Music & Dance
The Sacred Valley, Cusco & Machu Picchu
The Authentic Andean Journey – combining classic destinations with opportunities to experience and genuinely engage in an indigenous point of view.
Special interest focus:
Celebrate the essence of Andean culture through the wealth of its legendary music. Become intrigued by the sounds, notes, vibrations, flutes in all shapes and sizes, swirling skirts, and panpipes that transport you to another dimension. Explore the authentic music that intrinsically imparts Andean worldview through a native perspective—an ethno-musical journey to the heart of Peru.
Special activities may include participating in authentic music presentation, flute making workshops, and learning an Andean song. Immerse into the music that accompanies the ancestral agrarian calendar, and learn about the important role of music in activating this cosmic cycle.
Arrival Sacred Valley
Day One / Thursday
Arrival Sacred Valley
Take a spectacular morning flight to Cusco, the navel of the world, landing in the heart of the Andes. You will be greeted at the Cusco airport to begin your exclusive journey. Enjoy a 45-minute scenic drive through the Peruvian countryside and small villages to the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Revel in your first glimpse of Peruvian landscape—the striking beauty of the snow topped peaks, mountainsides delineated by Inca terraces, and fields that cover the valley floor. Arrive in Pisac’s small town charm and settle into your room at the Pisac Inn, enjoying a cup of coca tea to help you acclimate. Savor your first in a series of delicious meals spun into a select set menu prepared by the Inn’s renowned restaurant Cuchara de Palo which explores the diversity and richness of Peru’s ancient agrarian heritage. Take the afternoon to wander the cobblestone streets of Pisac or the market square on your own. Gather for an orientation reception with a welcoming Pisco Sour followed by a fireside dinner.
Hotel: Pisac Inn Meals: L, D
Considerations: While the altitude in Pisac is lower than in Cuzco, your body will acclimate optimally if you nap upon arrival. If you feel dehydrated, sluggish, short of breath, and/or have a headache or stomach cramps, tell the Pisac Inn staff. They will prepare special teas for your remedy and advise rest.
Cusco Archeological Sites
Day Two / Friday
Cusco Archeological Sites
Enjoy a 30-minute scenic drive to explore pre-Columbian sites outside of Cusco including the sacred spring of Tambomachay, the lunar and solar observatories of Kenko, and megalithic Sacsayhuaman whose zigzag walls were built with some of the largest stones to be found in Inca masonry. You will be captivated by the introduction to Andean astronomy and sacred geometry, the foundation of Andean culture that will be expanded on each day of your journey. Enjoy lunch at one of Cusco's fine restaurants, or a local spot recommended by your guide, and return to Pisac for a quiet afternoon. Upon return to Pisac Inn relax before dinner or enjoy a treatment at *Unucha Spa (you can make an appointment ahead of time for any afternoon after your excursion). Dinner followed by festive traditional music and dance with a local group of musicians, artists and visionaries dedicating their lives to preserving their Andean culture. This in depth introduction to music and dance is a special opportunity to meet some of the founding families of the Kusi Kawsay Andean School, as well as teachers and students who participate in this remarkable presentation that follows the ancestral Andean Agrarian Ritual calendar celebrated at Kusi Kawsay. Enjoy this evening full of music, dance, in depth explanations, the sharing of stories. Connect to the natural cosmic cycles of the Andes, and learn about the important role of music in activating this cosmic cycle.
Hotel: Pisac Inn Meals: B, D (lunch not included)
Considerations: Wear comfortable clothes and shoes, and a walking stick as needed, for walking in the countryside and in the city. Bring a daypack with layers for drastic temperature changes; be prepared for sun, cold and possible rain. Bring camera, sunblock and sunhat, and plenty of drinking water. You can leave any personal belongings in the car. Bring money for lunch, photos and souvenirs.
Moray & Maras Saltpans
Day Three / Saturday
Moray & Maras Saltpans
Embark on a scenic drive through the Sacred Valley and up to highlands of Moray, with its patchwork fields and awe-inspiring vistas. The advanced Inca astronomical knowledge tied into agrarian feats are seen in Moray's astounding circular terraces, which served as seed laboratories. Following a picnic lunch surrounded by an expansive natural beauty, continue to the Inca saltpans still in use today. Hundreds of scintillating salt pools provoke a sense of peaceful timelessness. Return to Pisac for an afternoon flute-making workshop. Learn how to make a panpipe and a basic song with dance. Experience firsthand how ancestral values and the communal fiber are imparted through music and dance.
Hotel: Pisac Inn Meals: B, Picnic, D
Considerations: Wear comfortable clothes and shoes for hiking and a picnic. Bring a daypack with layers for drastic temperature changes; be prepared for sun, cold and possible rain. Bring camera, sunblock and sunhat, and plenty of drinking water. You can leave any personal belongings in the car.
Pisac Archeological Site & Market
Day Four / Sunday
Pisac Archeological Site & Market
Visit the Pisac archeological site where the staggering agricultural terrace work is among the most extensive in the area following the shape of the mountainsides in entrancing concave and convex forms. The central astronomic and ceremonial area, complete with fountains, is widely acclaimed as some of the finest stonework, comparable to that of Machu Picchu. This expansive site provides an ideal setting for a picnic lunch with magnificent vistas up and down the valley. Embark upon a breathtaking walk down to the town of Pisac and admire the beautiful faces and calm excitement that transforms Pisac on Sunday. The highlight is visiting the colorful traditional food section where locals buy and trade their produce. Sample the produce with your guide, and then explore the open-air traditional Pisac market full of local crafts on your own. This is a wonderful opportunity to buy gifts to take home with you. Before dinner take a sunset stroll along the cornfields or simply relax with a Pisco Sour either at the sidewalk café or on the balcony.
Hotel: Pisac Inn Meals: B, Picnic, D
Considerations: Wear comfortable clothes and shoes for hiking and a picnic. Bring a daypack with layers for drastic temperature changes; be prepared for extreme sun, cold and possible rain. Bring walking poles if you need them as this is one of the big hikes of the trip. Bring camera, sunblock and sunhat, and plenty of drinking water.
Consider bringing chocolate or nuts for energy. This day you must carry everything you need in your daypack, including the provided picnic bag lunch. Walking back to Pisac from the ruins is an option or you may take the van.
Community of Amaru
Day Five / Monday
Community of Amaru
Delight in a 45-minute drive into the majestic high Andes and walk through the patchwork fields replete with potatoes, fava beans and corn to the traditional highland community of Amaru, where a genuinely authentic way of life is still practiced to this day. You will be welcomed with an endearing sweetness rarely felt in this day and age by this community that is consciously preserving and practicing their ancestral heritage. Through participation in a communal agrarian workday a beautiful cultural exchange unravels as you experience this incredible opportunity to step back in time and appreciate a quality of life with an admirable simplicity that is strikingly moving and profound. Enjoy a traditional lunch prepared with their prized agrarian products as the women begin to spin their naturally dyed wool. Others meditatively set up their back strap looms to share their ancestral weaving skills with us. This wonderful opportunity to purchase textiles directly from the weavers is not to be missed. Celebrate the day by dancing with the artisans to the traditional sound of flutes and the beat of the drum, transporting you to a realm of energetic joy. Returning to Pisac, the afternoon music and dance workshop will provide opportunities to learn more about traditional music and instruments through song. Enjoy a quiet evening with dinner.
Hotel: Pisac Inn Meals: B, L, D
Considerations: Wear comfortable clothes and shoes for walking and working in the fields that you don’t mind getting dirty! Bring your hand wipes and Purell this day, and be prepared for rustic conditions. Bring a daypack with layers for drastic temperature changes; be prepared for extreme sun, extreme cold and possible rain. Comfortable walking shoes are suggested; hiking boots are not necessary. Bring camera, sunblock and sunhat, and plenty of drinking water. You can leave any personal belongings in the car, but the car will drop you off and you will walk up, so the car will not be nearby. Bring cash to purchase textiles; they are hand made and one of kind pieces. You can take as many photos as you would like; please do not give change for photos in Amaru. Be prepared for authentic cultural immersion at its height, and come with respect, honor and open mindedness as guests invited into a sacred ancestral culture.
Ollantaytambo
Day Six / Tuesday
Ollantaytambo
Begin your day with a breathtaking one-hour drive through the heart of the Sacred Valley to the Inca town Ollantaytambo. Visit Ollantaytambo's magnificent archeological site with an impressive astronomical observatory, irrigation waterways, fountains, and ceremonial site. Learn about the Llama constellation and explore the quaint town that was built in the shape of a corncob. After lunch enjoy a spectacular train ride to Aguas Calientes, where you will have a nice dinner out and spend the night in preparation for an early start to Machu Picchu the following morning.
Hotel: La Cabaña Boutique Hotel Meals: B, Picnic, (dinner not included)
Considerations: You must bring your passport, you cannot ride the train or enter Machu Picchu without it!
For Ollantaytambo outing:
Wear comfortable clothes and shoes for hiking, a picnic, and a train ride. Bring a daypack with layers for drastic temperature changes; be prepared for sun, cold and possible rain. Bring camera, sunblock and sunhat, and plenty of drinking water. You can leave any personal belongings in the car
For the overnight in Aguas Calientes:
Pack your overnight bag, and a separate daypack. Don’t forget insect repellant. Bring money for dinner in Aguas Calientes and lunch out the following day at Machu Picchu. A rain poncho may be needed.
Machu Picchu
Day Seven / Wednesday
Machu Picchu
Get an early start to take the 20-minute bus ride up steep slopes to magnificent Machu Picchu, renown as a wonder of the world. Isolated among mountain peaks, this awe-inspiring site carries sacred mathematical and scientific wisdom yet to be fully discovered. Explore the important sectors full of astronomic explanations, and immerse yourself in the beautiful natural setting and ancient ruins. After your experience, you will return to Aguas Calientes to catch the afternoon train to Ollantaytambo and drive back to Pisac for dinner. After a full day of exploring, your return to Pisac Inn feels like coming home.
Hotel: Pisac Inn Meals: B, D, (lunch not included)
Considerations: Wear comfortable clothes and shoes for hiking and a train ride. You
can leave your overnight bag at the hotel in Aguas Calientes, and we will make arrangements for the hotel to take luggage to the train station in
the afternoon. Bring a daypack with layers for temperature changes; be prepared for sun, cold and very possible rain. Bring camera, sunblock, sunhat, repellant, and plenty of drinking water. You will have to carry your day pack at all times, unless you check it in a day locker up at Machu Picchu at your own expense. You must have your passport. Bring money for lunch and souvenirs. If you use walking poles, you may need them today. There is an opportunity at the exit to the park to stamp your passport with the image of Machu Picchu as a memento of your visit.
If you want to hike Huayna Picchu please let us know when you book your trip to ensure availability. Spaces are limited and there is an entrance fee that is not included.
Cusco City
Day Eight / Thursday
Cusco City
Visit Kusi Kawsay Andean School and the school’s organic farm, Kusi Ñan. Learn about this exceptional educational project and unique vision that honors Andean tradition combined with elements of Waldorf Pedagogy, and how traditional music is the foundation of this vision. Delight in the beautiful school grounds, and see how dedicated teachers instill the love of learning. See how Kusi Kawsay is dedicated to the preservation and revival of traditional Andean music while respecting authentic styles, tuning, vibration, times of year and intentions. Be moved as you learn how the children sing and dance at Kusi Kawsay, and understand the important role of music. If possible, play a song with the students. Understand how powerful teachings and values are imparted and preserved through music, which activate the cosmic cycles in nature tied to the ancestral calendar. This promotes a heartfelt connection to and protection of the environment, based on reciprocity, respect, and interconnectedness. The day continues to unfold with a city day in Cusco. Stroll through the streets of Cusco, admire the Inca walls, and visit the Plaza de Armas and the main pre-Colombian Inca Temple, Coricancha. Have a relaxing lunch out on the town in a fine restaurant recommended by your guide. Upon return to Pisac enjoy a special farewell dinner.
Hotel: Pisac Inn Meals: B, D, (lunch not included)
Considerations: Wear comfortable clothes and shoes for a day exploring the city. Bring a daypack with layers for drastic temperature changes; be prepared for sun, cold and possible rain. Bring camera, sunblock and sunhat, and plenty of drinking water. You can leave any personal belongings in the car. Bring money for lunch and shopping.
Departure
Day Nine / Friday
Departure
Enjoy breakfast before leaving for the Cusco airport.
Meals: B
Considerations: The order of your itinerary will change depending on the day you arrive.