Inkaterra La Casona
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[0.1 miles]
Luxurious rooms in a beautifully-restored 16th Century Spanish-colonial mansion where Simon Bolivar once stayed.
Official star rating:
Bucket list experience:
Cusco Cathedral
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru
Last updated: 29 May, 2023
Built on the site of a royal Inca palace razed to the ground by Pizarro, this hulking 16th-century baroque church houses some impressive Cusqueno art, which mixes indigenous and Spanish styles, including a Last Supper showing Christ eating guinea pig.
The Inca-made reredos behind the solid silver altar is covered in intricate carving and the north tower houses the 6 tonne Maria Angola Bell, named after a freed slave who threw a handful of gold into the crucible when the bell was cast in 1659.
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Destination Guide >Price from: £5
Minimum age: Any
Age suitable: +
When: All year around
Getting there & doing it
Pick up the free audio guide for commentary on the artwork inside. Note – the cathedral is included on the multi-attraction Boleto General ticket covering 16 sites in Cusco and the Sacred Valley.
When to do it
The cathedral is open to visitors all year round, seven days a week.
Our writer’s picks of the best places to stay near this experience, closest first
Hotel Monasterio
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[0.2 miles]
A grand, luxury hotel housed in a restored 16th-century monastery and filled with priceless colonial art. Restful and meditative, yet just a few blocks from Cusco’s historic heart.
Official star rating:
Belmond Palacio Nazarenas
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[0.2 miles]
A luxuriously-restored convent with a glittering baroque chapel, filled with Cusqueno artworks and home to one of Cusco’s top restaurants.
Official star rating:
El Retablo
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[0.3 miles]
A tranquil, family-run guesthouse sits in up-and-coming, arty San Blas neighbourhood, with views of central Cusco at every street corner.
Official star rating:
Destination guides including or relevant to this experience
Peru
Peru
A land of spectacular deserts, high mountains and rainforests that teem with wildlife, Peru is also home to an array of dramatically situated pre-Colombian ruins, including Machu Picchu.
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Overview >Our writer’s recommendations of other bucket list experiences our writer says you must do in this destination, closest first
Festival of the Sun
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[0.1 miles]
Colourful parades and ancient Inca ceremonies are re-enacted at this world-famous winter solstice festival.
Best for ages: 8+ | Free | 5 hours
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Overview >
Qorikancha
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[0.5 miles]
The Inca empire’s most elaborate sun temple, covered in gold and silver, is now a colonial church housing stunning Inca stonework.
Best for ages: 18+ | £2
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Sacsayhuaman
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[0.8 miles]
A vast, fortified Inca sun temple that perches over Cusco, housing boulders and masonry astonishingly jigsaw-pieced together, without cement or metal tools.
Best for ages: 18+ | £24
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A day in Cusco
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[1.5 miles]
The heart of the old Inca empire has a wealth of Inca ruins, Spanish treasures and historic architecture to explore.
Best for ages: 18+ | Free | 1 day
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Overview >Other worthwhile experiences near this experience if you have time or interest..
Experience
Hike from Cusco to Huchuy
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[2.7 miles]
This, the shortest and easiest of alternative Inca trails, takes three days from Cusco and offers wonderful mountain views, little-visited Inca sites and a final day at Machu Picchu itself.
Best for ages: 18+ | £4 | 3 days
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Experience
Chinchero village
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[15.7 miles]
This little village in the Sacred Valley near Cusco is a centre for traditional indigenous weaving in Peru. It has a lively market and ancient Inca agricultural terraces.
Best for ages: 13+ | Free
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Experience
Maras Salt Pans
Cusco, Cusco Region, Peru[28 miles]
Looking like bone-white Balinese rice terraces and surrounded by dramatic mountain scenery, these ancient salt pans, cut in Inca times, are still in use today. Accessed from the town of Maras in the Sacred Valley, 40kms from Cusco.
Best for ages: 18+ | £1
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