Cusco sits at over 11,000 feet in the Peruvian Andes. Once the capital of the Inca empire, it’s a working city of around 400,000 people today, and the main staging point for travelers heading on to Machu Picchu.
Up at that altitude the air is thin and the light is sharp. The historic center is a mix of cobbled streets, colonial-era churches built on Inca stone walls, and busy markets selling textiles, coca tea, and street food.
Cusco is also the base for the surrounding region — the Sacred Valley sites at Pisac and Ollantaytambo, Rainbow Mountain, and Machu Picchu itself. Most of the big trips in Peru start from here.
Peruways runs tours out of Cusco: guided treks in the mountains, day trips through the Sacred Valley, food walks through the San Pedro and San Blas neighborhoods, and transport and permits for the sites outside the city.
Plan your Cusco trip with Peruways. We handle the booking end — tickets, transport, guides — so you can get on with the trip itself.
