers
the partial Sacred Valley boleto turístico for foreign visitors. The general boleto, at 130 S/, covers all sixteen sites and works out cheaper from two circuits on.
Rules on site
The valley sites are opened by the combined tourist ticket, not sold individually. Sleeping at Ollantaytambo or Urubamba, lower than Cusco, genuinely helps acclimatisation before Machu Picchu.
Checked on 30 August 2026 at COSITUC — frequently asked questions, boleto turístico rates
Other places in Cusco
Machu PicchuThe Inca city on its ridge, at two thousand four hundred metres, never found by the Spanish.
Plaza de ArmasThe Inca square turned colonial, with two baroque churches set on Inca walls.
SacsayhuamánTwo-hundred-tonne blocks fitted without mortar, above the city.
- San Pedro MarketAndean fruit, the morning juices and soup for a few soles.