Inti Raymi Inca Festival Tour
3 day tour with camping
In July we have a special tour to coincide with the exciting and colourful Inti Raymi Inca Sun Festival held at Huanuco Viejo.
Huanuco Viejo was an important Inca settlement and was a major stopover point on the Inca route that runs from Cuzco through the north of Peru. Some thousands of people lived there in a site covering several hundred hectares and substantial ruins still remain. You can see the remains of hundreds of village homes, the principal temple, quarters for the Inca’s court – women and soldiers, the Inca’s private quarters and thermal baths.

Huanuco Viejo Temple
The festival is celebrated each year on 27 July, and involves some 600 dancers and actors dressed in traditional Inca costumes.

Inca Dancers & Court
The Inti Raymi was the most important festival in the Inca Empire to worship the Sun God, the Source of life.
Thanks are given for the year’s harvest and prayers made for good weather and harvests for the coming year.
The festival features musicians and groups of dancers that represent different Inca sectors dressed in distinctive clothing from their sector. Acllas or virgin women spread flowers before the Inca king as he makes his way to the main balcony accompanied by his queen and court all dressed in traditional costumes decorated with gold and singing spiritual rituals and worshipping.
Very few other agencies and tourists know about the Inti Raymi Festival in Huanucopampa and unlike the hectic and crowded Inti festival in Cuzco, we are likely to be the only tourists attending the Huanucopampa event. It is a unique opportunity to experience this cultural spectacular in the relaxed atmosphere with the company of local mountain people who come from all around, arriving on horses, hiking across the pampa from their distant homes or travelling from villages on local combi buses.
24 July (or before): Arrive Huaraz.
25 July: Huaraz. Relax in Huaraz or take a local tour. See our Day Tours Page for local tours.
26 July: To the mountains! Drive in our private bus for approximately 6 hours from Huaraz to Huanuco Pampa 3736m. We travel towards the famous Cordillera Huayhuash mountains and during the journey we have impressive views of wide open pampa, snow capped mountains in the distance and vast deep valleys. After passing through the mountain town of Huanuco Viejo, we wind up a narrow mountain road for about an hour until we arrive at Huanuco Pampa. We set up camp near the Inca Ruins of Huanuco Viejo Ruins on a large open flat “pampa” and spend the afternoon visiting the ruins in the company of a knowledgeable local guide.

Guided Tour, The Sun Gate Huanucopampa
27 July: In the morning local people start arriving and on the vast pampa they set up many different stalls and prepare traditional Peruvian meals to sell, the most popular being the “panchamanca” which is spiced meat, chicken & different varieties on Peruvian potatoes baked in a fire “earth oven”. We spend the morning wandering among the stalls and taking in the different activities & smells and maybe sampling some local delicacies. . In the afternoon we are spell bound by the spectacular sights, sounds & atmosphere of the colourful Inti Raymi Sun Festival. After the festival we enjoy a delicious 3 course dinner back at camp.

The Inca Inca Queen Inca Princess
28 July: Return to Huaraz. Today is Peru Independence Day. Back in Huaraz people will be celebrating with colourful street parades, music and traditional costumes.
Contact us for more information and prices.