This is one of the most popular tours from Ayacucho and most tour agencies on the city’s main square can book for you, even the day before.

The tour to Vilcashuamán (pronounced vil-kas-wa-mon) starts with a drive to a hillside where you can see the largest bromeliad in the world, the Puya raimondii.

The next stop is Pumacocha, which means Puma Lake in Quechua. There are several Inca ruins along the lake shore and after you visit them you have the option to walk back or take a rowboat back across the lake. Pumacocha is just over a 2-hour drive south of Ayacucho.

Another half hour south of Pumacocha gets you to Vilcashuamán, where most groups have lunch. Then you’ll visit the ushnu, the reconstruction of a four-tiered stone pyramid. Only a couple blocks away is the main Vilcashuamán archeological site where you can see the Inca sun and moon temples with a Spanish church built on top.