Moray and Maras Salt Mines Tour

We will pick you up from your hotels between 6.40am to 7.00am, and we will start our tour.

With this full day tour you will have the opportunity to know the Sacred Valley of the Incas in its entirety starting with the beautiful Inca colonial town of Chinchero (3762 masl) and enjoy the beautiful view of the combination of Inca legacies and colonial buildings still standing and of permanent use of the inhabitants, in addition, you will be able to appreciate the artistic textilería in the hands of the settlers dedicated to this activity.

Then we go to the archaeological complex of Moray, located in the district of Maras (3300 masl), in this place you can appreciate the most impressive and unique Inca agricultural laboratory, here is where the Incas could experience the different geographical altitudes for the agricultural use In one place, the history of this place is impressive and the view is even more so. In the same district of Maras, we visited Las Salineras, a beautiful place where we found a group of about 3,000 wells that the inhabitants use and benefit from; You will not regret the beautiful view that awaits you in this place.

Our next stop will be Urubamba (2871 masl) where we will enjoy a delicious buffet lunch in our restaurant “Illary” and we will prepare to continue with our tour. Then we go to the Inca town of Ollantaytambo (2792 masl), called “Living Inca City” for being the only city of the Incas that is still inhabited, in this city, besides being surprised by the amazing beauty of the archaeological complex, you will be impressed with the extraordinary Inca urban planning that is still standing and inhabited by the current population, the streets of Ollantaytambo will make you fall in love.

Now we go to the last point and not least, Pisac (2900 masl) one of the most important agricultural and spiritual centers of the Sacred Valley of the Incas, the archaeological complex, from which you can see the mighty Vilcanota River and much of the Valley Sacred will leave you surprised, then we go to one of the most popular craft markets in Cusco and with the best prices.

At the end of your excursion, we will leave you in Plaza San Francisco, averaging 6.45pm.

Maras

District of the province of Urubamba, located 40 km from the city of Cusco via paved road, is located at an altitude of 3028 meters above sea level. In the Pre-Inca period it had discontinuous occupation where ceramic fragments and some utensils of the Chanapata Culture were found. The town of Maras was inhabited in the Inca times by the Cusqueños nobles, it is for this reason that today the houses show noble shields on the lintels of the doors indicating the importance of this, at the time of the colony the town was founded by Pedro Ortiz de Orue as Villa of San Francisco de Asis de Maras giving the name of Villa that was a city or town that had certain benefits. At present the church of that epoch built with adobe is still conserved, in its interior in the atrium it has a cross carved in granite, the church is decorated with canvases painted by a resident of the place, works that represent the Apostles and other Saints . Today it is a population dedicated to agriculture and livestock, now also becoming a population that devotes its interest to tourism.

Moray

It is located 62 km from Cusco and 7 km west of Maras. It is at an altitude of 3500 meters above sea level, archaeological group unique in its kind of the region, consisting of admirable systems of terraces, huge terraces that overlap concentrically, taking the form of a gigantic amphitheater, for its climatic conditions and other characteristics, It was an important center of domestication, acclimatization and hydration of wild vegetables. The structures found here are typically Inca. What is surprising is the variation of the annual temperature between the top and the bottom that reaches about 15ºC. There are many questions about this site as there is a lack of serious scientific research. It is worth noting that Moray, due to the characteristics it possesses, was also a magnetic center, since the solar energy stored during the day can be perceived within this sector.

Salineras de Maras

“Salt Mines”. Located 7 km. of Moray, an impressive saline exploitation complex, has salt mines, which were already exploited since the time of the Incas as a means of economic exchange and are still being exploited today by the locals. They are constituted by 2000 small wells, they indicate that the mountain has in its interior mines of salt, a manante of salty water that emanates of this mountain, it serves during the dry season to fill the wells in the form of “irrigation” every 3 days with salt water for a month, so that it solidifies gradually, later on we have the process for the consumption of the region.