BIKING TO MARAS SALT MINES AND MORAY
Feel the adrenaline and escape the routine with this adventure tour in the town of Maras.
We start at Ramal de Maras and from this point we will go by mountain bike through the green fields and potato farms around, always accompanied by an impressive landscape surrounded by mountains. We arrive at Moray, the agricultural laboratory of the Incas, with its complex agricultural terraces in the form of concentric circles, and continue with the adventure until we reach the Salineras de Maras (Natural Salt Mines).
The journey continues with an exciting descent by bicycle to the city of Urubamba, where we’ll have lunch and end our activities.
BIKING TO MARAS SALT MINES AND MORAY - Map
Overview
Trip Overview
Tour Type: Day tour
Good For: Adventures and lovers of adrenaline.
Difficulty: Easy
Consideration: Please remember comfortable shoes and sunblock.
Season: From January 1 to December 31.
Duration: 1 Day
Itinerary
PACKAGE DETAILS | biking MARAS – MORAY – SALINERAS
Maras-Moray-Saltmines-Cusco
This beautiful bicycle tour will allow you to discover the Sacred Valley of the Incas in a whole new way. This tour combines magnificent views of the Sacred Valley while surrounded by the impressive snow-capped mountains.
Further, we will be able to explore the archaeological sites in a new way and appreciate the fresh air from your mountain bike.
Here is a list of the magnificent places we will visit during our adventure:
Maras:
Maras is a district of the Urubamba province. The city is located at km 50 on the road Cusco – Chinchero – Urubamba. It has an altitude of 3300 masl. (10824 fasl), on a plain that in prehistoric times was a huge plateau, from which it is possible to observe the range of mountains of Urubamba including the snow-capped mountains of Weqey Willka (today “La Veronica”, 5682 masl., 18641 ft.) and ” Chicken” (5530 mts., 18143 ft.).
Moray:
About 7 km. (4.3 miles) southwest of Maras. Moray is a very unique archaeological site in the region. It is possible to reach it by car over a dusty road/path departing from the city.
There are enormous natural depressions or hollows in the ground where the Incas used it for constructing irrigated farming terraces.
What is surprising is that the difference of the average annual temperature between the top and the bottom (about 30 mts/100 feet deep) reaches about 15°C (59°F). Towards the northwest of the Maras village are the famous “Salt Mines”.
The Maras’ salt mines are made up of about 3000 small pools with an average area of 5 m² (53.8 ft²), constructed in a slope of the “Qaqawiñay” mountain. People fill up or “irrigate” the pools during the dry season every 3 days with salty water emanating from a natural spring located on the top of the complex so that as the water evaporates, the salt solidifies.
Bike-Route:
We leave Cusco by bus at 9:00 am towards Chinchero (30 minutes), a small village that retains the layout of the streets of the Inca edge and also several buildings dating from this time. From here we go by bike in the direction of the Huaypo Lake. We will first stop in the agricultural site of Moray and then continue to the Maras colonial village, and then we visit the salt mines. In the Salines we will learn how the salt and precious minerals were collected from the flats during the Inca and colonial period. Finally, we will complete our circuit with a beautiful descent into the Urubamba village at the bottom of the Valley of the sacred river Vilcanota. We will return to Cusco by car around 5:00 pm.
The biking is not too challenging and is about 35 km in total with little uphill. Don’t miss out on this incredible adventure.
It is included
IT IS INCLUDED:
- English speaking guide for the archaeological sites
- Gloves, helmet, bike, lunch box, round trip transportation
IT IS NOT INCLUDED:
- The entrance ticket for the archaeological site Moray – 70 soles (included on the Tourist Ticket)
- The entrance ticket for the Salt mines – 10 soles
- Tips to the guide
What to Bring?
WHAT TO BRING
- A small backpack and tennis shoes
- Raincoat or poncho (Especially December to April, but is always safe to bring)
- Water bottle
- Sun hat, sunscreen and sunglasses
- Extra money (Soles)
- Selection of small snacks, chocolate, dried fruit, biscuits etc.
- Camera and extra batteries
RECOMMENDATIONS
RECOMMENDATIONS
Students with a valid International Student Identity Card (ISIC), and children and adolescents under the age of the of 17 have discount. You must show your ISIC and passport at the time of booking
NOTE:
The rainy season lasts from December to March. On some days the sky is still blue and allows for a nice bike ride.
From April to June, the mountains are completely covered with snow and the landscape presents itself in fresh green for beautiful photos. July to November the weather is mostly sunny.
Physical Requirements:
Regular and good physical conditions recommended. Bikers should be relatively acclimated to being over 3000 meters above sea level. The day before the tour, participants will meet up with the mountain bike guide in our office or at the hotel. He will give an introduction to the tour and you will have the opportunity to check the quality of the bikes and equipment that we will use on the tour.
Flexible
Flexible cancellation/ change
- Cancel your tour 48 hours in advance and be reimbursed for the full amount
of the tour. If you cancel the tour after these 48 hours prior to your tour no
refund will be processed. - The policy to reschedule or to make any amendment allows the update to be
made no more than 5 days prior to the date of your tour and it is valid until
December 30th, 2022. - The itinerary may be subject to changes due to unforeseen circumstances,
beyond the control of the operator, changes without prior notice.
