Ollantaytambo, Cuzco, Peru

Ollantaytambo is a town and an Inca archaeological site in southern Peru some 72 km (45 mi) by road northwest of the city of Cusco.

During the Inca Empire, Ollantaytambo was the royal estate of Emperor Pachacuti, who conquered the region and built the town and a ceremonial center.

At the time of the Spanish conquest of Peru, it served as a stronghold for Manco Inca Yupanqui, leader of the Inca resistance.

Festival Señor de Choquekillka
As so many other religious festivities in the country the celebration of Pentecost, in Ollantaytambo called the Festival Señor de Choquekillka is a merging of Catholic traditions and beliefs brought to the country by the Spanish conquerors with age-old Andean customs, rites and symbols combining the traditional Pentecost celebrations of the Catholic Church with native music, dances, rituals and food of the area.

The main day of celebration of the 4-day-festival in honor of the patron saint of the city, the Señor de Choquekillka is Whitsunday (the 7th Sunday after Easter).
Expect local music and dances, colorful costumes and traditional food on the main plaza in Ollantaytambo.

Entrance to the Ollantaytambo Archaeological Park

Ollantaytambo Archaeological Park Plan
Plan Legend:

Main entrance
Pre-Inca sector
Main wall
Ten niches
Sun temple
Control zone
Water temple
Ceremonial fontain
Bath of the Ñusta
Ceremonial fontain

Panorama of Ollantaytambo

Manyaraki platforms
Terraces at Ollantaytambo were built to a higher standard than common Inca agricultural terraces; for instance, they have higher walls made of cut stones instead of rough fieldstones.

A set of sunken terraces starts south of Ollantaytambo's Plaza de Armas, stretching all the way to the Urubamba River.
They are about 700 m (2296 ft) long, 60 m (197 ft) wide, and up to 15 m (49 ft) below the level of surrounding terraces; due to their shape, they are called Callejón, the Spanish word for alley.
Land inside Callejón is protected from the wind by lateral walls which also absorb solar radiation during the day and release it during the night; this creates a microclimate zone 2 to 3 °C warmer than the ground above it. These conditions allowed the Incas to grow species of plants native to lower altitudes that otherwise could not have flourished at this site.

Water Temple (Plan No. 7)
To the north of Manyaraki are several sanctuaries with carved stones, sculpted rock faces, and elaborate waterworks; they include the Water Temple (Templo de Agua) (Plan No. 7) and the Bath of the Ñusta (Baño de la Ñusta) (Plan No. 9).

Ceremonial fontain (Plan No. 8)

Ceremonial fontains (Plan No. 10)

Bath of the Ñusta (Plan No. 9)
"The bath of the princess" is a fountain at the base of the ruins.

Climbing to the top of the terraces

Panorama of the village of Ollantaytambo
View from the top of the terraces.

Entrance to the Ollantaytambo Archaeological Park
View from the top of the terraces.

Control zone (Plan No. 6)

Ten niches (Plan No. 4)
The Temple sector is built out of cut and fitted stones in contrast to the other two sectors of the Temple Hill, which are made out of fieldstones.

It is accessed by a stairway that ends on a terrace with a half-finished gate and the Enclosure of the Ten Niches, a one-room building.

Pre-Inca sector (Plan No. 2)

Storehouses
The Incas built several storehouses or qullqas out of fieldstones on the hills surrounding Ollantaytambo.

Their location at high altitudes, where more wind and lower temperatures occur, defended their contents against decay. To enhance this effect, the Ollantaytambo qullqas feature ventilation systems.
They are thought to have been used to store the production of the agricultural terraces built around the site.
Grain would be poured in the windows on the uphill side of each building, then emptied out through the downhill side window.

Main wall (Plan No. 3)

Sun temple
Behind the Enclosure of the Ten Niches (Plan No. 4) is an open space which hosts the Platform of the Carved Seat and two unfinished monumental walls.