CHOQUEQUIRAO

Choquequirao (Southern Quechua: Chuqi K'iraw, Golden Thrown) is a partly excavated ruined city of the Inca in the south of Peru. It bears a striking similarity in structure and architecture to Machu Picchu and is referred to as its 'sister'. Choquequirao admits far fewer tourists than its sister but the ruin is no less delightful and is a good alternative to the sometimes overcrowded Machu Picchu.

The ruins at Choquequirao are comprised of buildings and terraces at different levels from the lower level Sunch'u Pata to the truncated hill top. The hill top has been leveled and ringed with stones to form a platform of 30x50 meters wide.
Choquequirao (3085m) is situated amongst the spurs of the Salkantay Mountain Range in the Province La Convención in the Region Cusco above the Valley of the river Río Apurímac. The entire complex encompasses 1800 hectares, and to this day, Choquequirao remains largely unexcavated.

A lot of vegetation has been cleared since the times of early exploration, certainly, but most of buildings and terraces, some say up to 70% continue hidden beneath the undergrowth.

Choquequirao is much more than an archaeological complex. Its setting is extraordinary: within the space of just a few kilometers, the area is home to such varying ecosystems as glaciers at over 6000m, down to steamy tropical valleys at just 1800m.

Panoramic view

White stone llamas incrusted on walls

View from neighboring mountain