Sacred Valley Full-Day Private Tour: Four Incan Sites

Four Incan sites in one day: fortress, agricultural laboratory, salt mines, weaving town

A full-day private tour of the Sacred Valley with a local guide, starting from Urubamba or Ollantaytambo and visiting Ollantaytambo Ruins, Moray Agricultural Terraces, Maras Salt Pools and Chinchero. The guide sets the pace, answers questions as you go, and skips the commission-driven stops that eat into standard group tours. Pickup from your accommodation is included. Lunch you choose and pay for separately at a local restaurant.

Step-by-step itinerary

Stops and time spent at each

1. Ollantaytambo Ruins2h
2. Moray Agricultural Terraces1h
3. Maras Salt Pools45m

Explore Sacred Valley highlights

• Visit Ollantaytambo ruins
• Drive to Moray terraces
• Explore Moray agricultural terraces
• Drive to Maras salt pools
• Visit Maras salt mines
• Lunch at local restaurant
• Drive to Chinchero
• Visit Chinchero ruins and weaving centers
• Return to hotel

The experience

The day starts at Ollantaytambo, one of the grandest Inca sites in the Sacred Valley. You walk the terraces, see the Temple of the Sun and the Water Temple with its ceremonial fountains. A guide who knows the place explains what you're standing in front of instead of reading from a script. From there it's about an hour to Moray, where the Inca built circular agricultural terraces in a natural bowl, each ring a different microclimate for experimenting with crops. It's unlike anything else in the valley and the guide can answer the questions that come up as you walk it.

After Moray, a 30-minute drive takes you to Maras, where locals have been harvesting salt from a subterranean stream since before the Inca arrived. The salt pools cascade down the mountainside in geometric ponds, each one evaporating the mineral water at a different rate. You have time to walk through them and watch the process. Then you stop for lunch at a local restaurant in the area (you choose what to eat and pay for it yourself) before heading to Chinchero, a small town set high in the mountains with views across the valley, traditional textile weaving centers where you can see how the locals work, and well-preserved Incan ruins. The drive back to your hotel takes about an hour.

The tour runs 9 to 10 hours total, though about 5 and a half of that is actual time at the sites. The rest is travel between them. Because it's private, you move at your own pace and the guide adjusts to what interests you. There are no stops at shops that pay commission to the operator. You see the real Sacred Valley instead of the sales pitch version.

What’s included

• Pickup from your accommodation.
• private transportation in a vehicle with the guide.
• a local English-speaking guide for the full day.
• entry to all four sites (Ollantaytambo Ruins, Moray Agricultural Terraces, Maras Salt Pools and Chinchero).
• taxes.

Options for this experience

2 options

Sacred Valley Tour: The BestGuide in English · 08:00The Best of the Sacred Valley Tour: You will visit Ollantaytambo, Moray, the Salt Mines, and Chinchero. Includes pickup.

Complete Sacred Valley TourGuide in English · 08:00Absolute Sacred Valley Tour: You will visit Ollantaytambo, Moray, the Salt Mines, and Pisac. Includes pickup.

You'll see the exact price of each option when you check availability.See dates and prices

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDeparts at 08:00

AgesAdult (5 to 75 years) · Under 5: can't be booked

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.You can choose from 12 pickup points.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.It may be canceled if the minimum number of travelers isn't reached. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund.

Paid on siteUS$ 26

Prices and times updated 11 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortNot recommended with heart problems

Operated by Cusco Local Friend

Is this one for you?Spend one full day seeing four distinctive Incan sites (Ollantaytambo, Moray, Maras Salt Pools, and Chinchero) with a private guide who moves at your pace and skips the souvenir shop stops that slow down group tours.

Traveler reviews

4.99★★★★★★★★★★

212 verified traveler reviews

5 ★209

4 ★3

3 ★0

2 ★0

1 ★0

Read all the reviews ›

Top questions

What's the difference between Ollantaytambo and the other Incan sites on this tour?

Ollantaytambo is a fortress with massive Inca stonework, terraces and ceremonial temples. It's the grandest and most architecturally complex of the four stops. Moray is an agricultural laboratory of concentric terraces; Maras is a working salt mine; Chinchero is a town with smaller ruins and living weaving traditions. Each one shows a different part of how the Inca used the valley.

Is lunch included, and where do we eat?

Lunch is not included in the tour price. You stop at a local restaurant in the Maras area and choose what you want to eat, paying for it yourself. The guide can recommend dishes and help with ordering if you need it.

How much walking is involved at each site?

The amount of walking varies by site. Ollantaytambo and Moray both involve walking the terraces and ruins; Maras has paths through the salt pools; Chinchero includes walking through the town and to the ruins. The guide sets the pace and can adjust based on how you're feeling, since it's a private tour.

Will we have time to see the weaving at Chinchero?

Yes. Chinchero is famous for its traditional textile weaving centers, and the tour includes time to visit them and see how the locals work. You can watch the process and buy directly from the weavers if you want to.

What's included in the tour price?

The tour includes pickup from your accommodation, private transportation between sites, and a knowledgeable local guide who speaks English. Taxes are covered. Lunch, gratuities and any items you buy are separate.

How long is the actual sightseeing versus driving time?

About 5 hours and 30 minutes is spent at the sites themselves. The remaining time is driving between Ollantaytambo, Moray, Maras and Chinchero. The total tour runs 9 to 10 hours from pickup to return to your hotel.