CUSCO

Altitude: 3,399 m
Climate: 0–22 °C | Dry from April to October, rainy from November to March
How to get there: Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport

Cusco is not just beautiful, it’s mystical. You walk its cobbled streets and literally step on 600-year-old Inca foundations. The Spanish built their churches and mansions on top of Inca temples, so you see Inca stone walls below, and colonial balconies above.

The Plaza de Armas is the center of it all. There’s the Cathedral, with incredible paintings of the Cusco School, and the Church of La Compañía with a gilded altar. Around the plaza are arcades with restaurants, travel agencies, shops — there’s always movement.

The Qorikancha was the most important temple in the Inca Empire, literally covered in gold. When the Spaniards arrived they took it all and built the Convent of Santo Domingo over it. But the Inca walls are still there, perfect, showing their engineering.

Sacsayhuamán is on the city outskirts and is jaw-dropping. Stones of over 100 tons arranged without mortar, nothing, so perfectly that not even a piece of paper fits between them. How they moved and placed them remains a mystery.

The San Blas neighborhood is my favorite. Narrow, steep streets filled with artisan workshops, galleries, hidden cafés. It’s the bohemian district of Cusco, more peaceful than the center.

Practical tip: Take the first day in Cusco slow. The altitude hits hard. Coca tea helps, and drink lots of water. Don’t do intense exercise or eat heavy food on the first day. Your body needs to adapt. After 2–3 days you’ll feel better.