When you arrive in Cusco, you’ll find countless attractions and cultural experiences waiting for you. Here are some of the most impressive archaeological sites located south of the city:
🌿 Tipón
Located 25 km southeast of Cusco (about 45 minutes by car) along the paved Cusco–Puno highway, Tipón is accessed via a turnoff near kilometer 20.5. According to legend, Tipón was one of the royal gardens commissioned by Inca Wiracocha.
The site features twelve agricultural terraces bordered by finely polished stone walls, decorative canals, and cascading water features. Native flowers add to the visual splendor. Tipón includes several sectors: Tipón itself, Intiwatana, Pukutuyuj, Pucará, Cruz Moqo, the Pitopujio cemetery, and Hatun Wayq’o, among others.
🏛️ Piquillacta
This pre-Inca archaeological zone is located 38 km (23.6 miles) southeast of Cusco. It spans 50 hectares and includes large buildings—some with two stories—embankments, and towering walls up to 7 meters high. The site also features aqueducts and a remarkable number of colcas (grain storage structures).
Built with small stones joined by mud mortar, Piquillacta showcases the Incas’ architectural and urban planning skills. Historians believe it served as a military defense and supply center, given the abundance of agricultural products, tools, clothing, and weapons found there.
🏰 Rumicolca
Just 1 km (0.62 miles) from Piquillacta and 39 km (24.2 miles) southeast of Cusco, Rumicolca was the main gateway to Cusco along the route to Collasuyo (the southern region of the Inca Empire). It functioned as a customs checkpoint.
The site features a massive stone gateway surrounded by high walls. At its base runs a water channel, part of a large aqueduct that supplied water to the people of Piquillacta.
🔥 Raqchi Temple of Wiracocha
Located 117 km from Cusco (about 2 hours by car along the Cusco–Puno route), Raqchi is considered one of the boldest Inca constructions. Built in the 15th century, the Temple of Wiracocha measures 100 meters long and 20 meters wide. Its adobe walls rest on volcanic stone foundations.
The complex also includes a residential area for Inca nobility and dozens of circular storehouses used for food storage.
