Editor Pick
Ollantaytambo Ruins
- July 17, 2009
- Rated 5 of 5 by
LenR from Townsville, Australia
Ollantaytambo is an attractive little town located at the western end of the Sacred Valley (about two and a half hours by bus from Cusco). The present town has been built on top of original Inca foundations and is the best surviving example of Inca town planning. The town is divided into canchas (blocks) which are almost entirely intact. Each cancha has only one entrance (usually a huge stone doorway) which leads into a central courtyard. The houses surround the courtyard. Good examples of this construction can be found behind the main plaza. The self-guided Ollantaytambo Heritage Walk allows you to tour the town following a series of blue plaques. Don’t miss this experience.
The town is located at the foot of some spectacular Inca ruins (entrance with the Tourist Ticket 'Boleto Turistico') which protected the strategic entrance to the lower Urubamba Valley. The temple area is at the top of steep terracing which helped to provide excellent defenses. Stone used for these buildings was brought from a quarry high up on the opposite side of the Urubamba Rriver - an incredible feat involving the efforts of thousands of workers. It is hard to imagine it happening today.
The elaborate walled complex contained a temple to the sun which was used for astronomical purposes as well as ceremonial baths. You can see the remains of these and spectacular stone terracing today and a visit is an exciting and very interesting experience. In many ways these ruins are some of the best Inca remains in Peru. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit and could have stayed for longer except we had to return to Cusco. We climbed the terraces, looked out over the town and valley then walked some of the local Inca trails. It was fascinating.
The complex was still under construction at the time of the conquest and was never completed. After Manco Inca was defeated by the Spanish at Sacsayhuaman following the unsuccessful siege of Cusco (1536) he retreated to Ollantaytambo. Francisco Pizarro's younger brother Hernando led a force of 70 cavalry, 30 foot soldiers and a large contingent of natives to capture Manco Inca. The Inca's forces, joined by neighboring jungle tribes, rained down showers of arrows, spears and rocks upon the unfortunate Spanish troops. In an intelligent move the Inca's flooded the plains below their stronghold making it difficult for the horses to manoeuvre.
Hernando, uncharacteristically, ordered a hasty retreat. Ollantaytambo became the only place ever to have resisted attacks from the Spanish. However, their victory was short-lived when the Spanish returned with four times their previous force. Manco Inca retreated to his jungle stronghold in Vilcabamba and Ollantaytambo fell into the hands of the Spanish.
From journal The Sacred Valley, Peru
Editor Pick
Strange Name. Wonderful Town
- April 2, 2009
- Rated 5 of 5 by
britgirl7 from Dallas, Texas
Ollantaytambo was our first stop on arriving in Peru.
It’s a small traditional town nestled in the Sacred Valley with the Andres mountains looming all around. Ollanta was built on the foundations of the original Inca ruins and so you can easily look back in time and see evidence of Inca town planning.
Plenty of tourist see Ollanta as part of a whistle stop day trip of the Sacred valley so by day there are people arriving on tour buses to see the ruins and walk the cobbled streets but as dusk arrives and the thundering buses depart it can feel like you have the little gem to yourselves and I highly recommend staying at least one night
From a more practical standpoint it’s a great base to start your Peruvian adventure being slightly lower altitude (2,800m) than Cusco.
If you arrive in Cusco tired and altitudes weary the easiest way to get to Ollanta is by taxi/car. ($30-2 ½ hours)) Most Ollanta hotels will arrange this for you but I’m not exactly difficult to exit Cusco Airport and find one
The Cheapest way to Ollanta is via bus but this isn’t direct (Cusco-Urubamba (3 soles) and then Urubamba-Ollanta (2 soles))
The final option is the train which (if you are not hiking the Inca trail to MachuPicchu) you will probably be using at some point. The train however is expensive and you have to be sure the times coincide with your arrival.
Ollanta is the an attractive town of cobbled streets and tradition people. In fact if you arrive in Peru with good Spanish knowledge don’t assume you will be able to communicate with the older generation here as they mainly speak the older languages of Aymara and Quechua.
People here are friendly but shy. Don’t mistake the shyness for aloofness.
You can walk all of Ollanta easily even though there are tuktuk type transports for if the altitude throws you off your game. During the day huge tour buses will rumble through the down spoiling the peace but as dusk falls these will quickly vacate leaving a very peaceful town for your exploration.
Its safe here and you can walk anywhere in the town without worries. The narrow stone streets are particularly fun to explore,as you will see traditionally dressed locals at every turn. Be sure to look for the red (bag) flags above the doorways if you want to sample the local Chica beer. Just realize that the beer is created by people chewing corn then spitting it out and allowing the mixture to ferment !!! Enjoy !!
There is a museum in town (5 soles) too called El Museo Catcco which depicted Inca life in that area. It contained information about architecture as well as textiles samples. There are English translations but finding the museum seemed very hit or miss despite what the guide book told us.
Even when we did find the door opended the male caretaker seemed surprised to see visitors at all
My favourite sensory memory of Ollanta is at night, as the temperature drops, each home and restaurant burns their wood fires for comfort of food and the air all over the town smells like a cozy campfire.
Almost every restaurant "specializes" in pizza fresh from the pizza ovens. We tried one just because the town smells so wonderful with them cooking but I wasn’t impressed.
It was pretty much cheese on top of more cheese with a bit of cheese sprinkled for good measure. Its possible we had a bad pizza experience but unless you want to be blocked up for a week I don’t recommend it
From journal South of the Equator to Peru
Ollantaytambo Ruins
- July 12, 2005
- Rated 3 of 5 by
akakd from , Arizona
On the advice of a friend, we flew from Lima to Cuzco, then immediately went down into the Sacred Valley. This was a perfect way to acclimate gradually to the altitude. After checking into our hotel in the Sacred Valley (Sonesta Posada del Inca Yucay), we spent the balance of the day exploring ruins at Ollantaytambo. Across from the ruins is a large face carved into the rock of the mountain. The Ollantaytambo ruins and terraces are well preserved, including portions of the Sun Temple. The views of the Sacred Valley from the top of the ruins are awesome.
From journal Cool Cusco
Ollantaytambo
- May 9, 2005
- Rated 4 of 5 by
Pguthrie from Little Rock, Arkansas
Anywhere else in the world, this would be a major destination for adventure travelers... since it's 40 miles from Macchu Picchu, it's a secondary site. I thought it was great. The guide we had was very informative and easy to understand. This was part of our Sacred Valley tour we signed up for through Orquieda, our tour company. Highly recommended.
From journal Peru
Editor Pick
Ollantaytambo
Part of the Sacred Valley Tour offered throughout Cusco is a stop in the ancient Inca city of Ollantaytambo. On most tours, this is one of the last stops. It is built into a steep mountainside and was a strategic outpost for defense, as well as a religious center. Unlike many places, the town here has original Inca structures that are still lived in by people today. It is a great example of an Inca town still used today.
The history behind Ollantaytambo is quite amazing. After Manco Inca was defeated by the Spanish at Sacsayhuaman, he retreated to here. Hernando Pizarro (Francisco's brother) then came with an army to capture Manco Inca. The Inca's forces and neighboring jungle tribes attacked the Spanish troops and flooded the plains below Ollantaytambo to stop the Spanish advance. Hernando ordered a hasty retreat, though the victory was short-lived when the Spanish returned with four times their previous force. Manco Inca retreated to his jungle stronghold in Vilcabamba, and Ollantaytambo fell into the hands of the Spanish.
Ollantaytambo is made of enormous stepped terraces constructed of unbelievably huge stones. Believe me when I say my pictures do not do any justice. You'd be amazed at the number and size of rocks here. The rock quarry used to build much of the site was across the river valley on the opposite hillside. Workers moved stones used sloping planes, ramps, and rollers. The river was diverted around the rocks on the valley floor, easier than transporting the rocks across the river.
The easiest way to get to Ollantaytambo is to join one of the many Sacred Valley tours offered by many hotels and tour companies in and around Cusco. Look around the Plaza de Armas in Cusco for these operators. The average cost of these tours is $25, plus the $20 Tourist Ticket (a ticket for admittance to 16 historical sites in Cusco and the Sacred Valley, including Ollantaytambo). Most tour companies also include a buffet lunch with the tour. Tours last all day, departing Cusco around 9am and returning around 6pm.
From journal What's a Trip to Peru Without Machu Picchu?