TREKKING INFORMATION

Come and experience our beautiful country through trekking.  Trek to the capital of the Incan Empire, Machu Picchu on the well know Incan Trail. Visit other Incan Ruins as well including the remote Incan ruins of Choquequirao.  These ruins are only accessible by trekking. Hike and trek through the beautiful region of the Andes including the Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu and the Ausangate Circuit around the tallest mountain in Cusco.  During the treks we spend the days hiking and enjoying the beautiful landscape of Peru. At night we will set up camps, eat dinner, and enjoy each others company.  We hire porters and mules to carry your things so you can just enjoy your hike and the scenery that surrounds you.  The best time for trekking around Cusco is from April to November.

CUSCO INFORMATION

Cusco or Cuzco (pronounced /ˈkuːskoʊ/; in Quechua written Qusqu and pronounced [ˈqosqo]) is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba Valley (Sacred Valley) of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region as well as the Cusco Province. The city has a population of 348,935 which is triple the figure of 20 years ago. Located on the eastern end of the Knot of Cusco, its altitude is around 3,300 m (11,000 ft). Cusco is the historic capital of the Inca Empire and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1983 by UNESCO. It is a major tourist destination and receives almost a million visitors a year. It is designated as the Historical Capital of Peru by the Constitution of Peru.

Upon the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors, the Quechua name ("Qosqo") was transliterated into Spanish as "Cusco", which is how it appears on maps from the 17th and 18th centuries. On maps from the 19th century (as early as 1810) and through the mid-20th century (until at least 1976), the name appears as "Cuzco". Today, in official Peruvian cartography (in Spanish) the name has returned to the original transliteration: Cusco, with an S rather than a Z.

In English, both S and Z are accepted, as there is no "official" spelling.Both British and American variants use S or Z. The Encyclopaedia Britannica writes "Cuzco".

The name Cusco is derived from the Quechua phrase "qusqu wanka" which means "rock of the owl".

Honors

• In 1933, the Congress of Americanists met in La Plata, Argentina and declared the city as the Archeological capital of the Americas.
• In 1978, the 7th Convention of Mayors of Great World Cities met in Milan, Italy and declared Cusco a Cultural Heritage of the World.
• In 1983, UNESCO, in Paris, France declared the city a World Heritage Site, and the Peruvian government declared it the Tourism Capital of Peru and Cultural Heritage of the Nation.
• In 2007, the New7Wonders Foundation designated Machu Picchu one of the New Seven Wonders of the World following a worldwide poll.