The Unforgettable Southern Sacred Valley of the Incas

One of the most popular standard group tours in Cusco is a day-trip to the Sacred Valley of the Incas, which includes as a highlight visits to the town and ruins of Ollantaytambo and the Pisac market (depending on the day). While the former is overrun, the southern circuit through the Sacred Valley is much less traveled, mainly because most travelers don’t have the time to do more than one or two basic tours and because the sights the southern circuit includes are less publicized. This is a shame, because the route boasts evocatively beautiful natural landscapes as well as mysterious, unique historical sites. A tour of the Southern Sacred Valley includes guided visits exploring the still-functioning waterworks of the Incan ruins of Tipón, an ornate colonial church often referred to as ‘the Sistine Chapel of the Americas’, the striking Maras Salt Pans, the circular terraces of Moray, and the Wari ruins of Pikillacta.

Southern Sacred Valley tours leave Cusco daily, generally beginning with a hotel pickup at 9am and ending with a drop-off in Cusco at 5:30pm. If you are so inclined, you can also follow the same route independently, keeping in mind that you need a tourist ticket to enter the archaeological site of Moray.

During the time of the Incas, priests undertook a pilgrimage in honor of the sun deity just before the winter solstice. They followed a network of shrines which included the site now known as Tipón. This archaeological site is the first stop is the first site on tours of the southern Sacred Valley. It’s a small shrine which showcases quality Incan masonry and hydraulic engineering. Its small water channels still work to this day, diverting water from a nearby spring high up on Mt Pachusan. The stream’s water was considered sacred during Incan times. The channel carrying the water becomes subterranean where the intihuatana, or solar clock is located, and from there the water is distributed throughout the ruins though channels complete with control hatches. The water passes through ceremonial fountains before eventually reaching the nearby agricultural terraces.

Afterwards, travelers continue on to the Wari ruins of Pikillacta, whose name means Flea City. Unfortunately, this site is mainly destroyed, although one can still observe a hydraulic system, the remains of hundreds of rooms spread out over an area of 2km². Many of these rooms are small and plain, but a few are large and ornate. The presence of human remains throughout the site has led anthropologists to surmise that it was used as a ritual facility for ancestor worship.

The third stop is in the small town of Andahuaylillas, which is home to one of the a colonial treasure, the Church of San Pedro. Although this mud-brick church has a modest white exterior that may leave you with low expectations, the striking interior is completely covered with ornate murals, carvings, Amazonian gold-leaf, and paintings of the artistic period referred to as the Cusco School. The church has been nicknamed the ‘Sistine Chapel of the Americas’.

Because tours of the southern Sacred Valley take a fair amount of time, there’s a lunch stop en route back to Tipón, where the journey to Moray begins. The trip is pleasant, as it passes the small subsistence fields that belong to local families. You’ll see corn, oca, and other local products growing in small patchwork plots as the bus travels along a dusty dirt road to Moray, which is though to have served as an agricultural laboratory for the Incas. The concentric circular terraces of the site create different micro climates, allowing each terrace to simulate conditions at a different altitude. The simulated change from terrace to terrace is about 1000 meters under normal farming circumstances.

The last guided stop is the Maras Salt Pans, an intriguing sight that you won’t see anywhere else- not even in other parts of the Sacred Valley. Long ago, the Inca diverted a saltwater stream from inside Qaqawiñay Mountain, leading it through thousands of shallow pools carved into terraces staggered along the hillside. As the water evaporates, salt is left behind in the pools. Today, each family in the small town of Moray still has the right to manage one of the pools. Collectively, they produce salt today for the Peruvian and international market, which is marketed as Peruvian Pink Salt. The site isn’t just interesting for historical or cultural reasons, it’s also visually stunning. From a distance, it’s hard to believe that the slope isn’t covered in shining snow. At closer range, you can observe the play of light on the crystals and enjoy a scenic view unlike any other.

Not all tours of the southern circuit of the Sacred Valley include stops in Maras and Moray, but the version that we recommend does. If at all possible, insist on a tour that includes these sites as well, because they are a highlight.

If you’re interested in a guided tour of the Sacred Valley of the Incas, or need help with some aspect of your preparations for an independent trip, feel free to contact the experienced specialists of Pirwa Travel Service at pirwatravel@gmail.com for assistance.