TRAVEL TO THE SAGRADO VALLEY AND MACHU PICCHU

The Sacred Valley of the Incas (Spanish: Sacred Valley of the Incas, Quechua: Willka Qhichwa) or the Urubamba Valley is a valley in the Andes of Peru, 20 kilometers (12 mi) in its nearest north of the Inca capital of Cusco. It is located in the current Peruvian region of Cusco. In colonial documents it was referred to as the “Yucay Valley”. The Sacred Valley was slowly incorporated into the incipient Inca Empire during the period from 1000 to 1400 AD.

The scenic and historical sacred valley is an important tourist destination. In 2013, it is estimated that 1.2 million people, 800,000 of them non-Peruvians, visited Machu Picchu, the most famous archaeological site. Many of the same tourists also visited other archaeological sites and modern cities in the Sacred Valley.

The advanced Incas lived in the area of ​​Cuzco. By conquest or diplomacy, during the period from 1000 to 1400 AD, the Inca gained administrative control over the various ethnic groups living in or near the Sacred Valley.

The attraction of the Sacred Valley to the Inca, in addition to its proximity to Cuzco, was probably smaller in elevation and therefore warmer than any other nearby area. The lower elevation allowed maize to be grown in the Sacred Valley. Corn was a prestigious crop for the Incas, especially for making chicha, a fermented corn drank the Incas and their subjects consumed in large quantities at their many ceremonial festivals and religious festivals.

Large-scale maize production in the Sacred Valley was apparently facilitated by varieties raised in nearby Moray, whether it be a government-grown laboratory or a nursery of the Incas.

Duration: 2 days / 1 night

Highlights: tour of Cusco, Sacred Valley of the Incas, overnight in Aguas Calientes “Aldeia Machu Picchu”, excursion to the Inca city of Machu Picchu.