Cusco and Machu picchu

 

Qosqo was the name of this city and is one of the most beautiful departments in Peru. Its landscape is one of dramatic contrasts, where high mountain ranges combine with barren plains, rolling hills, deep valleys and lowland tropical forest.

Qosqo's archaeological value goes beyond its Inca legacy. The first people settled here around 1000 BC, and are known today as the Marcavalle culture. They were followed by the emergence of the Chanapatas, contemporaries of the Pucará in Puno, who disappeared sometime in the first century, and the conquering by the Waris. After the Wari came the Killke and then finally the Incas.

Under the Incas, Qosqo became the capital of the great empire of Tahuantinsuyo, founded, according to Inca legend, by the first two Incas, Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo between the 11th and 12th centuries. The vast Inca state was later conquered by the Spanish, who re founded the city of Cusco on the 24th March 1534.

Qosqo is situated almost 3400 m or 11300 feet above sea level. The majority of its streets are built from stone which dates from the time of the Incas and forms the foundations of many of the Spanish colonial houses.

For visitors, there are endless attractions in Qosqo's historic centre, including the Plaza de Armas, the cathedral, colonial churches and fascinating museums. The remnants of the city's Inca past can be seen everywhere simply by walking the streets.

some of the tours that you can combine this ancient capital of the Incas and machupicchu are: