Peru Cultural Tours

A cultural tour of Peru is a trip built around how the country came to be: the Inca capital of Cusco, the temples and terraces of the Sacred Valley, the colonial center of Lima and the traditions still alive in the Andes. Our cultural tours are private, planned by a team based in Cusco, and pair the famous sites with the museums, markets and festivals that explain them.

Most of our cultural itineraries follow the same thread. In Lima, a guided walk through the historic center, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and on some tours lunch and a private visit at the Larco Museum, whose collection covers about 5,000 years of Peruvian history. In Cusco, Qoricancha, the Inca Temple of the Sun with a Spanish church built on its walls, and the fortress of Sacsayhuamán above the city. In the Sacred Valley, the Pisac terraces and market, the circular terraces of Moray, the Maras salt pools and Ollantaytambo, where the Inca stone streets are still in daily use. Then Machu Picchu, with a licensed guide.

The shortest option, the 4-day Classic Cusco, Machu Picchu & Sacred Valley tour, starts from USD 979. For a full cultural program, the 7-day Peru tour from Lima to the Inca heartland starts from USD 2,299, and the 10-day Peru cultural tour adds Lake Titicaca from USD 2,850.

Plan around a festival. Inti Raymi, the Inca Festival of the Sun, takes place in Cusco every June 24. It starts at Qoricancha and moves through the Plaza de Armas to Sacsayhuamán, where the main ceremony needs seated tickets booked well ahead. In early February, Puno celebrates the Virgen de la Candelaria, on UNESCO’s intangible heritage list since 2014, with several thousand dancers and musicians. Hotels fill early for both, so give us your dates first. Our Inti Raymi guide explains how the day runs.

Culture or community? These tours put history, archaeology and heritage first, with a community visit or two along the way. If you would rather spend more of your trip with Andean families, on farms and at a lodge with alpacas, look at our authentic Peru tours. If food is the reason you travel, our Peru culinary tours build each day around markets, cooking classes and Pachamanca.

Every cultural tour can be adjusted: more museum time in Lima, an extra night in the Sacred Valley to acclimatize, or a slower pace for children or older travelers.