3. JW Marriott Cuzco
JW Marriott
Cuzco, Peru
5 nights Award Redemption
Suite Upgrade
The
JW Marriott Cuzco is an absolutely beautiful, new hotel open less than a year. It is a preserved and converted monastery, with preserved stone and beams, done in an architecturally masterful way. It is in a very central location in Cusco with just a few minutes walk to the Plaza de Armas, and near the entertaining museums and restaurants of the area. It was only about a 10 minute walk to the bus service we used to go to Pisac. It is a Marriott Category 6 hotel (or at least was when we booked in January 2013) and with Marriott's Buy Four Nights, Get a Fifth Free, was an excellent value at 30,000 points per night, or 120,000 Marriott points total.
Entryway into the hotel. The lobby and atrium is open air, which is pretty neat.
Dining area and sitting lounge.
When we arrived, Marriott Platinum Premier (
not Platinum Plus 
) status was recognized with a welcome letter. The letter indicated we had full morning breakfast buffet for three, free wi-fi, and free platinum check-in amenity. Additionally, the letter indicated Platinums were entitled to a space available suite upgrade. We checked in about 9AM, and the high altitude combined with our weariness from red-eye travel, we opted for the bottle of water and fruit to be delivered to our room as the platinum check-in amenity.
I was delighted when the very friendly and professional front-desk agent let me know that they were going to upgrade us to a suite, however it wouldn't be ready for 20 minutes while housekeeping put the loving finishing touches on our room. It was great the hotel would accommodate such a very early check-in.
In the interim, they sat us down in the lounge next to the lobby, and told us to help ourselves to breakfast buffet while we waited! We did not hesitate to gobble down some delicious bacon and cheese, particularly me since I slept through dinner and breakfast on our red-eye flight from Miami to Lima.
After twenty minutes we were escorted to our room, #82 in the basement! Usually when I think basement, I think utility closet.
However, in this case basement meant beautiful room, with exposed stone galore, both inside the room and outside through the almost floor to ceiling windows of another stone wall. There are actually dozens of rooms on this floor, floor "- 2" on the elevator. A view, we didn't have, but absolute quiet and comfort, and amazing space were there. There were two rooms, two 32"+ flat screen TVs, beautiful artwork, great lighting set-ups, and a beautiful "rain" shower and giant tub in the marble bathroom. This was like the guest quarters of an Incan palace! We noticed a small refridgerator that had some bottled water, beer, and Gatorade in it. I inquired, and was told that all this was also free for Platinums. They even had
Apple Ice gatorade, that was totally clear. That was a flavor I have never heard of, but would come in handy for our trip to Macchu Picchu later in the week.
The breakfast buffet, free for Platinums, was world class. Delicious local meats, both Peruvian and Western, an egg station, a dozen different types of bread, freshly squeezed juices (my favorite was the strawberry-apple), potatoes, cheeses, really the whole lot. The pictures below don't do justice the awesomeness of this breakfast. The service was top notch, with the professional servers making sure our coffee (I had espresso), tea, juice, water, etc. were full. On request to the waiter to fill up our empty water bottles with water for the days activities, he was more than happy to serve us. We felt so at home and comfortable here. The photos don't do this breakfast spread justice...
Now that is what I call a breakfast plate. Peruvian beef in kebab sauce, Chicken in white cream sauce, spicacy Peruvian Huacho Sausage, fresh onions and herbs, sliced ham and local cheese, french bread, sourdough, salted tomatoes, espresso, and fresh squeezed strawberry apple choice blend.
At the end of the meal, I was asked to sign a receipt, which indicated what the price would have been had I paid out of pocket for this lavish breakfast for two, including tip. It would have come to the equivalent of $45 total, so across 5 nights a savings of $225.
This hotel is to be recommended for the location, beauty, customer experience, comfort, and Incan charm. Not a bad place to lay your head at night in between exploring Cusco and the Sacred Valley!