Find here a list of the best places to visit in cusco. discover the best places near the main square
The Main Square is the first historical site that people can visit when they set foot in Cusco. From this place is where all the tours start to learn more about the "Navel of the world".
You can appreciate the ancient construction that until now remains intact, as well as walk around and take pictures in its surroundings.
The square was surrounded by the palaces of the Incas as well as plots of land destined for future palaces. The palace of Pachacutec was called Qasana and was located on the northwest side of the square on the site that today corresponds to the Portal de Panes and is circumscribed by the streets Plateros, Tigre, Teqsecocha and Procuradores streets. The palace of Huayna Capac was called Amaru Cancha and was located on the southeast side of the square on the site that is now occupied by the church of the Company, the Portal of the Company, the University Auditorium and also the Palace of Justice. This site is today circumscribed by the streets Loreto, Afligidos, Mantas and Avenida El Sol. The palace of the Inca Viracocha called Sunturwasi corresponds today to the block where the Cathedral is located. Additionally, the current Portal de Harinas corresponds to the old palace called Korakora and the Portal de Carrizos to the old Acllawasi.
FACT: In 1983 the city of Cusco was declared Cultural Patrimony of Humanity by UNESCO.
Both sites are part of any paid tour in Cusco, but you can access them independently and for free.
The busiest street for tourists in the city of Cusco. It is located a few steps from the Plaza de Armas. Its name means 'Big Stone' because in its paths was built hundreds of years ago the Palace of Inca Roca, on whose foundations was built the current Archbishop's Palace. In this street there is a fine wall where the Incas carved the popular 'Stone of the 12 angles', one of the most popular attractions of the city. If you continue along its stone paths, you will reach the Cuesta de San Blas or Barrio de los Artesanos (Artisans' Quarter).
In Hatun Rumiyoc is the famous stone of the twelve angles, an element that is part of the identity of Cusco. The place where the stone is located was formerly the palace of the Inca Sinchi Roca, but with the arrival of the Spaniards, they built the Archbishop's Palace over it.
Not far away is the street of the seven snakes, considered one of the most beautiful in Cusco. It is located at the height of the Plazoleta Nazarenas and Choquechaka passage. As its name suggests, you will see snakes, but not alive, but carved into the stones that are part of the walls of the street and the Nazarene Palace.
The Central Market of San Pedro is the main and oldest supply market in the city of Cusco,1 Peru, and is located in its historical center in front of the Plazoleta San Pedro and Santa Clara street whose current route corresponds to the ancient Inca road that, starting from the Huacaypata, communicated the capital of the Tawantinsuyo with the Contisuyo.
If you want to learn more about the culture of a country, the markets are the perfect place. There you will not only know the gastronomy of the place, but also the original supplies, the drinks consumed, the clothes, the accessories used, what they sell and more.
The San Pedro Market is an essential stop for both local and foreign tourists.
Other markets that stand out are San Blas and Wanchaq, each one of them shows you the magic of the imperial city.
It is one of the most beautiful neighborhoods of Cusco. Its predominant colors are white, light blue or blue and reddish roofs, these being its distinctive and creating a unique panorama. If you travel to Cusco, taking a picture at this point is something you must contemplate, as it is free.
What to visit:
Cuesta de San Blas: if you come from the Plaza de Armas, the first thing you will find is the famous Cuesta de San Blas, a sort of summary of what awaits you in this picturesque neighborhood.
Galleries and workshops: precisely on the slope of San Blas you will find numerous galleries and workshops of important Cusquenian artists. In them, you will be able to appreciate their works and, in addition, to buy the one you like the most.
Plazoleta de San Blas: at the end of the Cuesta de San Blas is the Plazoleta de San Blas, a small corner where you can sit and rest after climbing this steep street. Here you can visit two of the great attractions of this neighborhood, the Galería de Hilario Mendivil y Familia and the Templo de San Blas.
Gallery of Hilario Mendivil and Family: Hilario Mendivil is one of the greatest representatives of Cusco handicrafts. His work, which was developed during the 20th century, stands out for the religious images with elongated necks that resemble those of the llama and the alpaca, very representative animals of the Andes.
Temple of San Blas: one of the great jewels of the colonial architecture of this neighborhood is the Temple of San Blas. This church, which was built over an Inca huaca and later rebuilt in 1650 after an earthquake, has an incredible pulpit carved in cedar, of anonymous author, but attributed to local artists.
Mirador de San Blas: to end the day, nothing better than going up to the Mirador de San Blas and enjoy a beautiful sunset with one of the best panoramic views of Cusco.
Restaurants and bars: in addition, the neighborhood is perfect to enjoy a good meal or toast with cocktails and beers, as there are countless restaurants and bars of all kinds.
In this area is located Hilario Mendívil, a renowned artisan who has a workshop where he makes images of virgins and saints, being one of the most important of the twentieth century.
It is one of those that preserves more history and art. There you can find the photographer Martín Chambi, the writer Clorinda Matto de Turner, the first woman lawyer of Peru, María Trinidad Enríquez and the archaeologist Manuel Chávez Ballón, key characters for the history of Peru.
If you want to know and taste one of the most delicious coffees in the world, you should attend the exhibition that takes place in the Coffee Museum. You will learn about the cultivation, its importance and the process of transforming Quillabamba coffee into granules.
You've probably seen the Instagram photos and TikTok videos where several tourists pose in a forest full of tall trees. This is the Qenqo forest, where eucalyptus trees are the protagonists. The scenery you will see is magical and is only 15 minutes from the historic center of Cusco, on the hill of Socorro Hill. It is a perfect place to disconnect from the noise and fast pace of any city.
Heading west and going up the peculiar street called "La Resbalosa" (which as its name says, you have to climb it calmly because it is also very steep), you will arrive directly at the Church of San Cristobal.
This simple, but beautiful church is an adobe structure with a single nave, inside you will be able to find several paintings and altarpieces.
In fact, here you will also see the small square and the viewpoint of San Cristobal, which is where the bell tower is located and is well worth the climb (it offers some of the best views of Cusco).
This was a residential housing area in the original Inca city, built in a grid layout (called cancha) with houses facing the central courtyards.
The name literally means happy enclosure, unfortunately many of these original houses were destroyed in the conquest by the Spanish.
Still, it is worth a visit, although you can only see it from the outside through glass, as it is undergoing restoration and recovery.
In the street Hatun Rumiyoc (very close to the neighborhood of San Blas) is located the famous Stone of the 12 Angles which has a very fine finish and belonged to Inca Roca who is one of the 14 Incas and / or rulers who had the Tawantinsuyo (Empire of the Incas), his fame is due to the finish, the hard work that was required to place 12 stones around a single piece of stone and the number of angles it has, in total 12 that comes to be a cabalistic number.
If you want to take a beautiful picture with the stone, it will not be easy because there are many tourists trying to take a picture, therefore, we recommend you to visit this stone in the morning from 6 am to 9 am and at night from 9 pm to 12 noon.
View the Mural Painting at Avenida el Sol
This beautiful work of Mural Painting was designed and painted by Juan Bravo Vizcarra in 1992 to represent more or less 3 thousand years of pre-Inca, Inca, colonial and republican history of the city of Cusco. The mural has a perimeter of 50 meters by 6 meters.
This mural was made by the Cusco plastic artist Juan Bravo Vizcarra, where he summarizes in this canvas 3 thousand years of history, graphing in the same one the 5 stages of the Cusco history, the origins of the Incas, the Inca Empire, the Spanish conquest, the rebellion and the modernity.
It would have cost Bravo Vizcarra about 9 months to complete this great work until the day of its inauguration in 1992, at present this mural is one of the most important didactic attractions of the Imperial City; located just two meters above the sidewalk, this painting is part of the so-called "Walking tour" within the city of Cusco, and for its realization had to get acrylic paints from Mexico according to the late author Juan Bravo Vizcarra narrated. On January 23, 2016 at 98 years of age.
If you are a good walker and have no problem with the height, do not miss this work of architecture of the Spanish occupation-seventeenth century. This colonial wall has several Roman arches, has a total of four levels and for its execution was used stones that belonged to the Inca temple of Sanpantiyana, until the mid-twentieth century still worked.
It is located on the Tullumayo River between the neighborhoods of San Blas and San Cristobal, it will take you about 30 minutes walk from the Plaza de Armas of Cusco.
Many people only want to visit the historic center, but not all the beauty of Cusco is in the historic center but also in the district of Wánchaq where there is a very peculiar square ornamented in the central part with an equestrian image mounted by a horseman representing a very famous indigenous revolutionary in South America: Tupac Amaru.
The Plaza Túpac Amaru is about a 30 minute walk from the Plaza de Armas-don't miss it.
About 20 minutes walk from the main square is a beautiful viewpoint from where you can see the entire city of Cusco, we recommend you bring a good camera, you can visit the place in day and night hours until 8 pm maximum.
The church of San Cristobal is an adobe structure of a single nave, with a Latin cross plan, which has a stone bell tower, was built in the early years of the conquest by the cacique Paulo Tupac Yupanqui brother of Huascar and Atahualpa, as a sign of his devotion to Christianity, was given the title of San Cristobal, because when he was baptized this Inca took the name of his godfather Don Cristobal Vaca de Castro. The church internally is not very rich in comparison to other churches in the city of Cusco, its main altar and tabernacle are made of embossed silver and the rest of the altar is decorated in gold leaf, its most prominent features are a virgin with bare breasts, proof of religious syncretism existing until today, and similarly there are other altars that are not necessarily in optimal state of preservation. It is also possible to find paintings of magnificent technique, belonging to the Cusco school of painting, representing St. Michael, the martyrdom of St. Peter, Salome and Herod.
The temple houses the gigantic sculpture of the Patron Saint Christopher dating from the sixteenth century and that of San Antonio Abad, both participate with their parishioners in the lavish festivity of Corpus Christi, which takes place every year in the city of Cusco.
The stone bell tower that today dominates the city of Cusco was built during the reconstruction works that were carried out after the earthquake of 1650, these works were in charge of the architect Marcos Uscamayta and sponsored by the patron Manuel Mollinedo y Angulo.
In 2007, during an archaeological work the remains of Paullo Inca were found, who as we said was the founder of the church.
This statue is located in the northeastern part of the city of Cusco, above the neighborhood of San Blas, represents the protection for the inhabitants of the city of Cusco, considering that almost 80% of the people of Cusco are Catholic.
How to get to the White Christ on foot?
There are many ways to get to the White Christ on foot, but we recommend you to take Atojsayquchi Street, and go straight ahead (do not turn left or right), once you get to the main road turn left and there you will find it and we are very sure that you will enjoy the beautiful panoramic view of Cusco.
If you are in Cusco, visit one of the most significant places from the mystical point of view for the Andean man, visit the Temple of the Moon, starting from the main square of Cusco, it will take you about 1 hour on foot.
You have to use the same route that you used to get to the White Christ, from this statue you have to walk in the direction of the Inca temple Qenqo (for this temple you have to pay, so you can skip it, consider that you can always take pictures from the top), from the temple of Qenqo keep walking in the same northeast direction, walk for about 15 min more and you will arrive to the Temple of the Moon, do not worry if you get disoriented, you will not get lost because there are many people around the place, so you can always ask.
¿WHY TRAVEL WITH ANDINO PERU TOURS?
We are a Peruvian Agency with Cusco roots, committed to providing you with unique tourism experiences. With our own transportation and a team of dedicated professionals, we aim to show you the best of Peru.
Striving to provide freedom in your travels, through specialized and quality service that ensures a worry-free experience. We take care of every aspect of your journey organization so you can fully enjoy.
We focus on creating unforgettable experiences through an expert team and carefully selected providers. We keep small groups to ensure exceptional service and that you make the most of each tour.
Monday to Friday: 8:00 - 20:00
Saturdays: 8:00 - 13:00
Sundays: Cerrado
