Maras Moray Mountain bike tour is one of the popular half day tours in Cusco. The Sacred Valley Bike Tour takes you to two prime archaeological sites of the sacred valley of Incas, in the town of Maras and Moray.
The off the beaten track experience offers captivating views of the Andean landscapes dotted with Urubamba river snaking through the small villages of the Sacred Valley of Incas.
Maras is a small village that has been prominent since pre Inca times. It houses a series of salt pools which are managed by local people from the community. They extract salt using the same process as their ancestors.
Infact, this is something that has been passed down from generation to generation. They let in the natural hot springs water through small channels in a single track. Then they wait for the water to evaporate.
When it does, it leaves behind crystals of salt. They manually scrape them out. Maras Salt is pinkish coloured and has a distinct nutritive value.
In order to protect the salt pools from contamination, authorities now restrict visitors from stepping on the salt Mines of Maras. There is a viewpoint inside from where you will get a spectacular view.
Moray farming terraces have been a very prominent site to Incas. It is a natural beauty. The Incas experimented with different crops in these circular terraces. These terraces are built in a way that has different temperatures at each level.
This allowed the Incas to determine the best temperate zone for crops. Ruins of Moray Farming Terraces were more like an agricultural laboratory to Incas.
Thanks to this, the Incas invented many new crops. Peru now produces over 800 varieties of potatoes.
Both sites are at a lower altitude than Cusco. We highly recommend experiencing the tour while acclimatising in Cusco before your trip to Machu Picchu.
We also offer this as a Half Day Classic Tour and on ATV Quad Bikes.
Cusco Hotel Transfer
0800 AM
We will be picking you up from your hotel in Cusco at 0800 AM. Then we will be driving you along the Sacred Valley to Cruz Pata. This is the starting point of Maras Moray Bike Tour.
Here our crew will be handing you over the bikes and gears.
You will then have some time to practice. Our professional guide will be sharing some helpful tips before we start riding to Maras. The experience begins with a downhill biking along the shores of Huaypo Lagoon.
Our van will be following you. If you feel tired or can’t continue biking you can always enjoy the scenic ride in our van.
With an enchanting view of the Sacred Valley country side, we will be riding along the Andean farms. Here the local people grow potatoes, quinoa, corn and other crops.
Once in Maras Salt Mines, our guide will give you a detailed tour of the salt mines. Here you will witness how the locals extract salt from the geometric shaped puddles. After a detailed tour, we will continue the Maras Moray Bike Tour to the archaeological complex of Moray.
Moray is a beautiful village. Once inside the complex, our guide will walk you around different terraces. Here you will be introduced to many farming techniques used by Incas. This site is a testament to the advanced farming techniques of Incas.
Once you have had your fill of both these iconic sites, we will ride to Pichingoto. Here we will be handing over the bikes and gears and will hop on to our private transport and return to Cusco.
Very reliable tour company. Carlos is a fantastic guide and is very helpful and friendly. Totally recommend them.
The best guide service and excellent attention.
The best guide service and excellent attention.
