Top Things to do in Chinchero
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Top 10 Things to do in Chinchero, Peru
Discover the best top things to do in Chinchero, Peru including Complejo Arqueologico Chinchero, Salinas de Maras, Centro Historico De Cusco, Kantu, Museo Inkariy, Sacsayhuaman, Moray Agricultural Terraces, Mercado de Artesanias, Centro Textil Acllas, Sumaq LLank'ay.
Restaurants in Chinchero
1. Complejo Arqueologico Chinchero
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 193 reviews
Reviewed By BRDman7 - Vancouver, Canada
We truly enjoyed this scenic little village, right from wandering up the narrow streets, past the old church and among the charming ruins looking out over the valley. The ruins are located in a great setting and the market outside the churches court yard had some wonderful gifts and the best prices that we had found in Peru.
2. Salinas de Maras
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 6 reviews
Reviewed By Stephen T - Dorchester, United Kingdom
It is unusual to find salt gathering inland, but here a warm very salt stream comes out of the hillside and for generations has been diverted into shallow ponds created by forming up dirt banks, left for the sun to evaporate the water and then the salt collected up and sold. The site is extensive with hundreds of smallish ponds in tiers down the hillside. You can see the individual owners working their ponds, entirely by hand and there is a small row of tourist trap shops selling the usual stuff and some packets of the salt. There are some fairly basic catering facilities. Interesting, unusual, well worth the visit.
3. Centro Historico De Cusco
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 11 reviews
Reviewed By 4historyandculture - Charlotte, North Carolina
The Spaniards sadly destroyed Inca temples and built their churches over them. The buildings around have u inquest wooden balconies to survive the earthquakes. There are so many picture opportunities, there is a green park with benches and the security watches so people do not walk on the green grass. There is a nice water Fountain also. The downside is they charge a fee to enter the churches
4. Kantu
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 65 reviews
is a family initiative that was born in early 2014 through the creation of a textile center in the district of Chinchero in Cusco, Peru. Our first objective was to have a space for the families in our community to exhibit the fine artistic beauty of Andean weavings, in this case the best of Chinchero, already known throughout Cusco and world-wide for their magnificent quality, as well as the opportunity to sell their goods on the market and generate some income for the people of these rural areas. A center where anyone can come to learn about the techniques, processes, materials, elaboration, the coloring and dyes, and final steps of this handmade art from the master weavers themselves. In addition, a cultural space that supports the recovery and preservation of ancestral traditions of Andean communities to be shared with the world.
Reviewed By Wellington24 - Boston, MA
These families have a wonderful presentation prepared to demonstrate how yarn is made, colored and woven into fantastic crafts. The collective has many wonderful things for sale and the prices were excellent when compared to other markets throughout the Cusco region. The table runners were especially beautiful and affordable. The live animals were an extra special treat! Clean bathrooms and some tea are also available. This was an excellent stop on our journey.
5. Museo Inkariy
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 174 reviews
Inkariy offers a dynamic experience, through artistic installations that represent more than five thousand years of history; from Caral to the Inkas.
Reviewed By TravelingSuz - Phoenix, Arizona
Excellent stop in the beginning of the trip. The museum is staged in different buildings, each highlighting the pre-Incan tribal history. It gave us a well-rounded understanding prior to embarking on tours of Ollantaytambo, Machu Picchu, and Pisac. We had a guide that took us from building to building, summarizing the similarities and differences. Even more impressive, many of the buildings had elaborate dioramas showing a prominent ritual. We found it fascinating and a great start to our adventure.
6. Sacsayhuaman
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 11 reviews
Reviewed By michaelwalter96 - Steyning, United Kingdom
We immediately went from the airport to the site, and were not troubled by the altitude. Our guide was most informative, and explained that slavery was not part of the Inca culture and that Incas were involved as part of their civic duty. They constructed earth ramps and then the enormous boulders were moved into position by teams of men.
Sacsayhuaman represents the head of a puma with the spine going through the centre of Cusco in astrological alignment with the Milky Way.
A truly amazing place.
7. Moray Agricultural Terraces
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 545 reviews
Reviewed By SharksSupporter1 - Durban
During our time in Cusco we took several day trips one of which was to the Inca ruins at Moray which consist of several terraced levels made of compacted earth with stone retaining type walls. Enjoyed the walk around the circumference whilst taking in the views . Part of one wall has collapsed and a temporary timber shored support has been erected whilst permanent reconstruction work is completed but this did not detract from the amazing views.
8. Mercado de Artesanias
Overall Ratings
4 based on 81 reviews
Reviewed By Aussie_Travel_Writer - Sydney, Australia
The Chinchero markets were quite an experience and very colorful but it was the same thing over and over again, quite overpriced in comparison and everyone were very aggressively demanding “propina” for taking a photo… I even had to pay “propina” for taking a photo of a basket of corn! I’m all for paying something for taking a photo of someone, especially from up close, but this was a bit ridiculous and unlike anything we’ve experienced so far in the way of having to pay for photos in Peru.
I would almost call the markets a tourist trap but it is still worth a visit to experience the colours, the traditional dress and it is a great market to buy almost anything you’d find at many other markets in Peru. You can even find items with real teeth in it! For alpaca knitwear, hang on till you get to Puno & Taquile Island – much cheaper and very unique (on Taquile island the men are doing the knitting from the softest baby alpaca and it is very unique!)
At the markets, we bought corn on the cob (the big fat white kernels), which was served with a side of a big chunk of cheese! (We thought it was butter! Ha-Ha!) The corn was very juice and really good but the cheese wasn’t my thing…
There is a beautiful little church on the hill above the markets – an easy stroll. We visited on a Sunday and could not really see the inside as they had a church service at the time, but we did go inside to experience the signing. The church was packed and it was quite an experience to hear the signing and just be silent and in the moment for a while.
On the way to the church, there are a few shops selling crafts and other things and a few local people in traditional dress sitting outside their shops. There was a man who carved the most amazing artwork onto pumpkin shells and he told me the story of the one he was busy carving in Spanish (between the few Spanish words I’ve picked up since we arrived in Peru, my phrase book, nods and pointing, I managed to figure out what he was saying). I would have loved to buy one, but unfortunately there is no way it would be allowed into Australia. (Similar artworks, sold at the many markets in Peru are cheap “knock-offs” and inferior quality. If you want to buy a true artwork from an artist, find this little shop in one of the side streets (it’s the street with the many shops on the right as you walk uphill towards the church - see my photos for what the street and the man looks like).
Aside the church are some ruins which we did not visit as we did not have the time, but we could see quite a bit of it from where we stood.
There is a toilet at the markets for which you need an official ticket (sold at the toilet entrance) – we thought this was very funny as the tickets are printed by the municipality and they’re numbered! Entry is S/.1 and it probably cost more to print the ticket!
On our way back from Chinchero, we saw some children in their colorful traditional dress on the side of the road and asked the driver to stop for some photos. The kids were so adorable – smiling and friendly and of course, it was a great pleasure to pay them for the photos even though they didn’t ask for anything.
9. Centro Textil Acllas
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 40 reviews
Chinchero, the most typical population of the Sacred Valley of the Incas.lo that allows us to understand that it was a production center
Reviewed By Cherry_Wonderdog - Acton, Massachusetts
A surprisingly enjoyable spot we visited as part of a three city excursion from Cusco. We attended a short demonstration while seated in a semi-circle around three young women weaving and creating textiles stains. The lead spoke decent English, the tasks were easy to understand and remarkable to watch, and the troupe was downright entertaining.
Afterwards, we had the opportunity to purchase handmade goods like socks, scarves, hats, and shawls at prices we found lower than at many markets. Negotiation was not discouraged. This was a lot better than I was anticipating.
10. Sumaq LLank'ay
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 38 reviews
Textile Interpretation center, was created to help to local people and show to the tourists our andean culture. Here the tourist will participate in a rich introduction and learning experience in the art of Andean textiles, becoming acquainted with the wisdom of Andean weavings as maintained since long before Inka times.
Reviewed By lewis_heuchert - Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
We learned a lot about cleaning, spinning, dying, and weaving Alpaca wool into all forms of clothing - just as their ancestors have done for many centuries. It's quite an art - any the use only materials that the get locally.
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