Chivay is a small town in the Peruvian Andes. It's a very pleasant place to stay with good markets but it has some very particular features.
The downside is getting there. it involves a long journey on dirt roads and a pass of almost 5,000m. However two features make this seem insignificant - and the scenery of the trip is of course more memorable than the discomfort. The two wonderful features are first the hot springs where it makes a marvellous experience to lie in water as hot as you want it and look up to the mountains.
The other wonderful feature is its proximity to the Colca Canyon, re-established by recent Polish surveys as the world's deepest. This not only provides spectacular instances of pre-Inca terraces and Inca rock tombs but it's probably one of the world's best places for seeing condors at very short range.
Any visit to Peru would be incomplete without this. [edit text][editors]
