Few places in the world capture the imagination of spirited adventure more than Peru. This Southern Hemisphere frontier is famous for the heritage of Machu Pichu’s cultural treasures, the uniqueness of its geoglyphs of Nazca, and the charming, friendly hospitality of its people. One such place in Peru is the Rainbow Mountain or Vinicunca, as the locals like to call it.

Trying to put up a fake smile hereafter reaching the top. I bet my expressions are off, but my Poncho (matching the mountain) is spot on.

The mountain is a geological spectacle of the world. Located in the high altitudes of the Andes, it’s a 3.5-hour bumpy ride from Cusco. It is famous for its otherworldly colors that imitate a rainbow painted over the top of a mountain. It looks like it’s been meticulously stroked with every shade of the rainbow, which is how Rainbow Mountain got its name. The colors are a result of mineral deposits over millions of years. The mountain’s unique colors were discovered only about five years ago, most likely due to global warming that made the snow blanketing the mountain melt.

Best time to Visit

The most suitable time to visit Rainbow Mountain is between late March and November. Even though January and February are summertime in Peru, you can anticipate heavy rain and snowfall. Choose a sunny day to see the colors at their best.

How to get there

The mountain is located in the district of Pitumarca in southern Peru at an altitude of 5200 m (17000 ft) above sea level. It is some 86 miles (138 km) by road southeast of Cusco.

There are three ways you can reach the Rainbow Mountain

• Self-drive
• Local bus
• Tour

Usually, we don’t prefer tours at all, but I think it totally made a lot more sense to take one here.

Since the altitude is too much and everyone reacts to it differently, it is good to have a team with some oxygen and first aid. The other thing is that the drive is not very comfortable from Cusco. So planning for altitude driving of almost 7 hrs & other things like arranging food (we are vegetarian, so sometimes it becomes tricky) became too much for us. So eventually we decided to take a tour, which turned out to be an excellent choice.

Tour

You don’t need to book in advance. There are many tour agencies in Cusco, and you can just pop in and arrange a tour the day or two before you want to go.

You start your day at 2:00 am, and it is a long and exhausting day. After more than 6 hrs of a total drive and then the hike, I was so glad that we did our tour with rainbowmountaintravels. I would highly recommend them.

They were super awesome! They have both English and Spanish-speaking guides. It was just USD 30 per person (now 35 USD - updated 2022) which included breakfast and lunch and the park entrance fee of 10 soles. The hotel pick-up from Cusco was around 3:00 am, and then it was a 3.5 hr bumpy drive from the City. They stop at a small village for breakfast. The group tour usually has 15 to 18 people with one guide. We were the first ones to reach the rainbow mountain trailhead. You would really want to take an early tour because, by the time we were hiking back, it became super crowded!

Carlos, our guide, was very kind and looked out for everyone. He also carried an Oxygen tank with him if anyone was sick from the altitude. Giving us ample time at the top of the mountain, he never pushed anyone to walk faster. He was very encouraging and kept on reminding us that we should do it at our pace. We didn’t feel rushed or pressured at all. They also provide Coca leaves, used by the locals as a common remedy to counter altitude sickness, these help with breathing difficulty.

“Amigos, take this agua, inhale deeply”- Carlos while sprinkling some aromatic water on our hands. He carried this potion with him, which he referred to as ‘magical water.’ He would spray it on our hands and ask us all to keep on smelling it from time to time. I think that kept us all going.

Trail

In 2019, they opened a new route to Rainbow Mountain, which is a 4.5 mile out & back hike. Almost 2 miles less than the previous route. The total elevation gain on the new way is approximately 1150 ft.
We did it in July 2019, it was pretty chilly. But we were glad there was no wind, and it was a clear sunny day.

The photo does absolutely no justice to how steep this grade was. Initially, the trail was not bad in terms of grade, but further on, let’s just say it was sick—everyone was gasping for air at 17000 ft above sea level. I guess it’s the altitude that makes it really hard it might not feel that steep otherwise. Thanks to Carlos for pushing us all the way up. Please take altitude very seriously, it is almost the height of Everest Base camp. Spend at least two days in Cusco before heading up there.

There is also an option of hiring a horse for about 90 soles for approximately 3 hours at the trailhead. You cannot book it in advance, it has to be done on the day of the hike. Also it is subject to availability.
I wouldn’t recommend it since they do not take you up to the top. Even if you hire a horse, you would still have to hike the last steep section.

Red Valley

As the spotlight is on Rainbow Mountain, Red Valley should not be overlooked as it too offers a spectacular view. You can combine the Red Valley with the Rainbow Mountain tour. rainbowmountaintravels also do Red Valley. Since it is optional, you can just tell them that you want to add Red Valley to the tour while coming back from the mountain. You need to pay 20 Soles at two checkpoints to enter the Valley. It’s a 20 mins walk from the rainbow mountain. When we were there, it was just us and our guide, nobody else. It kind of felt surreal.

Despite its proximity to Rainbow, we found that very few people make an effort to walk over the ridge and take on the additional hike through the Red Valley. It may be because of the killing altitude, where walking even a few extra steps is like an arduous task. I would say do not miss the opportunity to see the Valley; it is equally beautiful. Your trip will be incomplete without it.

Travel Tips

• How can any place have such vivid colors? But you may have to visit to believe it. Most importantly, to see the colors at their most brilliant, time your visit on a sunny day. Since it is very easy to find a spot on tour, check the weather forecast before booking one. Without the sun, the colors are usually very dull. I realized this just a few years ago how vital the sun (& time of day) is to see those colors in lakes, mountains, hot springs, etc.
  
  
• Nobody mentioned it or suggested carrying a hiking pole, even when I double-checked with the tour company. It was okay while going up, but I struggled with steep grades and gravel while coming down and felt that I certainly needed them. There are a couple of sections that I felt were slippery while coming down. So if you could easily carry poles and I would advise doing that.
  
  
• If you want to skip crowds, start early or late afternoon.
  
  
• To beat the altitude - Drink lots of water, chew coca leaves and avoid alcohol. Spend some days in Cusco to acclimatize before taking this hike.