Today our journey through Peru continued by bus from Puno via the pass road La Raya in the Andes to Cusco.
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The bus tour “Route of the Sun” from Puno to Cusco
For the 380 km long route “Route of the Sun” we had already booked the tickets online through the agency Tourismo Mer.
The route of the bus tour from Puno to Cusco
At 7 o’clock we left the bus terminal with the bus “Turismo Mer”. We had incl. of all the stops a 10 hour long trip in front of us. With us there were 5 French, 2 Americans and 1 Czech on board. A really small group for the huge bus – you can see that it’s just off-season here.
The ceramic city of Pukara
Our first stop was the ceramic city of Pukara, where there are ruins from a time far before the Incas. We visited a small museum where we were told something about the story, as well as the church next to it.
La Raya – the highest point of the route
After a short drive we reached with “La Raya” the highest point of the route (4,335 meters). From the viewpoint you could see the snow-capped mountains and the Chimboya glacier.
The Alpacas in Sicuani
Around 12 o’clock we stopped for lunch. What was nice: behind our restaurant was a meadow with alpacas and a vikunja.
The ruined city of Raqchi
The next stop was the archaeological complex “Raqchi”, an ancient ruin site of the Inca. Next to it stood an old chapel from the 18th century.
Das Andahuaylillas Village
About 40 km before Cusco we reached our last stop in the afternoon: The Andahuaylillas Village with a visit to the San Pedro Church. As almost everywhere in Bolivia and Peru you can see a lot of stray dogs on the streets. But this little one here really did it to us a little 🙂
Our cusco hotel
At 5 p.m. we arrived in Cusco by bus and went to our Hotel Eco-Hotel B&B Pensi’n Alemana. As the name suggests, the pension is under German management. We chose this property because of the excellent Tripadvisor reviews.
Cusco is a city in southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the seventh most populous in Peru and had a population of 430.000. The city was the capital of the Inca Empire from the 13th century until the 16th-century Spanish conquest. In 1983, Cusco was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO with the title “City of Cuzco”. It has become a major tourist destination, hosting nearly 2 million visitors a year.
We enjoyed our stay at Pension Alemana. We booked them due to the excellent Tripadvisor reviews and were not disappointed. The reception was very warm and also during our stay the staff was very friendly and helpful. The guest house is super located in the artistic district of San Blas. From here it is only 10 minutes walk to The Plaza de Armas. Small kiosks and restaurants can be found around the corner. The guest house has a beautiful garden. Breakfast is served in the own café Siete & Siete, which was also very tasty. It was all there: rolls, toast, fruit salad, egg, pancakes, cheese, etc. Unfortunately no sausage – we would have expected it in a German guesthouse.
Our room at Pension Alemana
All travelogues from Peru
Peru was one of the countries which was set from the beginning in the planning our world trip 🙂 We had already seen so many pictures of the Inca city Machu Picchu that we definitely wanted to see it. And our route through Peru we could also connect perfectly with Bolivia and Ecuador.
» Lima – Tourist Attractions, Things to Do & Photo Spots (Peru)» From Aguas Calientes via Cusco to Lima (Peru)
» Machu Picchu – Historic Sanctuary of the Incan citadel (Peru)
» Perurail – By train from Cusco to Aguas Calientes (Peru)
» Cusco – Tourist Attractions, Things to Do & Photo Spots (Peru)
» Pass road La Raya – By bus from Puno to Cusco (Peru)
» Puno & the floating villages of the Uros in Lake Titikaka (Peru)
» By bus from La Paz (Bolivia) to Puno (Peru)