All Destinations

The driest non-polar desert on Earth — a high-altitude moonscape of volcanoes, geysers, salt flats, and altiplano lagoons centered on the adobe village of San Pedro de Atacama (2,400m). El Tatio's dawn geysers, Valle de la Luna's sunset, the Salar de Atacama's flamingos, and the Miscanti & Miñiques lakes round out the standard week. ALMA observatory tours and the world's clearest night skies make it a stargazer's pilgrimage. Connects overland to Uyuni.

The Sacred Valley of the Incas (Valle Sagrado) is the Urubamba River valley running ~60 km between Pisac and Ollantaytambo at 2,800-3,000m elevation — meaningfully lower than Cusco and a far better acclimatization base before Machu Picchu. The Incas grew their best maize here on stepped agricultural terraces still in use today, and three of their most impressive archaeological sites cluster in the valley: the hilltop fortress of Pisac, the perfectly engineered military complex of Ollantaytambo (still a working Inca-era town), and the surreal circular terraces of Moray. Add the bone-white Maras salt evaporation pans descending a hillside and you have a full 2-3 day side trip from Cusco.