PISAC IN THE SACRED VALLEY OF THE INCAS - PERU

Pisac is a small sleepy town in the Sacred Valley of the Incas, spread along the edge of the Urubamba river. It is about an hour by car from Cusco, longer if you take the bus. 

There isn't a lot to do in Pisac town except explore the narrow streets and visit the market in the main square. But that is enough. While the market is aimed at tour groups - who are unloaded by large busses that squeeze down the alleyways - it is still has a lot of incredible weaving and handicrafts. Spend some time and you will figure out that the further you venture into the market, the cheaper the prices. On Sunday the market is a lot bigger than during the week

The town is also the unofficial regional HQ for itinerant new agers, healers, massage, yoga, tie die fashion and sandal chick. So if that is your thing head here -  settle down for a while. Around the central plaza cafes serve good smoothies, coffee and wholesome meals. 

THINGS TO DO IN PISAC

But it isn't hard to get away from all this. In the backstreets you will find interesting stuff; crumbling old houses, snoozing dogs and locals going about their business as they always have done. 

Up on the hill behind Pisac are the Inca ruins. Unlike Machu Picchu or Ollantaytambo, these are sparsely visited, which is reason enough to go there. They are also spectacularly spread across several hills and ridges and it is a great walk from the top to bottom. Hardy and thrifty visitors walk up and down all the way from Pisac, but there is an easier way - taxi up then walk down. Taking your time, this will still take most of the day. 

VIDEO ON PISAC

The video below is one of our own - via Travel Collected. Getting to Pisac (Peru) from New Zealand took several days. First up there was the eleven hour flight from Auckland (NZ) to Santiago, a night in that city, then another flight to La Paz in Bolivia. Finally, after another night at high altitude in La Paz, we took a third flight to Cusco in Peru and then taxi to Pisac. All up it took around three days. 

It sounds exhausting, but when you are visiting a new continent for the first time, you have that extra bit of gas. We enjoyed the ride. But that's not to say we didn't arrive in Pisac a little jittery. As it turned out our first mountain taxi journey - one hour from Cusco to Pisac - was also our most reckless. The diver liked to take those high mountain corners fast. 

Once there we check out the backstreets, market and then head up the hill to the ruins. In a way these are some of the nicest in the Sacred Valley as although they aren't as large and dramatically located as Machu Picchu, you are likely to have them almost to yourselves. They are also spread out over a wider area. We recommend taking the taxi up and walking back down.