Arrival in Cusco

Fly Lima to Cusco (1 hour). Take the taxi slowly — no rushing today. The altitude is real: headaches, shortness of breath, and fatigue are normal at 3,400m. Drink coca tea (legal in Peru, served everywhere). Rest for 2–3 hours.

Afternoon — Gentle Exploration

Walk slowly around Plaza de Armas — Cusco’s main square, built over the Inca ceremonial centre of Huacaypata. The Cathedral (built 1654 on the foundations of Inca Viracocha’s palace) contains extraordinary colonial art including the famous Black Christ of Earthquakes. The Church of La Compañía (Jesuit, 1668) is considered the finest example of Andean Baroque architecture.

Evening — San Blas Neighbourhood

Walk uphill to San Blas — Cusco’s artisan neighbourhood of narrow cobblestone streets, colonial mansions with Inca stone foundations, and the finest craftwork shops in the country. Have dinner at a rooftop restaurant overlooking the Plaza de Armas at altitude as the stars appear — extraordinary.

Pisac Market and Ruins

The Sacred Valley (Valle Sagrado) runs 60km from Pisac to Ollantaytambo. Begin at Pisac — a village with Sunday market (the most authentic indigenous market in Peru) and Inca ruins above the town comprising an agricultural terrace system, water channels, and ceremonial baths that demonstrate Inca understanding of hydrology and terraced farming.

Ollantaytambo Fortress

The best-preserved Inca town in existence — still occupied on its original street grid by descendants of Inca families. The fortress above (unfinished when the Spanish arrived) shows massive pink granite blocks transported from a quarry 5km away across a river — the engineering achievement of their movement still unexplained. The temple terrace is one of the finest Inca constructions surviving.

Evening Train to Aguas Calientes

Board the Vistadome train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes (the gateway town below Machu Picchu) — 1.5 hours through increasingly dramatic cloud forest canyon. The train descends from 2,800m to 2,000m; the vegetation transforms entirely.

Morning — Aguas Calientes

Spend the morning in Aguas Calientes — the town exists entirely to serve Machu Picchu visitors, but it has a good market, hot springs (~$10 entry), and pleasant cafes. Return train to Ollantaytambo (~10 AM), then shared taxi to Cusco (1 hour).

Afternoon — Centre for Traditional Textiles

Visit the Centro de Textiles Tradicionales del Cusco — a non-profit cooperative preserving Andean weaving traditions. Women from 9 Andean communities demonstrate back-strap loom weaving using naturally dyed alpaca and sheep wool. The complexity of Andean textiles (more colour combinations than European tapestry, woven at 300+ threads per inch) is extraordinary. Purchase directly supports the weavers.

Morning — Fly to Lima

Morning flight Cusco→Lima (1 hour). Check into Miraflores hotel. Walk Larcomar shopping mall on the clifftop — architecturally built into the cliff face with Pacific Ocean views.

Final Food Mission

Lima’s food scene is South America’s finest. For a final lunch: a long tasting menu at one of Lima’s acclaimed restaurants (Central, Maido, or Astrid y Gastón). For a casual last meal: anticuchos (grilled beef heart on skewers, street food, extraordinary) from a Miraflores street cart. Peru has spoiled you permanently for other South American food.