Maras salt ponds

The pre-Inca salt ponds of Maras are still used by locals in the Sacred Valley even today.

The breathtaking pre-Inca salt mines of Maras are located on a wide-open hill, above the Urubamba Valley. When the Andes rose out of the sea millions of years ago, some of the sea water was believed to have been trapped inland and the salt contained within it eroded into the rocks. A mineral-rich spring now feeds these terraced ponds and you often get a chance to see locals collecting the salt from their family's section - wading almost knee deep in the water. From Maras it is possible to walk for approximately an hour down to the Urubamba River, stopping to admire the beautiful views of the valley.