Cusco’s Spectacular Celebrations
Cusco explodes with joyous celebration of both its Amerindian roots and Christian influences during festivals, which are crowded but splendid times to be in the city if you can find accommodations. It’s worth planning a trip around one of the following fiestas.
Inti Raymi ★★★, the fiesta of the winter solstice (June 24, but lasting for days before and after), is the star attraction. It’s an eruption of Inca folk dances, exuberant costumes, and grand pageants and parades, including a massive one that takes place at the stately Sacsayhuamán ruins overlooking the city. Inti Raymi is one of the finest expressions of local popular culture on the continent, a faithful reenactment of the traditional Inca Festival of the Sun. It culminates in high priests sacrificing two llamas, one black and one white, to predict the fortunes of the coming year. Cusco’s Carnaval week, with lots of music, dance, and processions, is part of the buildup for Inti Raymi.
Semana Santa, or Easter week (late Mar or Apr), is an exciting traditional expression of religious faith, with stately processions through the streets of Cusco, including a great procession led by El Señor de los Temblores (Lord of the Earthquakes) on Easter Monday. On Good Friday, booths selling traditional Easter dishes are set up on the streets.
In early May, the Fiesta de las Cruces (Festival of the Crosses), a celebration popular throughout the highlands, is marked by communities decorating large crosses that are then delivered to churches. Crucifix vigils are held on all hilltops that are crowned by crosses. Festivities, as always accompanied by lively dancing, give thanks for bountiful harvests. Early June’s Corpus Christi festival is another momentous occasion, with colorful religious parades featuring 15 effigies of saints through the city and events at the Plaza de Armas and the cathedral (where the effigies are displayed for a week).
On December 24, Cusco celebrates the Santuranticuy Festival, one of the largest arts-and-crafts fairs in Peru. Hundreds of artisans lay out blankets in the Plaza de Armas and sell carved Nativity figures and saints’ images, in addition to ceramics and retablos (altars). The tradition was begun by the Bethlehemite Order and Franciscan Friars.
A hugely popular Andean festival that attracts droves from Cusco and the entire region is the Virgen del Carmen, celebrated principally in Paucartambo (see “Side Trips from Cusco” and with only a slightly lesser degree of exuberance in Pisac and smaller highland villages.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.
