Rainbow Mountain (also called the “Mountain of Seven Colors” or “Vinicunca” in the native Quechua language), located in the Andes Mountains of Peru, truly lives up to its name. With colorful striations streaked across its slopes, the Rainbow Mountain hike has quickly become one of the most popular day trips from the bustling colonial city of Cusco.
But, due to its remote location, extremely high elevation, and the INSANE crowds that swarm the mountaintop, actually being able to enjoy your visit here isn’t as straightforward as you might think. Here’s everything you need to know about the Rainbow Mountain hike, from how to be safe on the trail to our tips for beating the massive crowds.
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About the Rainbow Mountain hike
- Distance: 2.77 miles
- Elevation gain: 860 feet
- Difficulty: Challenging. This hike is short, but steep and, more importantly, at incredibly high elevations, starting at over 15,500 feet over sea level and climbing close to 1,000 feet. So, be prepared to work WAY harder than you typically would for a hike of similar distance and elevation gain.
- Trail map
Why is Rainbow Mountain so colorful?
Before we dive in, you might be wondering… why the heck does Rainbow Mountain look like that?
And it’s all because of our good friend, science!
Rainbow Mountain now sits on land that once was the site of an ancient ocean. Different sediment was deposited under this ocean, leaving behind a high concentration of colorful minerals, like iron oxide, sulfur, and chlorite.
Over millions of years, layers of rock that contain these minerals were eroded by wind, rain, and snow, and eventually, created the unique vibrant striations that you see on Rainbow Mountain today.
How to get to the Rainbow Mountain hike
Rainbow Mountain is located here, near the remote town of Uchullujllo in southeastern Peru.
Rainbow Mountain is one of the most popular day trips from Cusco, where many travelers base themselves to explore Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley. Alternatively, it’s also a popular stop along a multi-day backpacking trip called the Ausangate Trek.
Visiting Rainbow Mountain from Cusco
The vast majority of travelers that visit Rainbow Mountain base themselves in the city of Cusco, which once served as the ancient Inca capital.
While the city is best known for being the gateway to the iconic site of Machu Picchu, one of the most popular things to do in Cusco is to go on a day hike through the Andes Mountains, like the Humantay Lake hike, the Seven Lakes Trail, and, you guessed it, Rainbow Mountain.
There’s a couple of different ways that you can get from Cusco to Rainbow Mountain.
Joining a tour
By far, the easiest way to get to Rainbow Mountain is by joining a tour.
If you have a few days in Cusco before your hike, you can generally get the best prices by purchasing a tour in person from one of the many agencies lining Cusco’s streets. We paid around 75 Peruvian soles per person for our tour.
Alternatively, if you’re short on time in Cusco or just prefer to book your tours ahead of time, you can always sign up online, like with this option (which actually costs pretty close to what you’ll pay by booking a tour in person!) or this private option.
Most tours are pretty much the same. You’ll get picked up from your hotel in Cusco crazy early (like, 4 AM early!); drive to the trailhead, with a brief stop for breakfast along the way; and then transportation back to Plaza de Armes in Cusco by the late evening, with another brief stop for a late lunch.
To set expectations, unless you spring for a private tour, the group offerings usually come with a “guide”, but you won’t be hiking with them or the rest of your group and they don’t really explain any information about the mountain itself or the surrounding area. The guides can help, though, in case of an emergency, with most reputable companies having oxygen on hand if you need it, given the high elevations.
I’d suggest thinking of most of the tours as more of a transportation to and from Rainbow Mountain and a meal service as opposed to an actual guided experience!
Booking a private transfer
If you’d prefer to go by yourself, you can either book a taxi or hire a private shuttle service, like this option. Depending on whether you’re visiting during the busy period and how much time you have to shop around, you can expect to pay anywhere between $100-200 USD roundtrip for this service.
While this is definitely the pricier option, this has the HUGE benefit of being able to either leave super early or much later than the other tour groups so that you can enjoy the summit without the insane crowds that are present from around 9 AM to 1 PM. And, if you’re traveling with at least three or so people, it probably won’t be THAT much more expensive than a group tour.
Taking public transit
If you REALLY don’t want to go on a tour but are on a tighter budget, you can use public transit to get to some of the small towns close to the Rainbow Mountain trailhead and do a longer, 8 kilometer trek (roundtrip) from there.
Regardless of which of these towns you choose, getting there takes several different modes of transportation, so I’d really only recommend attempting this if you speak decent Spanish. Additionally, it likely will cost you a bit more money and take a lot more time, as compared to booking one of the cheaper tours in Cusco.
Accordingly, unless you REALLY don’t want to go on a tour AND are on a tight budget, I don’t really think this option makes a ton of sense.
Here are the two places you can take public transit to and then hike to Rainbow Mountain.
Phulawasipata
You’ll need to grab a taxi or Uber from your hotel in Cusco to Av. Huayruropata and then hop on one of the interprovincial buses to the town of Cusipata. From Cusipata, you can either hire a taxi or take a colectivo to the small town of Phulawasipata, where you’ll start your hike to Rainbow Mountain.
Between all of the modes of transportation, this trip will usually cost around 60 soles one-way.
Additionally, before taking this route, you are required to register your hiking group on Rainbow Mountain’s official website.
Kayrawiri
You’ll need to grab a taxi or Uber from your hotel in Cusco to Av. Huayruropata and then hop on one of the interprovincial buses to the town of Checacupe. From Checacupe, you can either grab a bus or a taxi to the small town of Pitumarca, where you can get another taxi to the even smaller town of Kayrawiri.
For all of these modes of transportation, this will typically cost around 70 soles.
Trekking as part of a multi-day hike
As an alternative to visiting as a day trip from Cusco, Rainbow Mountain is also a popular stop on the Ausangate Trek. This is a multi-day hike that’s typically completed over the course of five or six days that passes some of the most vibrant alpine lakes and spectacular mountainscapes on the planet.
Along this trek, you’ll usually camp near Rainbow Mountain and then summit the mountain for sunrise on the third or fourth day. Accordingly, you’ll have plenty of time to explore the site and, best of all, you’ll get to enjoy it without thousands of other people around!
I was contemplating doing the Ausangate Trek while we were in Peru, but, since we spent a good deal of time and money on the Inca Trail, we decided to skip it. In hindsight, I’m kicking myself for not doing it—the trek, in general, looks awesome and this definitely is a better way to enjoy Rainbow Mountain than simply booking a tour from Cusco.
If you’re interested in doing this trek, check out this four-day option or this five-day option.
How much does the Rainbow Mountain hike cost?
Regardless of how you get to Rainbow Mountain, you’ll be required to pay an additional 30 Peruvian sole entrance fee per person to the community that owns whatever trailhead you’re entering from.
Additionally, if you want to trek in the Red Valley, which is an offshoot of the Rainbow Mountain hike with even more vibrant colors and WAY less people, it costs an additional 20 soles per person.
You should also bring a bit of extra soles for any bathroom stops or snacks you might need along the way.
What to expect along the Rainbow Mountain hike
The vast majority of hikers visit Rainbow Mountain as part of a day tour and will start their hike in this parking lot. There’s some stalls selling snacks and drinks, like coca tea, as well as a bathroom, if you need it.
From here, the trail gradually climbs up a dirt pathway, with a moderate incline at first. I’d suggest sticking to the righthand side of the trail—visitors can also take a motorbike or horse to the summit (more on that below!), which usually use the lefthand side.
As you climb higher and higher, you’ll get better views of the surrounding mountains with every step. Nevado Ausangate is particularly impressive—it’s the tallest mountain in the area (at almost 21,000 feet tall!), with a MASSIVE glacier on top of it.
About halfway up the mountain, the incline will get noticeably steeper, with the grade becoming as steep as 20%. To be honest, nothing on this hike is technically challenging in any manner, but the high altitude makes everything, especially climbing up a steep mountain slope, feel THAT much more difficult. Just remember to bring PLENTY of water (I always am carrying around one of these comically giant Nalgene bottles) and take lots of breaks if you need it!
After about 1.3 miles into the trail, you’ll reach the main overlook of Rainbow Mountain, with LOTS of vendors selling hats, photos with llamas wearing sunglasses, and coca tea and, more importantly, a STUNNING view of the layers upon layers of colorful rock that paints the mountain’s ridge line.
If you reach this point during the timeframe where most of the tour groups are here, buckle up—when we visited, there was a 45 minute wait to get an unobstructed photo of this viewpoint!
If you feel up to it, you can continue climbing a series of steep, rocky stairways for about 0.1 miles that lead up to its summit, where you’ll be rewarded with much fewer crowds and even better views of Ausangate to the north and, to the south, Rainbow Mountain and the Red Valley sprawling below.
Adding on the Red Valley
If you want to walk through the heart of the colorful mountainscapes, I’d suggest adding on the Red Valley offshoot.
This trail, which departs from an area right by the iconic Rainbow Mountain overlook, leads along a mountain ridge that striped with vibrant hues of green, orange, and red to a viewpoint overlooking a beautiful valley, with deep red and green hues and alpacas, happily munching away.
This offshoot adds 1.2 additional miles to your trip and is thankfully mostly flat (you can see a trail map here). As mentioned above, it also costs an additional 20 soles per person.
How to get to Rainbow Mountain without hiking
If you struggle with mobility challenges, you can also get most of the way up to the Rainbow Mountain viewpoint on either motorbike or on horseback.
Hiring a motorbike or a horse usually costs around 90 soles roundtrip, but you may be able to negotiate a slightly better price.
If you need help getting up the mountain, I’d strongly recommend taking a motorbike as opposed to a horse. Unfortunately, a lot of the horses we saw in Peru were not treated very well.
It’s worth mentioning that motorbikes and horses cannot take you all the way to the summit. You’ll still need to walk for about 10 minutes up the final steep climb up to the viewpoint. So if you have significant mobility limitations, you might want to consider if Rainbow Mountain is the right hike for you.
Can you camp at Rainbow Mountain?
No, there’s no camping permitted at Rainbow Mountain itself.
As noted above, you can camp near Rainbow Mountain along the longer Ausangate Trek, usually at the beautiful Anantapata campsite. However, it’s still about a one and a half hours of hiking until you reach Rainbow Mountain.
When to hike Rainbow Mountain
The best time to hike Rainbow Mountain is during Peru’s dry season from May through early October, when you have the best chance of clear skies. This is actually pretty important for enjoying Rainbow Mountain at its most colorful—the colors look MUCH more vibrant under direct sunlight, as opposed to under overcast skies.
Peru’s rainy season typically runs from mid-October through April. While there definitely will be less visitors during this timeframe, you’ll also have the best chance for getting rained on and encountering some SERIOUS mud on the trail. So if you do visit during these months, I’d suggest bringing along a rainjacket (here’s the one I use and here’s the one my husband uses); waterproof hiking boots (his and hers), and a sense of adventure!
From December through February, you have a chance of encountering snow at the summit. While Rainbow Mountain can look beautiful with a light dusting of powder, you obviously don’t want to visit when snow is completely covering the summit!
Tips for the Rainbow Mountain Hike
Give yourself a few days to acclimate
Not to beat a dead horse, but the Rainbow Mountain hike is at a CHALLENGING altitude, up to over 16,300 feet in elevation (which isn’t that far off from the altitude of Everest Base Camp!). So, it’s important that you acclimate to higher elevations prior to tackling this hike.
Accordingly, be sure to include a day or two in Cusco, which sits at an impressive 11,152 feet above sea level, into your Peru itinerary before tackling the Rainbow Mountain hike. Not only will you have a better chance of completing the hike itself, but, more importantly, of not experiencing a gnarly case of altitude sickness, which can cause anything from uncomfortable symptoms, like headaches and mild nausea, to even death, in extreme circumstances.
Time your visit
Justin and I have traveled a LOT of places and Rainbow Mountain has some of the worst crowds I’ve experienced anywhere.
We visited Rainbow Mountain on a cheap tour that reached the summit when all the other cheap tours did (from around 10 AM to 12 PM) and it was absolute pandemonium, with seemingly thousands of people milling about, cutting each other in line, even pushing one another. To be honest, it was so crowded and chaotic that we didn’t really enjoy our experience that much there.
Accordingly, if you really care about photos, videos, or enjoying your experience here, I’d recommend figuring out a way to visit when the crowds aren’t present—either super early (ideally, arriving at the trailhead around 6 AM or so) or later in the afternoon (3 PM or after). Trust me, you’ll have a MUCH more enjoyable experience!
Consider hiking a Rainbow Mountain alternative
Don’t get me wrong, Rainbow Mountain is really pretty, but did you know there are actually a handful of alternatives that are WAY less crowded?
For example, Palcoyo is home to a rainbow mountain that looks VERY similar to the more famous one, but requires a shorter trail, with way less elevation gain, about 2,000 feet lower altitude, and WAY less crowds. Alternatively, Pallay Punchu is an even more under-the-radar option, with jagged peaks striated with vibrant colors, like maroon, pink, and green.
There are conveniently several tours that depart from Cusco to these more lowkey alternatives, like this small group option to Palcoyo or this private tour to Pallay Punchu.
What to pack for the Rainbow Mountain hike
Other than the altitude, Rainbow Mountain isn’t particularly a hard hike.
Still, there are some things that you can bring along that will make your experience on this trek safer and much more pleasant:
- Trekking poles: Parts of the hike are STEEP and trekking poles can help propel you up the mountain at high elevations.
- Reusable water bottle: Bring LOTS of water—you’ll need it at this high of altitude!
- Sunscreen, sunglasses, and a hat: There’s no shade along the trail whatsoever, so come prepared with sun protection.
- Diamox or ibuprofen: If you’ve struggled with altitude before, you might want to talk to your doctor about getting Diamox, which helps prevent or lessen the symptoms of altitude sickness. Otherwise, I’d suggest at least bringing along ibuprofen or acetaminophen to manage any headaches you might experience from the altitude along the trail.
- Warm layers: Because of the high elevation here, be prepared for it to be chilly—bring along a puffer jacket and beanie to help stay nice and toasty.
- Peruvian soles: Enough for the entrance fee, Red Valley add-on (if you want to tackle it), and a bit extra for bathroom stops and snacks while you’re on the trail
I hope you enjoy the Rainbow Mountain hike—it’s BEAUTIFUL and, if you time your experience correctly, can be an absolutely epic experience during your trip to Peru. Do you have any questions about this trek? Let me know in the comments below.
