Rainbow Mountain Itinerary

More about Rainbow Mountain

Rainbow Mountain is around 3 hours’ drive south-east of Cusco. The wonderful 360-degree view over its multi-colored flanks is at an altitude of around 5,200m/17,060ft – you need to be acclimatized to join this tour.

The Rainbow Mountain was originally known as Vinicunca, which in Quechua translates to ‘colored mountain’. There are a total of 14 different colors including turquoise, gold, and violet. The colors are created by mineral sediments that change color when they interact with the sun, ice and wind. Red coloring often means iron oxide is present and yellow due to iron sulfide.

It is now among Cusco’s top attractions. To avoid crowds, we recommend the early start on the day 1 option or the 2-day option, so you can enjoy a peaceful time in one of Peru’s most beautiful settings.

Acclimatize and early start

For those who have limited time, the Rainbow Mountain day trip is a long but very rewarding journey. We recommend you are acclimatized to the high altitude before starting and this trip often works better towards the end of itineraries in and around the Cusco area.

This tour starts very early to avoid the crowds at Rainbow Mountain. You are picked up by a private driver at your hotel at 4:00 am, to be the first at the mountain and enjoy the beautiful sunrise. (We can always change to a later departure time just let us know.)

Getting to Rainbow Mountain

It will likely be cold so you have to dress very warmly in a hat, gloves and a warm coat. We have pillows and blankets in the van so that you can try and continue resting on the way while we will drive 3 hours to the trailhead where a hot breakfast will be prepared and served. Llamas and alpacas can be seen dotted all along the route to Vinicunca.

Trekking route on Rainbow Mountain

After breakfast, we start ascending from 4,300m / 14,200 feet towards our goal of 5,200m / 17,060 feet.

Depending on your fitness level, we hike for 1.5-2 hours. The terrain will vary between flat and steep, and the path can be dusty and slippery because of the gravel. During our hike, we see amazing views of Ausangate - the highest mountain in the Cusco region - while hiking through fields where alpacas, llamas, and vicuñas are grazing.

When we reach the summit, we are rewarded with the magic vistas of Rainbow Mountain. Your tour guide will explain the geology and geography of the region, why the colors are so bright, and the importance of the mountain to the local indigenous population. There will be time for photos and questions before we start our descent to our awaiting vehicle, which will 1.5-2 hours.

On the way back, we stop at one of the amazing viewpoints for our organic lunch. Finally, we take our bus back to Cusco and hope to arrive around 4-5 pm, and we drop you off at your hotel.

2-day Rainbow Mountain Itinerary

DAY 1

Cusco - Qesuno - Anata

On the first morning, we pick you up at your hotel at 5:00 am and drive 3 hours through beautiful scenery south of Cusco to the trailhead. On our way, we make a stop in a local village to visit a local market where we can see the locals selling fruits and vegetables and their famous massive loaves of bread.

Once we get to the trailhead, and before starting the hike, we enjoy a hot breakfast. We carry daypacks only; we leave the rest of our gear with a local horseman to look after.

The hike starts in a beautiful valley where we see local families farming and herding llamas and alpacas, just like the Incas used to do many centuries before.

We continue ascending slowly and steadily to our first pass, Condor pass, which is at an elevation of 4,875m/16,000ft. We are rewarded with amazing views of the glacier-covered Ausangate mountain. Your guide will explain how and why the Incas used to worship this mountain. Be sure to get some photos from here, especially the five crystal clear lakes below.

We then descend from the pass and hike for another 2-3 hours to reach Ananta, where our campsite will be located. The horseman will be here with your kit and our chef will be waiting with a delicious lunch.  

After lunch, we can have a siesta and walk around and take in the incredible views. We have dinner at 7 pm and then take time to look at the stars and see the Southern Cross, Venus, Jupiter, and the Milky Way.

Don’t forget to read our FAQs, covering altitude, money, COVID, and more.

Distance: 14km / 8.7 miles

Elevation: 4,200m-4,875m / 13,779-16,000ft

Hiking Time: 5-6 hours

DAY 2

Ananta - Rainbow Mountain - Cusco

We wake you up at 5 am with Coca tea delivered to your tent. After a delicious hot breakfast, we hike to our second pass.

After about one hour, we reach the second pass where we can see our first glimpse of Rainbow Mountain. We then descend for half an hour and after a further ninety minutes, we will reach our final destination - Rainbow Mountain. You can take as much time as you want to take photos of this magical place.

The benefit of the 2-day Rainbow Mountain trek is that we arrive early and before the majority of the other trekkers arrive.

The hike back to the trailhead will take about three hours, and we enjoy lunch before departing back in our private vehicle to Cusco (3 hours).

We typically get back around 5 pm and will drop you off at your hotel.

Don’t forget to read our FAQs, covering altitude, money, COVID, and more.

Distance: 18km / 11 miles

Elevation: 5,000m-5,200m-4,200m / 16,404ft-17,060ft-13,779f

Hiking Time: 6-7 hours