Cusco is the historic heart of the Inca Empire, a breathtaking Andean city perched at 3,400 meters above sea level in southeastern Peru. The city blends ancient Inca stonework with Spanish colonial architecture, creating a unique urban landscape that has earned it UNESCO World Heritage status. As the gateway to Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley, Cusco is one of South America's most visited and culturally rich destinations.
Cusco was the capital of Tawantinsuyu, the Inca Empire that at its peak in the 15th-16th centuries stretched 4,300km from present-day Colombia to Chile, making it the largest empire in pre-Columbian Americas. The Incas built Cusco as the 'navel of the world' (the meaning of Cusco in Quechua), a sacred city of temples, palaces, and administrative centers laid out in the shape of a puma. The Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro captured the Inca emperor Atahualpa in 1532 and Spanish forces occupied Cusco in 1533, systematically destroying Inca temples and building their colonial churches over Inca foundations. Today Cusco is a UNESCO World Heritage City where Inca and colonial heritage are inseparably fused, surrounded by the finest archaeological sites in the Americas.
Historical timeline
Key moments that shaped Cusco.
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1
Legendary Inca founding
According to Inca mythology, the first Inca Manco Cápac and his sister Mama Ocllo emerged from Lake Titicaca and founded Cusco as instructed by the sun god Inti
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2
Pachacuti's expansion
The 9th Inca emperor Pachacuti transforms Cusco from a small regional kingdom into a vast empire, rebuilding the city as a sacred capital with massive stone construction
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3
Machu Picchu built
Pachacuti orders construction of Machu Picchu as a royal estate and religious sanctuary above the Urubamba River
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4
Tupac Yupanqui expands empire
The 10th Inca emperor expands Tawantinsuyu to its maximum extent, reaching into Ecuador, Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile
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5
Inca Civil War
Emperor Huayna Cápac dies from smallpox epidemic (likely introduced by early European contact), triggering civil war between sons Huáscar and Atahualpa
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6
Spanish arrival and conquest
Francisco Pizarro captures Inca emperor Atahualpa at Cajamarca, despite Atahualpa's offer of a room filled with gold and silver. The Spanish execute Atahualpa and enter Cusco
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7
Cusco falls to Spain
Spanish forces occupy Cusco, beginning systematic destruction of Inca temples and their replacement with Catholic churches. Gold covering Qorikancha walls is stripped and melted.
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8
Manco Inca Rebellion
Inca noble Manco Inca leads a massive rebellion against the Spanish, besieging Cusco with an army of 100,000-200,000. The rebellion ultimately fails.
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9
Tupac Amaru I executed
The last independent Inca ruler Tupac Amaru I is captured by Spanish viceroy and publicly executed in Cusco's Plaza de Armas, ending organized Inca resistance
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10
Major earthquake
A devastating earthquake destroys much of colonial Cusco. Remarkably, the Inca stone foundations survive while Spanish constructions collapse, demonstrating the superiority of Inca engineering
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11
Tupac Amaru II rebellion
José Gabriel Condorcanqui (Tupac Amaru II) leads the largest indigenous uprising in the history of South America, claiming 100,000 lives before Spanish suppression
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12
Peruvian independence
Peru declares independence from Spain. Cusco becomes part of the new Peruvian republic.
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13
Machu Picchu 'rediscovered'
American historian Hiram Bingham is guided to Machu Picchu by a local boy (the ruins were known locally but not to the wider world), bringing the site to international attention
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14
UNESCO World Heritage designation
The historic center of Cusco is designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognizing its outstanding universal value as a living testimony of two overlapping civilizations
Historical eras
The chapters of Cusco's past.
Pre-Inca Cultures
The Cusco Valley was inhabited by various cultures including the Wari (600-900 AD) who built Pikillacta. Multiple smaller polities occupied the region before Inca unification.
Inca Empire
The Inca dynasty unified the Andean world into Tawantinsuyu, building extraordinary stone cities, road networks spanning 40,000km, and agricultural systems that fed millions.
Spanish Colonial Period
Spanish colonizers built their churches and palaces directly over Inca foundations, creating Cusco's unique architectural heritage. The era saw forced indigenous labor, evangelical missions, and the development of the distinctive Cusco School of art.
Republican Period
After independence, Cusco gradually shifted from a regional administrative center to Peru's primary tourism destination. The 1911 'rediscovery' of Machu Picchu transformed the region's global significance.
Historical sites
Places where Cusco's past comes alive.
Qorikancha (Temple of the Sun)
The holiest temple in the Inca Empire had gold-covered walls and a circular sun room. Built over by the Dominican Church of Santo Domingo after conquest. The curved Inca walls beneath are the finest stonework in Cusco.
Where: Plazoleta Santo Domingo, Cusco
Admission: $12 or Boleto Turístico
Sacsayhuaman
The largest Inca construction project, featuring three zigzagging terraces of enormous limestone blocks weighing up to 300 tonnes. Built over 70 years by tens of thousands of laborers.
Where: Above Cusco city
Admission: Boleto Turístico
Machu Picchu
The iconic 15th-century Inca citadel abandoned after the Spanish conquest and unknown to the outside world until 1911. One of the best-preserved ancient sites on earth.
Where: Above Aguas Calientes
Admission: $55-75 per circuit
Cusco Cathedral
Built on the foundation of the palace of Inca Viracocha using stones taken from Sacsayhuaman. Contains 400+ Cusco School paintings including the famous Last Supper with guinea pig.
Where: Plaza de Armas, Cusco
Admission: $15
La Compañía de Jesús
Built over the palace of Inca Huayna Cápac, this Jesuit church has one of the most elaborate baroque facades in the Americas. The Pope ordered the Jesuits to stop construction after it exceeded the Cathedral in grandeur.
Where: Plaza de Armas, Cusco
Admission: $5
Pikillacta
The only major Wari pre-Inca site near Cusco predates Inca civilization by 600 years. The 47-hectare city with its grid-plan layout demonstrates sophisticated pre-Inca urban planning.
Where: 30km southeast of Cusco
Admission: Boleto Turístico
Museums
Curated collections that tell Cusco's story.
Inca Museum (Museo Inca)
Cusco's most comprehensive archaeology museum in the Admiral's Palace with mummies, gold, silver, textiles, quipus, and ceramics spanning pre-Inca through colonial periods
Hours: 8:00 AM - 7:00 PM Mon-Fri, 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM Sat
Admission: $10
Museum of Pre-Columbian Art
450 masterpieces of pre-Columbian art spanning 3,000 years in a restored colonial mansion, including extraordinary goldwork, ceramics, and textiles from multiple ancient cultures
Hours: 9:00 AM - 10:00 PM daily
Admission: $10
Museum of Religious Art (Museo de Arte Religioso)
Housed in the Archbishop's Palace, itself built on the foundations of the Inca Roca palace, with Cusco School paintings, colonial religious art, and the original palace Inca stonework
Hours: 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM daily
Admission: $6
Museum of Regional History (Casa Garcilaso)
Housed in the birthplace of Inca Garcilaso de la Vega (son of a Spanish conquistador and an Inca princess), covering Cusco history from ancient to colonial periods
Hours: 8:00 AM - 5:30 PM Mon-Fri
Admission: Boleto Turístico
Historical tours
Guided experiences that bring history to life.
Walking tours
Free walking tours depart Plaza de Armas daily at 10 AM and 2 PM (tip-based). Cover main colonial sites and Inca stonework throughout the historic center.
Day tours
Full-day historical tours $40-80 per person including Boleto Turístico and guide. Cover 4 ruins north of city plus Qorikancha.
Private tours
Private guides from $80-150/half day. Licensed guides at major sites cost $20-30 per person. Private historians for deeper cultural context available through agencies.