Ollantaytambo

Ollantaytambo is a town and an Inca archaeological site in southern Peru some 60 kilometers northwest of the city of Cusco. It is located at an altitude of 2,792 meters (9,160 feet) above sea level in the district of Ollantaytambo, province of Urubamba,Cusco region. During the Inca Empire, Ollantaytambo was the royal estate of Emperor Pachacuti i who conquered the region, built the town and a ceremonial center. At the time of the Spanish conquest of Peru it served as a stronghold for Manco Inca Yupanqui, leader of the Inca resistance. Nowadays it is an important tourist attraction on account of its Inca buildings and as one of the most common starting points for the three-day, four-night hike known as the Inca Trail.Písac is a Peruvian village in the Sacred Valley on the Urubamba River. The village is well known for its market every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday, an event which attracts heavy tourist traffic from nearby Cusco. 

Písac

Písac is a Peruvian village in the Sacred Valley on the Urubamba River. The village is well known for its market every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday, an event which attracts heavy tourist traffic from nearby Cusco.

One of its more notable features is a large pisonay tree which dominates the central plaza. The sanctuary of  Huanca, site of a sacred shrine, is also near the village. Pilgrims travel to the shrine every September.

Q'allaqasa, the citadel. 

View of the Sacred Valley fromIntihuatana. The Temple of the Sun was closed to tourists after thieves stole a piece of it. 

The area is perhaps best known for its Incan ruins, known as Inca Písac, which lie atop a hill at the entrance to the valley. The ruins are separated along the ridge into four groups: Pisaqa, Intihuatana, Q'allaqasa, and Kinchiracay. Intihuatana group includes the Temple of the Sun, baths, altars, water fountains, a ceremonial platform, and anintihuatana, a volcanic outcrop carved into a "hitching post for the Sun" (or Inti). The angles of its base suggest that it served to define the changes of the seasons Q'allaqasa, which is built onto a natural spur and overlooks the valley, is known as thecitadel.

The Inca constructed agricultural terraces on the steep hillside, which are still in use today. They created the terraces by hauling richer topsoil by hand from the lower lands. The terraces enabled the production of surplus food, more than would normally be possible at altitudes as high as 11,000 feet. The narrow rows of terraces beneath the citadel are thought to represent the wing of a partridge (pisaca), from which the village and ruins get their name. The birds are also common in the area at dusk.

With military, religious, and agricultural structures, the site served at least a triple purpose. Researchers believe that Písac defended the southern entrance to the Sacred Valley, while Choquequirao defended the western entrance, and the fortress at Ollantaytambo the northern. Inca Pisac controlled a route which connected the Inca Empire with the border of the rain forest.

Q'inqu

Q'inqu (Quechua q'inqu zig-zag) is an archaeological site in the Sacred Valley of Peru located in the Cusco Region, about 6 km north east of Cusco.

It is one of the largest wak’as (holy places) in the Cusco Region. Many wak'as were based on naturally occurring rock formations. It was believed to be a place where sacrifices and mummification took place.

Puca Pucara

Puca Pucara is a site of military ruins near Cusco, Peru. This fort is made of large walls, terraces, and staircases and was part of defense of Cusco in particular and the Inca Empire in general.

Puca Pucara means "Red Fort" in Quechua, and comes from the red color of the rocks at dusk. Puca Pucara is an example of military architecture that also functioned as an administrative center.

Tambomachay

Tambomachay or Tampumachay (from Quechua: tanpu mach'ay, resting place) is an archaeological site associated with the Inca Empire, located near Cusco, Peru. An alternate local name is the El Baño del Inca, "The Bath of the Inca".

It consists of a series of aqueducts, canals and waterfalls that run through the terreaced rocks. The function of the site is uncertain: it may have served as a military outpost guarding the approaches to Cusco, as a spa resort for the Incan political elite, or both.

Sacsayhuamán

Sacsayhuamán (also known as Saksaqwaman, Sacsahuaman or Saxahuaman) is a walled complex on the northern outskirts of the city of Cusco, Peru, the former capital of the Inca Empire. The complex is as many other Inca constructions made of large polished dry stone walls, each boulder carefully cut to fit together tightly without mortar.

The site, at an altitude of 3,701 m, was added as part of the city of Cusco to theUNESCO World Heritage List in 1983.

Qurikancha

Qurikancha (Quechua quri gold, kancha enclosure, enclosed place, yard, a frame or wall that encloses s.th., hispanicized spelling Coricancha), originally named Inti Kancha (Quechua inti sun) or Inti Wasi (Quechua for "sun house"), was the most important temple in the Inca Empire, dedicated primarily to Inti, the Sun God. It was one of the most revered temples of the capital city of Cusco.

The walls and floors were once covered in sheets of solid gold, and its adjacent courtyard was filled with golden statues. Spanish reports tell of its opulence that was "fabulous beyond belief". When the Spanish required the Inca to raise a ransom in gold for the life of the leader Atahualpa, most of the gold was collected from Qurikancha.

The Spanish colonists built the Church of Santo Domingo on the site, demolishing the temple and using its foundations for the cathedral. Construction took most of a century. This is one of numerous sites where the Spanish incorporated Inca stonework into the structure of a colonial building. Major earthquakes severely damaged the church, but the Inca stone walls, built out of huge, tightly-interlocking blocks of stone, still stand due to their sophisticated stone masonry. Nearby is an underground archaeological museum, which contains numerous interesting pieces, including mummies, textiles, and sacred idols from the site? The site now also includes the Church and Convent of Santo Domingo.