Salineras de Maras

A complex of approximately 3,000 small salt-evaporation ponds cut into a steep hillside above the Sacred Valley, fed by a single saline spring and worked by local families using methods continuous since pre-Inca times. The terrace of pools steps down the hillside in irregular geometric patterns. Afternoon light turns the pools tones of white, pink, and ochre depending on water level and salt concentration at the time of the visit.