Full-Day Rainbow Mountain & Red Valley Small-Group Trek from Cusco





Description
*Small Group Experience* (max 8 trekkers) This full-day trek will take you and a small-group to Rainbow Mountain Peru, also known as Vinicunca, which is a undiscovered land full of wildly desert landscapes, snow capped glaciated peaks, herds of alpaca, and pristine beauty. Enjoy a freshly prepared hot breakfast at the trail head, snacks for along the way, a wonderful lunch prepared by a chef in a dining tent with table and chairs, private transportation to and from your hotel in Cusco, a fluent English speaking guide, and all proper first aid and emergency oxygen to ensure a safe journey.
Tour Options
Itinerary
The hike to the rainbow mtn is around 3.5 hours (7.5km / 4.7 mi). Throughout your journey you will pass through a vibrant green valley with the snow capped peak of Ausangate towering in the distance. You will see hundreds of roaming alpaca, and have the chance to truly see how Quechua people live. As you get closer to the Rainbow Mtn you will see the first signs of the colored minerals that formed the painted hills. Your guide will explain what makes up the existence of the Rainbow Mountain and how it was formed, and finally with one last push you will hike up to a vantage point that gives you a 360 degree view of the beautiful landscape that makes up the sacred land. Red Valley Included! There will be snacks on top and time for a break to soak up the vistas and enjoy the beauty around us. After an hour you will embark for your hike down (2-3 hours), where you will have a gourmet lunch prepared by a chef in a traditional mud-house and depart back to Cusco. Arriving around 4-5pm.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We pick all travelers up in our private van. Pick up time is between 2:15am and 2:45am, please be waiting in your hotel lobby at 2:15am and keep a lookout for our van. Our guide will pick you up at your hotel.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Service animals allowed
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Travelers should have a high level of physical fitness
- A minimum of 2 people per booking is required
- The duration of transfers are approximate, the exact duration will depend on the time of day and traffic conditions
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
- Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
- Minimum age is 10 years
- A maximum of 8 people per booking
Reviews(255)
We joined the 14-day tour organized by flashpacker. Miguel was our tour guide for the rainbow mountain day tour on May 29th. He was so diligent that he called us a day prior to the tour to explain the details and preparation (Alfredo from flashpacker also called to explain the details which we are thankful!). Miguel and the driver arrived early to pick us up. He is very caring and encouraging to our whole group while hiking. He is skilful in choosing the route to hike. He also shared with us knowledge about the rainbow mountain and red valley. I appreciate him very much especially because there was a small emergency where one of our group mates cut his fingers, he had all the essential kits to help treat the wound. I cannot recommend Miguel more. I also would like to thank our driver for driving us at such an early hour and waiting for us during the hike. He has been our driver for several days navigating around Cusco and has been very helpful and friendly. I think his name is Victor but sorry if I got his name wrong.
This was such an amazing hike to experience the beauty of the rainbow mountain and even more beautiful the red valley and hike along the side of another mountain heading back to the van. And to top it off we saw an eagle on the last turn of our hike! Mindel was a super great tour guide keeping up a nice pace and making sure we were feeling ok along the way! He had really interesting facts and easy conversations which made the experience all the better ! Alpacas could be seen everywhere and I just have to say again how beautiful this entire area is and I would happily come again to continue exploring the valleys. As well I have to mention Jose who drove the long drives both to and from along snake like roads. I usually get car sick but this time was fine! Anyways, my partner I couldn’t be happier it was truly a kind of life changing experience that I will always remember !
We had a really nice day, our tourguide maik spoke good English and made our day even more fun. We also got super good food and beautiful pictures highly recommended!
It was a wonderful experience to be the first to arrive at Rainbow Mountain and experience the mountain in peace and quiet and for myself alone. My guide Fredy and I arrived about five minutes before the first other tourists. Certainly, booking through FlashpackerConnect is a bit more expensive than with other providers, but in my view worth every penny! I could even book the tour by email all to myself. Romina organized everything for me and communication with the guides was perfect. Thanks for this great experience!
Incredible experience. This is a small group tour and the availability may not always be there! The response to my booking was really fast and informative. They didnt have a full group available for the day i chose, but they gave me the option to run solo for a little extra dollars! Dont think about it, do it! My company for the day was Beker and Jurgen. They were on time to my hotel and so attentive. We began our trek super early and Beker was super patient with me allowing me to take my own pace as the altitude can hit you. Took the best pictures and answered every question!
I would highly recommend going with FlashPackerConnect! One of the main advantages is the early departure from Cusco (between 03:00 and 03:30), ensuring a timely arrival on the mountain. When we were heading back down, we saw hundreds of tourists making their way up: tourists that we manages to avoid on our pictures!
From start to finish, our 12 hour day with Freddy (guide) and Fernando (driver) was absolutely stellar. Our private tour in a small, comfortable van included blankets, breakfast and snacks, followed (after the hike) by a delicious Peruvian lunch made with love by Chef Mario, served in his lovely home. What a special way to wrap up a spectacular day! Our trek up Rainbow Mountain and across to the Red Valley was perfectly paced, with Freddy sharing stories and information along the way. Our 3am departure meant we were heading down the mountain as the crowds were heading up. It is SO worth getting up in the dark to beat the crowds! We booked this adventure for our last day in Peru and it meant we went out with a bang. It is a remarkable experience and we are so thrilled to have done it.
The best tour going to rainbow mountain. Early pick up but first ones there. Beat the masses of tourists and included red valley which was stunning and peaceful. Guide (Bernie) was brilliant and very knowledgable. Good lunch at nice spot on the way home and comfy bus. Best way to do it!
I booked a day tour to Rainbow Mountain (Vinicunca) with Flashpacker Connect and it was an amazing trip. My guide for the day was Beker and he made this trip a really memorable experience. We arrived at the mountain, stayed for a bit, and then walked on the side of the mountain to take a peek into the Red Valley. All of the views are out of this world, and we were able to enjoy them before other tours started arriving. We were among the first to arrive at the mountain. Throughout the hike Beker shared lots of interesting information about the site and Peruvian culture in general. He also took lots of awesome pictures for me. One thing I really appreciate about this tour is that, even though the trek is tough if you are not used to hike at altitude, I always felt safe. Beker walked at my pace and was constantly checking on me. They also carry coca leaves and oxygen in case you need them. A shoutout to Fidel who drove us there and back safely and was also fun to hang out with. On the way back, we stopped at a designated location to have lunch. They offered us many local dishes which were all delicious. A perfect way to conclude a trip I will never forget!
For our annual trip this year we decided to go to Peru. Prior to going we knew we wanted to hike Machu Picchu & Rainbow Mountain. We reached out to a few tour groups and decided to go with FlashpackerConnect, and they did not disappoint. They helped us organize the two-day Machu Picchu trip from Cusco and the one day Rainbow Mountain hike. The team was very responsive, kept us in the loop, and everything was planned out perfectly. Baker (our incredible tour guide) met us at 3am in our hotel lobby. "Today we will be going on a 3 hour drive and then we will be at rainbow mountain. Get comfortable and have a nap." said Baker. Rainbow mountain was wonderful, and so was Baker. When we got to the base of the mountain Baker handed us some breakfast and we headed off on our hike. it was a short hike with a wonderful destination. Baker knew exactly what we wanted. We took pictures and had a few laughs. Then Baker asked if we wanted to do more hiking."Of Course!". We took off and hiked to a lookout spot over Red Valley. so epic. After the hike we had a private lunch prepared by a local chef. The food was soooooo gooooood! After Lunch we haded back to Cusco. It is difficult to explain, but the trip was great and Baker was the perfect guide. We saw so many beautiful places, eat wonderful food and had a guide (Baker) that had such a great vibe. 10 out of 10 would recommend! ,



