Housed in the former palace of Admiral Francisco Aldrete Maldonado, the Inca Museum (also known as the Archaeological Museum of Cusco) displays a fantastic collection that reveals Peruvian history through objects from pre-Inca times up to colonial times. In addition to jewelry, ceramics and textiles, there are Incan mummies and Spanish paintings of note. The house itself is one of the best preserved mansions in the city.

It’s well worth spending a half day with a guide or historian to tour the historic center of Cusco, so they can explain the background of the major sights such as the Cathedral on the main plaza and the other major churches, such as La Compania and Le Merced as well as San Blas.

On the same square as the Hotel Monasterio, the Pre-Colombian Art Museum occupies a palace built for the conquistador Alonso Diaz. The building was renovated to house the country’s first museum dedicated to ancient art in 2003. Within the central courtyard, you will find the glass box that houses the gourmet restaurant, MAP Café, and in its cloisters and galleries are rooms of gold objects, jewelry and sculpture from the Nazca, Mochica, and Inca cultures among others.

Pronounced “sexy woman,” the Sacsayhuamán ruins on the outskirts of Cusco can be compared to the pyramids at Giza, in that they testify to the incredible ingenuity and organizational power of the region’s ancient cultures. Machu Picchu may be more famous, but many find this site equally impressive. It is believed that more than 20,000 men worked for more than seven decades on the structure, a puma’s head to guard the capital. If you don’t visit with a knowledgeable guide, be sure to get a great guide book to understand the history and steer you to the points of interest.

The area around the San Blas church is a center for artists and galleries. You can browse shops but also visit ateliers where artisans sell their crafts, particularly popular are wood carvings. In fact, the pulpit in the Church of San Blas is said to be the largest carved wooden structure in the world; it teems with fantastical creatures and will inspire you to view modern interpretations.

One hundred years after Hiram Bingham discovered Machu Picchu, Yale University, who sponsored Bingham’s original dig, returned 300 of the artifacts from the site where they are now on display at the UNSAAC-Yale International Center for the Study of Machu Picchu and Inca Culture in Cusco, which is a partnership between the University of Cusco and Yale. Indagare members can contact our Bookings Team for a guided visit.