Cumbemayo
4.5
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from $29.00
$26.10
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.5
753 reviews
Excellent
506
Very good
211
Average
35
Poor
1
Terrible
0
Beavertrails
Vancouver, Canada1 contribution
Jun 2014 • Couples
I walked in to 4 places in the Plaza de Armas to get an idea of prices and options. Every place had the same tours as options and they all offered them at the same time so it came down to price. The prices at Cumbermayo Tours were approximately 5 soles more than the cheapest place I found (so two dollars) but Manuel explained (in English) what each tour was and had to offer and took a lot of time to help me. None of the other places even had someone who spoke English selling tours (though they all promised an English guide for a few extra soles). So we opted to go with Cumbemayo for the extra 5 soles and Manuel was amazing. This guy is not your average tour guide. He has written two books on the subject of Incan culture and talked to me and my boyfriend about politics and everything else we wanted to know about. He was amazing and the tour was beautiful too. Cajamarca was our favourite place in Peru. Very similar to Cusco only cheaper and less busy. For your reference: All tours from Cajamarca to various places in the area were 25-30 soles for a half day tour (these prices were for an English speaking guide).
Written August 3, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Brett
London, UK40 contributions
Mar 2016 • Couples
Great day out, highly recommended.
Besides the tunnel, canals and petroglyphs, the vistas and scenery are spectacular and well worth the trip on their own.
One can make your own way there, but its a little tricky as the minibuses leave from a specific place and only at specific times (that not everyone seems to agree on). Note: Doing it on your own is not that much cheaper than taking a tour and not worth the hassle.
My suggestion is to take a tour from any one of the agencies on the plaza and then walk back to Cajamarca from there (approx 2 to 2.5 hours).
The tours are cheap enough (Mega Tours gave me the best price) and this way you get there without drama and have the option to follow the guided tour or just explore on your own. You can then stay as long as you like and make your way back when it suits.
I would take the earliest tour so you have the whole day and take a raincoat just in case (dep on the season, it likes to rain in the afternoon). Check with the Info centers before you go.
Hiking back from Cumbe Mayo. At the end of the tour, where the canal meets and intersects a small stream, keep following the canal into the valley beyond. Follow these canals through green fields, that eventually join another small stream in the valley. You will pass another stunning rock formation on your right, keep going to the white bridge and dirt road you will see in the distance.
Turn left at the bridge and follow this access road to the main road. This is the same road you came in on, so you could just turn right and follow it back down.
Instead, look for what appears to be a livestock/ jeep track going down the hill. This track intersects the main road a number of times all the way down the hill into Cajamarca. You will end up behind the Santa Apolonia, overlooking the town.
You will pass some beautiful pastoral scenery and villages. Feel free to ask the locals to confirm you are going the right way (as long as you’re going down you are good ;). Just be aware of some of the local dogs, they can be unpredictable.
Tip: Take some treats for the kids on the hike back. You will make their day.
Enjoy.
Besides the tunnel, canals and petroglyphs, the vistas and scenery are spectacular and well worth the trip on their own.
One can make your own way there, but its a little tricky as the minibuses leave from a specific place and only at specific times (that not everyone seems to agree on). Note: Doing it on your own is not that much cheaper than taking a tour and not worth the hassle.
My suggestion is to take a tour from any one of the agencies on the plaza and then walk back to Cajamarca from there (approx 2 to 2.5 hours).
The tours are cheap enough (Mega Tours gave me the best price) and this way you get there without drama and have the option to follow the guided tour or just explore on your own. You can then stay as long as you like and make your way back when it suits.
I would take the earliest tour so you have the whole day and take a raincoat just in case (dep on the season, it likes to rain in the afternoon). Check with the Info centers before you go.
Hiking back from Cumbe Mayo. At the end of the tour, where the canal meets and intersects a small stream, keep following the canal into the valley beyond. Follow these canals through green fields, that eventually join another small stream in the valley. You will pass another stunning rock formation on your right, keep going to the white bridge and dirt road you will see in the distance.
Turn left at the bridge and follow this access road to the main road. This is the same road you came in on, so you could just turn right and follow it back down.
Instead, look for what appears to be a livestock/ jeep track going down the hill. This track intersects the main road a number of times all the way down the hill into Cajamarca. You will end up behind the Santa Apolonia, overlooking the town.
You will pass some beautiful pastoral scenery and villages. Feel free to ask the locals to confirm you are going the right way (as long as you’re going down you are good ;). Just be aware of some of the local dogs, they can be unpredictable.
Tip: Take some treats for the kids on the hike back. You will make their day.
Enjoy.
Written March 21, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ChendyArts
12 contributions
Apr 2013 • Solo
There are plenty of reviews here to support making a trip to Cumbemayo, so I won't get into that. To get the most out of your trip, go with Manuel Portal Cabellos at Cumbe Mayo Tours. This humble, soft-spoken man speaks English, has been guiding for 30+ years, is a true academic and historian, and has a genuine passion and desire for sharing his culture and history with tourists. He is the author of "Oro y Tragedia de Los Incas" and reads 16th-century manuscripts, making notes in miniscule scribble on post-it notes, in his free time.
He and a few other local guides run Cumbe Mayo Tours together, which is right on the plaza (Jr Amalia Puga 635). They offer the usual itineraries that every other office on the plaza does but usually for a better price because you're dealing directly with the guides.
Not only did I get amazing cultural and historical information during the tour, but Manuel was the one who set the trail that tourists walk through at Cumbemayo. He knows every physical detail and unique feature of the landscape by heart. He also does longer backcountry trips through the area, which you should ask about if you're into that sort of thing. The landscape is stunning, and the loop that tourists walk during the day only scratches the surface.
He and a few other local guides run Cumbe Mayo Tours together, which is right on the plaza (Jr Amalia Puga 635). They offer the usual itineraries that every other office on the plaza does but usually for a better price because you're dealing directly with the guides.
Not only did I get amazing cultural and historical information during the tour, but Manuel was the one who set the trail that tourists walk through at Cumbemayo. He knows every physical detail and unique feature of the landscape by heart. He also does longer backcountry trips through the area, which you should ask about if you're into that sort of thing. The landscape is stunning, and the loop that tourists walk during the day only scratches the surface.
Written July 8, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
PeruNorth
Lima199 contributions
Apr 2016 • Solo
I've been to Cumbe Mayo on two occasions, now:
1. I booked a half-day Spanish-language tour with a local agency, located in the Plaza de Armas. We drove in a minibus to the site entrance, and then wandered slowly downhill through the site, until we reached the ancient man-made canals. The guide's 'information' mainly consisted of telling us which animal the various rock formations resembled! Very little about the pre-Colombian history, petroglyphs, canal etc. Nonetheless, a picturesque spot.
On the way back, I asked the guide to drop me off where the road intersected a footpath, and then followed this path on the right side of the valley, which took me to Santa Apolonia hill and then down into Cajamarca. A very pleasant 2 hour hike, downhill, with great views of the city and surrounding countryside.
2. The 2nd visit to Cumbe Mayo was in a taxi, which cost s/.40 from the Plaza de Armas. No guide.
Again, I walked down, but this time followed a path to the left hand side of the valley, which ended in a very steep, newly-created neighbourhood on the outskirts of Cajamarca.
Dogs along the way are trained to defend their territory, here, but only barked.
1. I booked a half-day Spanish-language tour with a local agency, located in the Plaza de Armas. We drove in a minibus to the site entrance, and then wandered slowly downhill through the site, until we reached the ancient man-made canals. The guide's 'information' mainly consisted of telling us which animal the various rock formations resembled! Very little about the pre-Colombian history, petroglyphs, canal etc. Nonetheless, a picturesque spot.
On the way back, I asked the guide to drop me off where the road intersected a footpath, and then followed this path on the right side of the valley, which took me to Santa Apolonia hill and then down into Cajamarca. A very pleasant 2 hour hike, downhill, with great views of the city and surrounding countryside.
2. The 2nd visit to Cumbe Mayo was in a taxi, which cost s/.40 from the Plaza de Armas. No guide.
Again, I walked down, but this time followed a path to the left hand side of the valley, which ended in a very steep, newly-created neighbourhood on the outskirts of Cajamarca.
Dogs along the way are trained to defend their territory, here, but only barked.
Written July 18, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
elcholon1
Chicago, Illinois31 contributions
Sep 2015 • Couples
For less $10 you to this beatiful place, and retired engineer is your tour guide, he has great knowledge of the history of this place, the city, the Incas and even more. Surpirising enough, he never requests a tip for this wonderful tour, But he certainle deserves one.
Written April 1, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Oriolekam
Macau, China140 contributions
Jul 2019 • Solo
I joined a tour to visit chumbemayo, I recommend to visit on your own at very early morning to avoid the crowd. We lined up for more than 30 minutes for the toilet and another 45 min just to pass through a small crevice.
The scenery itself is stunning and the rocks looked like different animals in Peru.
The scenery itself is stunning and the rocks looked like different animals in Peru.
Written October 8, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
rapha_y_nici
Zurich, Switzerland5,948 contributions
Nov 2017 • Couples
Just booked this tour with one of the operators at the plaza de armas the evening in advance, it was no problem. For 25soles including a guide we thought it was a very good deal. We were in a spanish group (we didn’t ask specifically for an english guide) and it was not that easy to understand everything.. so it can be definitely worth to take an english spoken tour, information is interesting!
Bring water and sunscreen, sight is at approx 3500masl. There are indigenous people selling snacks. Transportation is 1h each way. We started at 0930am at plaza de armas and were back at aprox 2pm.
Tour and sight were good, but would not have payed much more for the half day tour. For this price would do it again. The guide was very knowledgeable.
Bring water and sunscreen, sight is at approx 3500masl. There are indigenous people selling snacks. Transportation is 1h each way. We started at 0930am at plaza de armas and were back at aprox 2pm.
Tour and sight were good, but would not have payed much more for the half day tour. For this price would do it again. The guide was very knowledgeable.
Written November 24, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lindsay G
13 contributions
Apr 2017 • Couples
We enjoyed our hike in Cumbemayo a ton! It was a gorgeous day, nice hike (not too difficult), beautiful scenery, and different from other hikes I've gone on before. We went through a tour company (off the plaza de armas) and it was really decently priced (s/20).
Written April 26, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Michael M
Medellin, Colombia307 contributions
Apr 2017
The guided trip stops short of some of the real good stuff, deeper past the bridge. It appears sometimes that the water is actually going UPHILL! They hewed square angles right in the rocks and through them, creating turns and perhaps adding some kind of momentum without "curving" or rounding which you might think easier. At at least 3,500m, this is a hike that will definitely get you to puffing sometimes. They don't know who built it or what purpose it really served and possibly over 9,000 years old. The drive is crazy long and only 20km, but it seems forever. A must if you're in Cajamarca
Written April 17, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mai1111
Shizuoka, Japan6 contributions
Nov 2014 • Friends
Joined the tour in the morning 9;30am. The English tour guide is pretty much every tour available. Costs 5 soles more than spanish guide. I paid 22 soles for the English tour guide who is knowledeble and hospitable. He explained first spanish for others and English is next just for me.
Cumbemayo is very historical place but still preserved some parts. Bring your jacket with you because it's pretty cold there.
Highly recommended
Cumbemayo is very historical place but still preserved some parts. Bring your jacket with you because it's pretty cold there.
Highly recommended
Written November 10, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hola, es recomendable ir con niños? Hace 2 años hicimos la caminata hacia Gocta y solo pudimos llegar hasta la mitad :(
Written May 1, 2019
Alguien podría indicarme si existen tours que sean inclusivos para personas minusvalidas o ancianos? Tal vez puedan disfrutar algo del paseo y la vista. Gracias de antemano!
Written June 17, 2017
Hola Ana, no vi ninguna facilidad para minusválidos. En cuanto a los ancianos, en si el trayecto no es pesado o difícil (vi gente mayor hacerlo sin problemas).
Written October 15, 2018
Hola Rozzana: Leí su descripción de Antonio Santamaria in Cajamarca y me gustaría usar su servicio. ¿Tiene sus datos para contactar?
Gracias,
Marnie
Written April 1, 2016
Which agency is your recommended guide with? Thanks!
Written October 22, 2015
Antonio Santamaria travel agent. His office is in a pink building next to the church in Plaza de Armus. He is a retired school teacher and has a thin dark mustache. All the other travel agencies are on the other side of the Plaza. His location is small and it has a small ice cream and liquor store inside. He is the best and the cheapest. I went to the other ones and one tour they really fooled us and waisted our time, our money and would not refund us on what they were supposed to provide. Do not take any trip to see any wetlands or natural rock formations that are not Cumbemayo. I do not remember the name of the tour or the agency but it was a bad day. Mr. Antonio on the other hand is the best but you better speak Spanish or have an interpreter.
Written October 23, 2015
I am wondering if any parts Cumbemayo is stroller accessible?
Written May 17, 2015
Agreed, strap the kid on your back and hike it! Lots of up and down in the walking tour, NO pavement or ramps. If your child is walking and climbing, they can walk this, if not yet, they'll enjoy the view from your back :)
Written July 22, 2015
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