LOCAL VILLAGE MARKETS

Sacred Valley Markets: The Pisac & Chinchero 

Explore the best Sacred Valley Markets. Peru’s beautiful Sacred Valley (El Valle Sagrado) lies between Cusco and Machu Picchu. All three travel gems add up to a perfect  for visitors to the Andean highlands. The Urubamba River runs through this narrow valley with incredibly picturesque scenery and lined by majestic mountains.

The fertile Sacred Valley of the incas was an essential region for the Inca Empire, providing the Inca with prime farming land, rare in the Andes. During their rule (1438 to 1533), the Inca built stone temples, palaces, fortresses, agricultural terraces and other structures throughout the valley.

Today, the Sacred Valley of the incas is filled with a patchwork of farmed fields, typical Andean villages, colorful indigenous markets, and magnificent Inca ruins. The pace of life is definitely slower here (in comparison to Cusco), except for Sundays when the market in Pisac attracts hordes of tourists.

A large proportion of the indigenous population (Andes Indians) who live here are descendants of the Incas, so they speak Quechua and have a vibrant cultural tradition.

Chinchero has a small market most days of the week, but Sunday is definitely the busiest and most interesting day to visit. This is when traditionally-dressed villagers from the surrounding communities come to market to buy and sell vegetables, animals and household goods. Since it’s geared more towards locals than tourists, this Sunday market attracts less visitors than Pisac.

Pisac has the Sacred Valley of the incas largest and most well-known handicraft and produce market as well as magnificent Inca ruins, located high up on a mountain near the town.