Things to do
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Sacred Valley
The valley of the Urubamba river falls from about 3,000 metres at Pisac to 2,050 metres near Machu Picchu, with Inca terraces and ruins along its sides. Urubamba sits in the middle of it, so the sites can be taken one or two a day by colectivo or taxi, with a return to the same bed each night.
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Plaza de Armas
Urubamba's central square, at the corner of Jirón Palacio and Jirón Grau, is the point the small town is built around. The centre is easy to cover on foot from here, and the produce market is a short walk away.
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Yucay Plaza
Yucay's main square lies about 3 km east of Urubamba, with the ruins of the Inca palace of Sayri Túpac at its edge. It is a short taxi or mototaxi ride from Urubamba, and the ruins are a few minutes' walk from the square.
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Belmond Rio Sagrado
Casitas and villas line the river bank at km 75.8 of the Ollantaytambo road, about 3.5 km west of Urubamba, with a spa and alpacas on the lawn. The rooms are close enough to hear the water. Beyond the hotel the road runs on to Ollantaytambo and its station.
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explora Valle Sagrado
A 50-room lodge on a working maize farm at Sihuayro, in Urquillos, east of Yucay in Huayllabamba district. Stays include guided explorations each day, walks and rides among them, with guides working in small groups. The rooms sit at the foot of the valley wall with the farm's fields around them.
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Inkaterra Hacienda
East of Urubamba at Huayoccari, in Huayllabamba district, this modern hacienda covers forty hectares of valley floor at km 63 of the highway from Cusco through Pisac and Calca. Rooms climb the hillside above an organic farm that supplies the kitchen, and bicycles and horses go out from the door.
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Río Urubamba
The river on the valley floor below the town is rafted in sections, and the stretch at Ollantaytambo is the one for first-timers and families. Most Cusco-based operators sell rafting on it as a full day out, with transport to and from the river included.
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Señor de Torrechayoc
The church of the Señor de Torrechayoc stands on the avenue named after it, a few minutes' walk north of the Plaza de Armas. Its festival falls in the first week of June, when the town fills with dancers performing in the streets.
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Skylodge Adventure Suites
Guests reach these transparent capsules on a cliff face by a via ferrata of about 400 metres, or by a hike with zip lines, and climbers must be 18 or over. The suites hang above the Urubamba to Ollantaytambo road about 24 km from Urubamba, much closer to Ollantaytambo than to the town.
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Sol y Luna
Forty-three casitas stand in a garden of gum trees and flowers, each decorated by Peruvian artists. The hotel keeps a stable that sends rides out into the valley, runs a restaurant and funds a school next door. It is on the Ollantaytambo road just west of Urubamba.
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Tambo del Inka, a Luxury Collection Resort
PeruRail's Urubamba station lies inside the grounds of this big riverside resort in the town itself. It has an indoor-outdoor pool and a spa, and the rooms look onto the Vilcanota. The town market is a short walk away, as is the Plaza de Armas.
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Urubamba Market
Urubamba's produce market sells food for the town's own kitchens, from Andean fruit and vegetables to cheese, grains and spices. The stalls trade on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, with Wednesday and Sunday the busiest. Stop at a juice stall for breakfast before a day out in the valley.
