Carlos Olmo
Most beautiful train ride in the world
The Andean Explorer train from Cusco to Puno is much less touristy and therefore much cheaper than the more famous train to Machu Picchu. However, the landscapes are no less spectacular. The train crosses the Andres from Cusco, the capital of the Incan Empire, to the border with Bolivia at Lake Titicaca. The highest point of the route, La Raya, is over 4,313 metres high. This train route has been named the second most beautiful in the world, and the Andean Explorer covers a distance of 381km in 10 hours, so you have plenty of time to admire the scenery.
The route is as follows: from Cusco, the train heads southeast following the River Huatanay through green fields and forests of eucalyptus and willow.
After 25km, it passes through Oropesa whose 47 bakeries have supplied bread to Cusco for centuries. At 32km, it passes Lake Muina, crosses the valley, and heads down to the Urubamba canyon. At 45km it passes Andahuaylillas church, an old colonial jewel, and at 59km it reaches Urcos. Between 80 and 99km, it passes two villages of pre-Colombian origin, and at 120km, the remains of the great temple of Viracocha, the creator god. La Raya, 210 km from Puno and 4321 meters in altitude , is the highest point on the cold and remote track. At 281 Km it reaches Juliaca, a train station and commercial city with about 150,000 inhabitants, whose rampant buying and selling seems to almost spill onto the train tracks. Puno (3,855 meters) is the final destination on the shores of Lake Titicaca, near Bolivia.
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