Hotels here do not have air-conditioning because it a colder area. If your room gets hot, you can open a window to cool off. Hotels here do not have coffee in the room. All rooms have a desck
1) Cabo de Hornos (4-star)
The Cabo de Hornos is located right on the Plaza de Armas. It has 110 rooms, and it will have 80 more by the end of 2024.
Each room has 1 king or 2 queen beds. There are 3 triple rooms with 3 queen beds, which can be made into a quad with an extra twin bed (8th floor). There are interconnecting rooms that are next to each other and then an outer door closes.
Rooms have a desk, telephone, TV, hairdryer, and safe. There is no mini-fridge but you can ask for one. There is no kleenex or coffee in the rooms. Get a room on an upper floor overlooking the plaza.
There is a small gym on the 8th floor with a few cardio machines and some weights in the closet.
There is a big open dining room and bar. There are chairs and tables on the side that you can use, and couches by the front the windows.
Breakfast is a buffet. It looks big, but isn’t very interesting. You can get eggs to order. Lattes cost extra.
2) Dreams Hotel (4-star)
The Dreams Hotel is a modern glass building right on the waterfront. The highlights are the enormous fitness center and the beautiful indoor infinity swimming pool plus jacuzzi overlooking the water. On the flip side, there are no social areas for lounging, and there is a casino.
There are 88 rooms on 8 floors. More rooms on the 11th floor will be open by the end of 2024. Rooms are big, lovely, and with great amenities (huge TV). They face the water or the city with either 1 king bed or 2 twin beds. You can also add a bed for a triple room. All rooms have a tub and shower. The standard rooms do not come with robes, but you can request them. Some rooms are connecting for families.
The restaurant is on the main floor facing the water. Breakfast is a buffet. They also serve lunch and dinner.
There is an ATM in the lobby and a coffee shop that is separate from the hotel. An art gallery is on the second floor.
3) La Yegua Loca (4-star)
Yegua Loca is a beautiful boutique hotel built in 1929 in old English style. They pride themselves on personalized service. Pronounced “jegwa”. If you like adorable and quaint with personalized service, you will love this!
There are 15 rooms total, 8 are in the original building and 7 are in a new part. It has WiFi throughout.
It has an amazing restaurant, so even if you don’t stay here, stop by for dinner on your way to the Mirador (viewpoint over the city). Breakfast is ordered off a menu. They also serve lunch and dinner. You should make a reservation for dinner as it can fill up.
Each room has a different theme based on a job-oriented theme from old times (and name, no numbers). They come in 3 different sizes, some are city view and some are ocean view (panoramic). The ones facing the water have a private balcony (separate but not private). There are 8 rooms in the original building and 7 in the new building. Rooms have 1 king or 2 twin beds. There are 3 rooms that can be triples. There are no TV’s in the room, but there are handmade slippers.
It is a few blocks up hill, and there are stairs in the hotel. There is no elevator but a dumbwaiter for luggage. The last bit of road is rough cobblestones. Coming back from dinner in the dark requires careful footing.
The Castillo Rojo is in the Bellavista neighborhood, and all the others are in the Lastarria area.
In general, hotels in Chile have:
All hotels have a/c, telephone, TV, hairdryer, free Wifi, safe, minibar, laundry service extra.
Some will have a gym, pool, and massages.
All hotels can be loud (especially on weekends), no washcloths, and dim lights in the bathroom.
1) Castillo Rojo (4-star)
This is a historic 100-year-old boutique hotel in the Bellavista neighborhood (slightly north of the other hotels) with antiques and lovely architecture.
It has 20 rooms from fairly small to spacious suites. The lounge on the second floor offers coffee and tea 24 hours, and wine hour 5-6pm. Breakfast has a small buffet of fresh fruits, yogurt, cereals, breads, muffins, and sandwiches. Eggs are made order as are espresso drinks.
Just 1 block down is the Patio Bellavista, which is an outdoor square with dozens of restaurants, shops, bars, ice cream, and coffee shops. This spot is worth a visit no matter where you are staying — so cute and fun!
The other great thing about this neighborhood is its proximity to San Cristobal Hill. You can take a funicular or cable car up and down, or it is an easy hike to the top if you want to stretch your legs after a long flight. It has amazing views of the city and the mountains beyond, and the Sanctuary at the top has a lovely white statue of the Virgin Mary.
2) Cumbres Lastarria (4-star)
Cumbres Lastarria has 70 rooms on 8 floors. The main floor has a large lounge area with 24-hour espresso machines. There is also a large outdoor patio and a wine store area that is a hotel sitting area.
Rooms have 1 king bed, 2 twin beds, or triple. They have a large shower, coffee, and slippers (no robe).
The restaurant is on the top floor, serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Breakfast is a buffet. It is a large restaurant with extensive windows and open kitchen but only 2 tables outside.
The pool is also on the roof top, and there is a fitness center.
3) Ismael Hotel (3.5-star)
The Ismael Hotel is next to the Parque Forestal (Forest Park) on the north end of Lastarria. It has 9 floor with a deck and pool on the rooftop. It has a hip, modern feel.
There are 44 rooms, all the same but either city view or garden view. They have desk, balcony, microwave, coffee, and 1 robe. Rooms have either a king bed or 2 twin beds — no triples. There is 1 suite with a large bathtub and 2 balconies.
The restaurant serves a breakfast buffet including eggs. There is also room service with a simple menu.
4) Magnolia Hotel (4-star)
The Magnolia Hotel is a historic building built in 1929 (check out the original floors and walls). It is located on the west side of Santa Lucia Hill, so it is a 2-block walk to the Lastarria restaurants, but it is in a quieter neighborhood.
There are 40 rooms — Superior, Deluxe (3 with Balcony), Junior Suites (3), Magnolia Signature Suite (1). The first 3 floors are the historic building (stone walls), and the top 4 floors are new (wooden walls). It is worth looking at the other floors than where you are staying to see the architecture.
All rooms have tea kettle, coffee, robes, and slippers. The beds are all super-king or 2 twin. No triple rooms, but a bed can be added.
On the first floor is a large lounge area, but it is made into smaller, cozy nooks. There is a library, which is take-one-leave-one (organized by color). There is a free open bar in the library (limited), a full bar on the main level, and a beautiful rooftop bar.
There is a massage room and small fitness room.
The restaurant services breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Breakfast is a buffet. The rooftop bar serves a full menu. When the hotel is near capacity, the rooftop bar is closed to the public.
5) Singular Santiago (5-star)
The Singular Hotel has 62 rooms with a comfortable, sophisticated feel. There are 4 types of rooms: Lastarria, Classic, Singular (some with balcony), and Suite.
All rooms have the same amenities, so they mostly differ by size, location, and balcony. Classic and Singular rooms can have king or twin beds, and they can get a rollaway bed for a child. Families can get 2 connecting rooms.
All rooms have a desk or table, comfortable chairs, makeup mirror, and washcloths. They also have a coffee station, complimentary water and soda, umbrellas, robes, and slippers.
There is a spa with a dry sauna, steam room, locker rooms, massages, and jacuzzi for couples. If you arrive early, you can use the locker rooms and shower.
The gym is open 24 hours. It has the largest gym of these hotels.
There is a dining room on the ground floor for breakfast. It is also open for lunch and dinner during high season.
The rooftop bar serves lunch and dinner. Guests have priority at the rooftop bar. The outdoor pool is also found on the rooftop.
Finally, the big day at Machu Picchu! Some people chose to hike Huayna Picchu first (optional). Some people spent the next night at the Sanctuary Lodge, which is located right outside Machu Picchu. Another option is to hike Machu Picchu Mountain.
Today included a fun visit to a family coffee farm! The normal trail under repair so hike on road after waterfall ridge. The typical trail follows left side of the river cutting across the hill slide through the jungle.
12:30 car to trail to lodge (another .5 miles along an Inca trail)
Lunch at 2pm at the lodge (or sometimes outside at the end of the trail)
Dinner at 7 PM
From the lodge, we hiked down to river and then up the other side to the trail. We first hiked on a dirt road with a gentle downhill. We came across a woman who was weaving and selling her handmade products, which was a fun stop.
At 4 miles 10:50am, we stopped at a snack bar along the road (flush toilets extremely clean and with amazing flowers).
I started with a long sleeve shirt, then to short sleeves, then back to long again with rain jacket. I actually wished I had gloves and one more layer….
Fun sights today were the Granadilla fruits – Like passion fruit and grows as a vine. There were also plentiful avocados as big as I have ever seen.
Coffee experience at family farm
Coffee liqueur
Roast coffee over fire
Grind in grinder
Pour in pots to drip
Drink, add water and liqueur
Buy coffee beans and liqueur
Lukma Lodge
All night electricity
Lunch
Peruvian salad of carrots, fava beans, big corn, tomatoes, onions, cheese
Traditional Sliced beef with tomatoes onions carrots rice and fries
We arrived at the lodge at 12:45pm. The cooks at the lodge made our BBQ lunch in hot rocks buried in the ground. 45 minutes later, they dug it up and lunch was served!
Breakfast at 6 AM / Gather for departure at 7:00-7:15 AM.
The hike starts up the same road from the lodge as yesterday’s hike, but then heads to the right towards Salkantay instead of left. There is a mini-market not far from the lodge. It is very rocky — like a jeep road. There may be pack horses and mules passing by.
Long sleeve shirt and rain jacket and gloves, some people had hats and vests.
The first mile is gentle, the next .5 mile steeper, and next mile gentle again. At 2 miles, there’s a beautiful meadow with streams for a resting spot. Next 1 mile up the hill with switchbacks near beautiful stream.
Amazing views at the pass!
On the other side, there are the remnants of a huge and amazing mud slide creating a bizarre moonscape. Some of the trail is very loose rock and dirt. Some areas have beautiful hillsides of short grass and flowers and rocks with lichen in line last half a mile through the mudslide area which is wider and less steep. At 1pm, the fog moved in.
It was much more windy on this side. We saw a Chinchilla and 2 pairs of condors.
Our last day of hiking! We had a great stop at a viewpoint where we could see Machu Picchu in the distance. Another stop at the Yactapat Ruins, which is fascinating. The end of the hike is at the train station near the hydroelectric plant. A nice train ride to Aguas Calientes and a short walk to our lovely hotel.
We started out with long sleeve shirts but switched to short sleeves after 20 minutes. They day ended up being very hot and humid.
The trail is a single track path along the right side of the valley. It alternates between farm and open fields and thick jungle.
We saw no other hikers for the whole trek, but today, there were lots of groups finishing up the trek.
3.5 miles up, 1 mile flat, 3.5 miles down
2000 feet up, 3000 ft down
Inca trail up, local trail down zigzag
Llaqtapata Rest Area
A nice rest area with an amazing view of Machu Picchu and snowy mountain peaks. There is a snack bar and seats for resting.
Yactapat Ruins
Hike another 10 minutes down a steep, slippery trail to the ruins. You see Machu Picchu from here!
Lunch:
Hike another 20 minutes to the lodge for lunch at 11am.
Salad of avocados, carrots, peas, green onions, olive
Fried trout
Potatoes, rice, lentils
Warm peach jello
From here, it is another 15 minutes to the river. Then you cross the river on a bouncy wood, cable, and rebar bridge. It is another 30-40 minutes hiking to the train on a dirt road along the river.
Tourist Car on a Local Train:
First, you go through passport control (write down name passport number, nationality, age) then it is another 5 minute walk to train station.
When we got to the train station there was a train car that was off the rains. A group of train workers were able to use levers to get it back on track — an amazing feat.
There are a few stores and restaurants at the train station — including giant beers at the restaurant upstairs overlooking the train tracks.
We arrived at the train station 2:05pm, boarded at 2:30pm, departed at 2:50pm, and arrived in Aguas Calientes at 3:55pm. It is a very rocky train ride, but much better than walking the 6 miles along the track.
Aguas Calientes
There are no cars in Aguas Calientes, so porters carry the bags to the hotel, which is a 10 minute walk. Stores are generally open 10 AM to 9 PM.
Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel
Bathroom showers have body soap, shampoo, conditioner
Bathrooms have filtered water in a picture, hand soap, body lotion, towels
Toilet paper goes in trashcan, no Kleenex
Yoga mats
Hair dryers on request
There are showers at the spa if you need to shower after you check out.
A great option is to spend an extra night here and go back to Machu Picchu or enjoy one of the tours offered by the hotel.
