Upscale Peru

(This article appeared in abbreviated form in the August 2008

issue of Elegant Island Living Magazine.)

Like most couples, my wife and I agree on some things and differ on others.  We both love to travel, but the sticking points arise when we discuss destinations.  I like South America; she prefers Europe.  Whenever I bring up that romantic untouristed fishing village on Mexico’s Pacific Coast, she forgets the beautiful harbor and reminds me of the pigs roaming freely in the dirt streets.   Mentioning the iridescent green and blue hummingbirds in the highlands of north Ecuador reminds her that we slept in a thatched roof house with intermittent electricity and a bathroom the size of a broom closet. 

So, a few months ago when I suggested a trip to Peru, she wasn’t exactly excited about the idea.  “I’ll go,” she challenged me, “but only on the condition that we stay in decent places, and eat decent food.”  That’s wifespeak for, “Screw this one up and you’ll suffer the consequences.”  We settled on a few days in Cusco and Machu Picchu, preceded by a day or so in Lima.

I’ve been to Peru a number of times, but it had been nearly three decades since my previous visit to Machu Picchu.  I had vague memories of a hoard of scruffy backpackers, a rickety train ride through adobe-walled villages, and eating potatoes and roast cuy (guinea pig).  The first thing I did was call Abercrombie & Kent, the best company I know for upscale travel.  They specialize in clients who demand the finest, which in this case aptly described my wife. 

Delta flies non-stop from Atlanta to Lima’s modern Jorge Chávez Airport, and within an hour of landing we were in a suite with a private in-room sauna in the Miraflores Park Hotel.   It perches on the top of a cliff overlooking the beach in a residential neighborhood that is home to many of Lima’s diplomats and wealthy families.  An infinity pool and deck on the top floor provides a wonderful view of Pacific sunsets on those rare cloudless days in this capital city.  As with the nearby J. W. Marriott, Lima’s other premier hotel, the service was impeccable. 

The next morning we flew to Cusco, once the center of the fabled Inca empire.  On my previous visit years earlier there was only one daily round-trip flight.  The plane’s arrival in Cusco was heralded by a siren which was an indication for an airport employee to go out and shoo the llamas off the runway.  Now multiple flights serve the city bringing scores of visitors to Machu Picchu, the Sacred Valley and points beyond. 

We stayed at the Monasterio Hotel.  As the name suggests, the complex was a former monastery dating from 1592 and converted to ultra-luxury lodging under the Orient Express Hotel group.  It was named the “Best Hotel in South America” by Condé Nast Traveler in 2007, a title richly deserved.  Our check-in site was the former chapel with its ornate gilded altar.   We feasted on alpaca steak and Peruvian wine (both remarkably delicious) in its restaurant beside the cloistered courtyard.

But the most amazing change was Cusco itself.  I recalled a small down-at-the-heels city with dirty streets, beggars and souvenir vendors crowding the central Plaza de Armas.  It’s now clean, almost eerily so when compared to other Andean cities.  The city’s three main plazas invite leisurely strolls in the rarified atmosphere.  (Cusco is more than 11,000 feet above sea level.)  There are world-class restaurants serving everything from traditional fare to sushi and tapas.  Crime against tourists is rare. 

Whereas there was only one daily train to Machu Picchu on my previous visit, there are now more than a dozen, ranging from the spartan “backpacker trains” to the luxury Hiram Bingham Train.  Also owned by the Orient Express Company, the latter provides the ultimate in comfort and service.  Passengers check in with a champagne reception at a private station near Cusco.  The wood, brass and leather furnishings of the cars lend a European air to the gourmet meals served during the three and one-half hour trip each way.  It’s expensive, but as one guest told me on returning, “It was worth every penny.” 

The end of the line for the tourist trains to Machu Picchu is the formerly sleepy village of Aguas Calientes situated on the river’s edge at the base of the Urubamba Gorge.  Named for the volcanic hot springs that are found there, it offers a wide variety of lodging ranging from the most basic to extreme top end.  Machu Picchu itself occupies a ridge more than a thousand feet above, and is accessed via bus service that zigzags its way up the steep mountain face.  

For visitors who want to stay overnight at or near Machu Picchu, there are two choices.  In Aguas Calientes, the best option is the exquisite Inkaterra Hotel.   A total of 85 rooms, suites and casitas are spread over a lush twelve-acre tract hugging the bank of the Urubamba amongst lush greenery, bright orchids and red-tipped bromeliads.  We opted to spend the night adjacent to the ruins at the Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge, the only hotel on the top of the mountain.   Despite the fact that the guidebook describes it as being “criminally overpriced,” its 31 rooms are usually fully booked months in advance.   Hundreds of orchids grow near its garden pathways, and the hotel’s terrace overlooks Machu Picchu and the river gorge.   Most importantly, once the day-trippers return to Cusco, hotel guests have the mountaintop citadel to themselves to watch the setting sun sink below the rugged Andean horizon.    

We’ve been home a few weeks now.  I think my wife enjoyed it—she said she did, but I wasn’t completely sure.  Lately though, the results have been trickling in from her friends.  I’m hearing, “Beth said you two really had a great time in Peru,” and similar comments.  So maybe I did it right this time.  Now, my next goal will be figuring out some way to convince her to go piranha fishing in the headwaters of the Amazon….

Sidebar:

If You Go….

Getting There:  Numerous airlines serve Lima and other major cities in Peru.  If you live in the southeast, Delta Airlines (www.delta.com) has non-stop service between Atlanta and Lima.  The flight takes about 6½ hours.

When to Go:  Visitors to Cusco and Machu Picchu keep hotels booked year round, but the dry season between May and September attracts the highest number of visitors.

How to Go:  Unless you’re an experienced traveler, booking a tour (which can be modified to suit your tastes) is the easiest way to go.  I recommend Abercrombie & Kent (www.abercrombiekent.com).  They bill themselves as “the world’s premiere luxury travel company” and truly live up to their own high standards.  They’ve been in the business since 1962 and do a great job.  Other, less expensive, options are available.  Talk with your travel agent and let him or her help you decide.

Where to Stay:  The cost of hotel rooms in Peru ranges from under $10 to more than $1000 per night.  Unless you speak Spanish and are extremely comfortable in foreign environments, I recommend that you stick with one of the better known Peruvian or international chain hotels. 

Here are the websites of the hotels mentioned in this article:

Miraflores Park Hotel, Lima----www.mira-park.com 

J. W. Marriott Hotel, Lima----http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/limdt-jw-marriott-hotel-lima/

Monasterio Hotel, Cusco----www.monasterio.orient-express.com

Inkaterra Hotel, Aguas Calientes----www.inkaterra.com/en/machu-picchu

Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge, Machu Picchu----www.sanctuarylodge.net