Top Cusco Day Trips

Communication with the tour company was challenging since it took several messages before we received a response. However, the actual tour with our tour guide was amazing. Our family of 4, including 2 teens, ended up having a private tour. Our tour guide, Joel, was professional and knowledgeable. It was a 50-min ride from our hotel to the ATV base camp. After receiving instructions, we practiced at base camp for 10 min before heading out. It was our teen daughter’s first time driving an ATV and she quickly got the hang of it thanks to the clear instructions. It wasn’t stated on the website but there is an additional nominal fee of 3 soles per person paid to the local community of Cruzpata to compensate for the ATVs traveling through the village. The ATV ride from the base camp to Moray took about 45 min each way. It was a beautiful scenic ride and we enjoyed every minute of it. Joel even took a video of us riding our ATVs. Moray was beautiful! Joel explained its history and then we had about 20 min to explore on our own. He was also kind enough to take family photos for us. After Moray, we headed to Maras. We knew in advance (based on other reviews) that there wouldn’t be time for lunch so we packed food and snacks to eat during the 20-min bus ride to Maras. The salt mines were stunning. Afterwards, we stopped at a shop for salted chocolate tasting. We ended up buying some souvenirs. Our teens said that this tour was one of the highlights of our trip to Cusco.

The tour guide was very knowledgeable on this tour, and the driver was able to take us to all of the impressive Inca sites in a timely manner without rushing the tour group too much. The guide was also a good photographer. The buffet lunch was also good and had a wide range of options. Note: this is not the fault of this tour organizer, but I recommend bringing toilet paper, because the bathrooms at the Inca sites themselves did not have any available to visitors.

This was one of the BEST experiences I have had with a tour group in all of my worldly travels. I was picked up and returned at my door. I enjoyed leaving at 8:00 AM rather than 4:00 AM. I was greeted by hiking guide, Alex and the driver, Yober. Alex gave me a bag with water and a lot of great snacks! We stopped at a restaurant to use the extremely clean restroom along the way and place our lunch order for the post hike meal. Once we arrived at the hiking start point we walked a short ways where he helped the other hiker in my group get settled on a horse. The two of us took off and hiked all the way to the top and with the bonus of the last high peak to reach one of the “hands” so I could get more great photos. He knows all the primo photo spots and was kind to take lots of photos for me. I enjoyed listening to some history about the mountain, Cusco and practicing my Spanish with him along the way. Upon returning to the van, Yober handed me a warm wash cloth that smelled and felt great. He also asked me what type of tea I would like. Top notch service again! We drove back to the restaurant and our food was ready. WOW, my quinoa soup and trout were delicious. I also tried my hiking mates chicken, which was excellent too. The dessert was a Lucuma mousse and I’d like another one. I only have great things to state about this trip and that you receive a lot of great service for what you pay. I highly recommend this trip. If at all possible allow yourself to acclimate to the altitude before you go on this hike to Rainbow Mountain. I exercise a lot and hike but not at this extreme altitude. You might have to consider a horse to get you up. It can also be cold and windy so wear layers, bring a sun hat and sunscreen. One last important point to mention is that the office staff did a great job about responding to my pick up questions. They also needed some information in advance and that was smooth as well. Thank you for an amazing day Alex and Yober!!!

The weather was not too good, it was raining and actually the mountain was covered with snow. However, it makes the experience even more unique. I was picked up in front of my hotel, and then a long ride to the restaurant for breakfast (it was excellent). We continued the ride to the trail head. Heber, our guide, gave us some info and help us decide if we need a horse ride. I chose the horse, and it was the right decision, given the weather and the altitude, I won't be able to walk up even I am fit enough to run a half marathon. When I got off the horse, there was still around an hour of hike at high altitude. It was tough. Different groups are identified by the color of the walking stick. At the top Heber actually looked for us (as the group got scattered) and made sure we are OK, and took some amazing picture of me. The hike down was fine, and it took a bit more than an hour. After the hike we went to the same restaurant for lunch. Excellent food. Then we rode back to Cusco and got dropped off at the main square. Overall, incredible experience and I still can't believe I paid such a low price.

The trip started at 7:45 with a pickup from our hotel. Went to Pisco to see the Incan site, then went into the town of Pisco to shop. Continued on to Urubomba for a teriffic lunch. Not the standard roadside food, but real kicking great culinary experience. Then went Ollantaytambo to drop off a few of our group at train station and continued to the ruins near train station. Loaded up for return to Cusco, but wait…..one more stop at a really cool textile factory. Got back to hotel around 7:15p. It was a great day. Thank you Clara and our fantastic bus driver.

Enjoyable tour, seeing the countryside surrounding Cusco, the Saltmines and the process of weaving from start to finish. The driver was good & the guide Hipo was very good. Hipo spoke very good English & explained things very clearly & invited everyone to ask questions.

Definitely a one in a lifetime experience. I was a bit nervous at first due to some negative comments. However everything about my experience was extremely smooth. Constant communication from the company. Easy transition from hotel pick up, train tickets, Machu Picchu tickets and the return back to Cusco. I really appreciate our guide Mauro for making this an unforgettable experience.

Gary and Roman were our tour guides and they did a great job leading the charge on this very busy itinerary. It’s a smaller group which makes the activities much more manageable. This is a great option for seeing sacred valley and having the tour operator handle the ticketing situation at Machu Picchu which can be very challenging. Feedback for the company—the lunch stop was disappointing! Service was slow and food was way overcooked. Would’ve been nice to let the tourists choose their own restaurants or offer a more authentic restaurant. The hotel booked in Aguas Calientes (Hotel Ferre) was very bare bones. Lastly, I didn’t like that after I paid for this tour, I had secondary requests for payment for the admittance tickets. Would’ve liked to see that be priced up front.