Sacred Valley of the Incas Ride

Arrival in Cusco

Upon arrival on Day 1 at the Cusco airport, our representative will welcome you and assist with your private transfer to your hotel. A sign with your name to ensures a smooth, stress-free arrival experience. If you plan to arrive in Cusco before Day 1, please note that airport transfers are only included from the official start of the ride, and you will be responsible for arranging your own transportation to the hotel reserved for you on Day 1.

For tonight, accommodations are planned at either Hotel Costa del Sol or Hotel Sonesta Posadas del Inca, both centrally located four-star properties offering comfort, character, and easy access to the historic heart of Cusco. These hotels are booked based on availability, and in the event neither is available, a similar four-star hotel in Cusco will be confirmed. It is recommend that you use today to rest, hydrate, and acclimatize to the altitude in preparation for your upcoming journey through the Andes. Lunch and dinner are at your leisure and at your own expense.

Rest well—tomorrow you’ll be introduced to the remarkable Peruvian Paso horses and the elegant, time- honored Peruvian riding tradition.

Transfer to Yucay, Horse Introduction & First Ride

After breakfast, you will be picked up at 9:00 AM from your hotel in Cusco for a scenic transfer into the Sacred Valley. The route descends gradually through mountain landscapes, agricultural terraces, and small Andean villages before reaching Yucay between 10:30–11:00 AM, where you will stop at the Hotel Sonesta Posadas del Inca to leave your luggage. (Official check-in time is 2:00 PM.) It is recommended you wear your riding attire when departing Cusco. A short drive brings us to the historic Hacienda Huayoccari, owned by the Lámbarri Orihuela family for over a century. The hacienda houses a remarkable private collection of pre-Hispanic ceramics, colonial religious art, and traditional Andean folk art—a heritage carefully preserved and expanded across generations. Here begins your introduction to the Peruvian Paso horse, admired for its natural four-beat lateral gait (Paso Llano) and extraordinary smoothness. Your trail guide will explain the traditional Peruvian riding style and tack before assessing your riding ability and preferences. This personalized evaluation ensures the best possible match between rider and horse, as each mount has its own temperament and character.

A relaxed lunch will be served at the hacienda with panoramic views over the Sacred Valley. Afterwards, we mount up for a gentle two-hour introductory ride through the surrounding countryside—an ideal opportunity to get comfortable with your horse and riding style before the expedition begins. Return to the hotel around 5:00 PM, giving you time to rest and prepare for tomorrow’s first full day on the trail. Dinner is at your leisure this evening. The hotel offers both Peruvian and Italian cuisine, and its onsite café, La Placita del Café, is perfect for enjoying coffee and desserts.

Riding time: approx. 2 hours Altitude: 2,800 m / 9,190 ft

Salineras, Maras & Cheqoq

After breakfast, pick up is at 9:15 AM and transfer to the horses, waiting near the small village of Pichingoto, at the entrance of the trail leading to the famous Salt Mines of Salineras. As we begin riding, the landscape gradually opens to spectacular views of terraced salt pools that have been harvested since pre-Inca times. The site consists of over 3,000 individual shallow pools built into the mountainside. Salty water from a natural mountain spring is directed through an intricate network of channels into these terraced pans. As the water evaporates under the sun, it leaves behind crystallized salt, which is then harvested by hand using traditional methods passed down through generations. The white salt pools against the dramatic red earth and green valley make this one of the most visually striking sites in the Sacred Valley. From Salineras, the trail climbs higher toward the village of Maras, surrounded by expansive farmland and wide-open Andean scenery. Near Maras, we’ll pause for a relaxed and delicious picnic lunch with sandwiches, fruit, refreshments, wine, or another preferred drink, enjoyed outdoors with beautiful views while the horses rest.

After lunch, we ride to the nearby ruins of Cheqoq, an impressive site where the Incas engineered cold-storage systems to preserve agricultural products using wind tunnels and glacier-fed water—an early example of remarkable Andean innovation.
We continue riding until approximately 4:30 PM, finishing near Maras, where the horses will remain with our grooms for the night. You will then be transferred back to your hotel in Yucay to rest and refresh. Around 7:30 PM, we will collect you for dinner at a local restaurant, offering a relaxed and authentic evening experience.

Overnight at Hotel Sonesta Posadas del Inca, Sacred Valley. (B, L, D)

Riding Across the Andean Altiplan

After a restful night, you will be picked up at 9:15 AM and transferred back to the point where we left the horses. Today’s route follows historic pathways across the Andean altiplano, offering sweeping landscapes and a memorable immersion into the region’s natural beauty and cultural heritage. As we ride, the scenery opens into wide highland valleys with snow-capped mountains, grazing livestock, and high-altitude lagoons. Along the way, you may encounter Quechua families tending sheep or cattle, or farmers working the land with traditional ox-drawn ploughs—timeless scenes of rural Andean life. Before reaching Chinchero, our support team will welcome you with a picnic lunch overlooking Lake Huaypo. On clear days, the panorama is extraordinary: the altiplano stretches beneath the peaks of the Cordillera Vilcabamba. After lunch, we continue riding toward Lake Piuray, a calm, mirror-like lake known for its natural beauty and remarkable birdlife. The surrounding micro-watershed is an important conservation area with over 140
recorded bird species, including the Andean ibis, Andean geese, lake ducks, lapwings, and the distinctive Mountain Caracara. In the late afternoon (around 5:00–5:30 PM), we arrive in a small village at the far end of Lake Piuray, where a local farming family will host our horses for the next three nights. The horses will remain here under the care of our grooms.
After a full day of riding, dinner tonight is at your leisure and at your own expense. Light meals and quick options are available at your hotel.

Riding time: approx. 5 hours   Altitude: 3,550–3,800 m (11,650–12,470 ft)

Exploring Ollantaytambo & Moray

Today, the horses rest. After breakfast, you will be picked up at 9:30 AM and transferred to Ollantaytambo, one of the most remarkable archaeological and living cultural sites in Peru.
Often referred to as a “living Inca town,” Ollantaytambo still preserves its original urban layout, narrow stone alleys, irrigation channels, and house foundations dating back to the 15th century. Walking through the village offers a rare opportunity to experience an intact example of Inca engineering and town planning still in daily use.

Above the village rise the impressive ruins of the Ollantaytambo fortress and ceremonial complex, an extraordinary example of Inca stonework, agricultural terraces, and defensive architecture. The site is also linked to the legend of Ollantay, a general who defied the Inca ruler for love — a story woven from history and Andean oral tradition. The strategic location of the citadel allowed it to serve as a stronghold during Manco Inca’s resistance to the Spanish conquest. Around 1:00 PM, you are invited for lunch at a traditional restaurant in Urubamba, where you may taste iconic Andean cuisine such as arroz con pato, quinoa-based dishes, fresh trout, lomo saltado, or pollo a la brasa — simple yet deeply rooted culinary expressions of the region.

After lunch, continue by private transport to Moray, one of the most fascinating and mysterious archaeological sites of the Inca civilization. Moray consists of a series of circular terraced depressions that created varying microclimates — a natural laboratory where the Incas are believed to have studied altitude, temperature, and humidity effects on crops such as maize, quinoa, and potatoes. The precision and scale of this site offer insight into the remarkable agricultural knowledge and scientific curiosity of the Inca Empire. You return to the hotel around 5:00 PM. After a generous midday meal, many guests prefer to skip dinner or enjoy something light such as pizza or a snack at the hotel. Dinner this evening is at your own expense. Overnight at Hotel Sonesta Posadas del Inca, Sacred Valley. (B, L)

The High Andes & Lake Quellacocha

After breakfast, your riding expedition continues. You will be picked up at 9:15 AM and transferred back to the small family farm near Lake Piuray, where the horses remained overnight under the care of their grooms. Today’s ride leads into some of the most remote and awe-inspiring landscapes of the journey—and to the highest elevation of the expedition. Please dress appropriately and be prepared for changing weather; at this altitude, conditions can shift quickly from sun to wind, cold, or light rain. Follow an ancient highland trail toward a mountain pass at 4,150 m (13,600 ft). From the top, expansive views unfold across the puna grasslands, Lake Q’oricocha, and several smaller high-altitude lagoons. The landscape is quiet, open, and wild—home to grazing alpacas, llamas, and the occasional Andean bird of prey sweeping across the sky. This region marks the heartland of traditional potato cultivation. Here, the land continues to be farmed using ancestral techniques passed down since Inca times—most notably the chakitaklla, a wooden foot- plough powered by teamwork, rhythm, and human strength. Peru is the birthplace of the potato, with over 4,000 native varieties, many of which are still grown in these remote Andean highlands with extraordinary biodiversity and cultural continuity.

Continue onward to the tranquil shores of Lake Quellacocha, where the support team will welcome you with a well-earned lunch. In the afternoon, the trail descends gradually from the high plateau toward the valley of Umasbamba, offering beautiful views and a steady change in vegetation and climate. Near the village, the horses will once again stay with the same local family, cared for overnight by the grooms. You will then be transferred back to your hotel in the Sacred Valley.

Dinner this evening is planned at a local restaurant or in a private setting.
Riding time: approx. 5–6 hours  Altitude: 3,800 – 4,290 m (12,470 – 14,000 ft)

Riding the Qhapaq Ñan

Today’s route offers another day of memorable scenery, with time for pauses, photos, and quiet appreciation of the landscape. Begin in Umasbamba, riding toward the rural communities of Cuper Alto and Cuper Bajo, passing terraced farmlands, grazing animals, and sweeping Andean vistas. Early in the day, a short section of the route follows original stretches of the Qhapaq Ñan—the extraordinary Inca road system that once connected Cusco to distant regions of the empire. Riding along these remaining pathways offers a meaningful sense of the area’s history and the scale of Andean civilisation. By early afternoon, you reach a beautiful abandoned church near Chinchero, where lunch will be served in a peaceful rural setting. After lunch, continue riding through open agricultural landscapes and past small highland lakes. Parts of this afternoon route may feel familiar, as it overlaps with a section ridden earlier in the journey; however, the direction, scenery, and shifting vantage points offer a new perspective and experience of the countryside. The final stretch brings us to the village of Huatata, located in the highlands just outside Chinchero. Here, at a family farm, the horses will stay overnight under the care of our grooms, as on previous nights.
You will then be transferred back to your hotel in the Sacred Valley. Dinner tonight will be enjoyed at a local restaurant. Overnight at Hotel Sonesta Posadas del Inca, Sacred Valley.
(B, L, D)
Riding time: approx. 5 hours   Altitude: 3,800 – 3,600 m (12,470 – 11,850 ft)

Final Ride into the Sacred Valley

After breakfast, get ready for the last day on horseback. Return to Huatata, where the horses stayed overnight with the grooms, and begin your ride along a beautiful trail high above the Sacred Valley. The morning route leads through farmland and rural communities, offering a final glimpse into daily Andean life. As you descend toward the valley floor, sweeping views unfold below. Midway down the trail, the support team awaits with a picnic lunch in the open landscape. After lunch, continue toward the historic village of Urquillos, riding past corn fields and along the banks of the Vilcanota River. A traditional hanging bridge brings us across to the opposite side of the valley, and from here it is a short final stretch to the tstables in Huayllabamba, arriving around 4:00 PM. This evening, gather for a farewell dinner at a local restaurant — a final celebration of a remarkable journey shared with extraordinary horses.

Riding time: approx. 4.5 hours   Altitude: 3,600 – 2,850 m (11,850 – 9,350 ft)

Return to Cusco

After breakfast, you are transferred back to Cusco. The journey follows the course of the Sacred Valley, offering final views of the terraced landscapes and Andean peaks that have accompanied you throughout the ride. Driving time is approximately 1.5 hours.

Upon arrival in Cusco, the trip concludes at either your hotel or the airport, depending on your onward travel arrangements.

OR

OPTIONAL EXTENSION – MACHU PICCHU

Visit to Machu Picchu
After an early breakfast, you are transferred to the train station in Ollantaytambo for the scenic rail journey to Aguas Calientes, the gateway to Machu Picchu. Upon arrival, a professional guide leads you through the citadel, exploring its temples, terraces, and
extraordinary stonework — a masterpiece of Inca engineering and one of the world’s most iconic archaeological sites.

In the afternoon, you return by train to the Sacred Valley and overnight at Sonesta Posadas del Inca, a historic Andean property built around an 18th-century colonial monastery. Dinner is on your own this evening.

Return to Cusco

After a relaxed breakfast, a private transfer returns you to Cusco. The extension ends upon arrival at your hotel or at the airport, depending on your onward journey.