We will pick you up from your hotel at the agreed time to begin a culinary and cultural experience in the Sacred Valley. Designed for travelers seeking to step away from conventional tourist routes, this experience offers an authentic connection with Andean cuisine, local communities, and ancestral traditions.
The first stop will be the Urubamba market, a vibrant space filled with color, aromas, and regional products. Accompanied by a local guide, you will explore stalls offering seasonal fruits, fresh vegetables, and Andean tubers, discovering the agricultural richness of the Sacred Valley and its close connection to local gastronomy.
You will then continue to the high-Andean community of Patacancha, with a stop in Ollantaytambo. There, you will enjoy a short walk through its cobblestone streets and discover the Inca architecture that defines this emblematic living town of the Sacred Valley.
In Patacancha, a local family will welcome you into their home to share the preparation of a traditional pachamanca. This ancestral cooking method combines meats, tubers, and other ingredients underground, using stones heated red-hot. You will observe the process up close and take part in one of its most meaningful stages: sealing the earth oven. Once the ingredients and hot stones are in place, you will help cover the preparation with leaves, blankets, and soil to retain the heat and allow for slow, natural cooking.
While the pachamanca cooks, you will join a bracelet-making workshop using alpaca fiber that has been pre-dyed with natural pigments from local plants. Guided by the host family, you will learn about the cultural significance of the designs and Andean textile traditions while creating your own bracelet with materials prepared in advance for the activity. Patacancha is known for preserving textile practices passed down through generations.
As an alternative, you may take part in an Andean offering of gratitude to Pachamama, respectfully shared with the host family.
When the pachamanca is uncovered, the aromas of food cooked beneath the earth will welcome you to a family-style communal lunch framed by mountain landscapes. Each dish reflects centuries of Andean knowledge, local hospitality, and respect for the land.
More than a culinary tour, this is a sensory and human experience that connects you with the essence of the Peruvian Andes. At the end of the experience, we will transfer you back to your hotel.
