Epicura

In any case, it seems that 2 people really liked Tambo .

And please be aware that there are mosquitos at MP! Lots of them .

bhrubin

I’m also sorry to say that we didn’t experience a single mosquito while at Machu Picchu in early May 2012. Nor did we experience a single mosquito on our M/V Aria cruise on the Amazon for a week afterward. So while everyone should know that there is always a risk of mosquitos at Machu Picchu, they aren’t always an issue.

We were extremely lucky as we had cool foggy weather for our hike up Huayna Picchu (the famous mountain behind Machu Picchu in all the photos) which cleared completely after about 20-30 min after our ascent. Giving me one of my favorite shots ever:



The rest of our 3 days were completely clear except for the typical morning fog:



But the views otherwise are truly incredible:

Dzigavertov

Any thoughts on staying at this hotel with two younger children? I'm particularly interested in thoughts on transporting two kids (car seats, safety, etc), whether to take a taxi or some other method, and if there are things on the hotel premises or in Urubamba that you think would be enjoyable for children and relaxing. Since we won't be doing much hiking, it does limit some of the options that folks seem to enjoy in this part of Peru.

I didn't see a lot of details on meals. Can anyone tell me what meals cost at the hotel, and any specifics on pricing for children? We will be staying there for 5 nights in mid May, and on day 4 probably going to MP with the family.

Did you travel to and from MP on the train from Urubamba, or from Ollantaytambo, or some other method? Recommendations?

l380

When I was there over the last Christmas, there were lots of families with children. Depending on your children's age, there are many outdoor activities such as biking, zip line, rock climbing, horse back riding. So there should be something to keep your kids entertained.

Over Christmas, the hotel had a special menu so it will not applicable to your case. However if you are on a budget, you can easily walk to town (5 mins away) and eat at the local restaurants. Entrees at those restaurants cost about 15 - 20 soles.

Train to MP

• Urubamba station only provides the upscale train called Sacred valley from Peru Rail
• Ollantaytambo station have many train options. From Peru Rail, the train called Expedition is the cheapest (includes 1 drink + 1 cookie) , Vistadome is the mid-scale one (includes 1 drink + 1 hot sandwich + entertainment) and Hiram Bingham (includes 3 course meal, unlimited booze + entertainment) is the most luxurious train. Inca Rail is also another option available at Ollantaytambo.

porkie

The hotel is quite far away from Cusco airport (over 1.5h drive if I recall correctly), hotel can provide transportation for $58 one way. You can book local taxi taxidatum.com (they are very reliable, I have used them to transfer from the hotel to Ollantaytambo) for roughly half the price, though if your flight is early in the morning they won't be able to cover it (which was my case).

If I recall correctly most mains in the only restaurant in the hotel were between 60-80 soles, however the food was really very good quality (they grow almost everything organic in their own gardens) and definitely worth the price. I didn't try any local restaurants in Urubamba, keep in mind its a rural town with no tourist activites or objects except for Tambo del Inka so it will be quite hard for you to navigate around it if you don't know Spanish language.

The train price from Urubamba is roughly the same as from Ollanta so I used the one early morning from the hotel station (it's actually on the hotel territory). However the latest return train to Urubamba departs quite early (16:00 or so), I wanted to spend more time at the site so I was left with a return train to Ollanta, where I booked taxi from taxidatum for $20 back to the hotel (it was very late and dark, their driver was waiting at the station holding a sign with my name). This is IMO the best option. Go for Vistadome as it's more comfortable than Expedition and the difference in price is very small.

As for the activities in the hotel, I have booked driver for a day from the hotel for a full Sacred Valley tour for around $150, they can also provide a guide but then the price skyrockets to $450 or so. Local English speaking guides were readily available at all the sites for a fraction of that price.

Fizzer

FYI Taxidatum does tours too for $65 for up to 4 people in one car. The driver may have limited English but in our experience had enough to explain where we were going and what we were seeing, with any good guide book filling in the rest if you want more detail. When we left TDI for Cusco we took the tour to Moray, Chincheros and Maras and were dropped off at the Palacio del Inka at the end. .We had total control of the time and how long we spent in each place. In Chincheros we toured one of the weaving establishments and when my wife couldn't find the sweater she wanted he took us to several others and helped with the negotiations as well. Excellent value and service IME.

Plumber

Not sure what you mean by 'younger' children?
I stayed there when my two youngest were 6 and 10. (maybe older than your kids are??).. Of course restaurants at the hotel are more expensive, but there are several places in town to eat. I dont remember whether or not there was a kids menu. There are a few things to do at the hotel- the kids loved going by the river behind the hotel and also to the pool. Also, we spent a fair amount of time walking around the town. I am sure there are a couple of good day trips form the Hotel if you want to hire a driver.

We took a taxi to Ollantaytambo in the afternoon and took and afternoon train to Aguas Calientes. We stayed there 2 nights and that allowed is to be among the first people at MP in the morning. MP is awesome when it is devoid of people!

Enjoy!

Dzigavertov

What a wonderful community of travelers--this has been extremely helpful feedback. Interestingly, from what I'm reading, the government there changed the MP ticketing rules so that you have to commit to either an 8AM-12PM time slot, or a four hour time slot after that. So it seems like if we take the train in, we would be locked into the afternoon slot based on what time we arrive. I did book a second hotel for the night before just in case (though they haven't confirmed they'd take the extra 2 children) we thought it would be better to go in the morning slot, meaning we'd arrive the night before into Aguas Calientes. Not sure which way to go. They also require you to go in groups, so you are stuck with following a tour guide.

I hadn't heard of taxidatum.com, thanks for that tip. So considering safety is a concern with our kids, you would recommend going that route for all our travels and Sacred Valley/Cusco area tours, as opposed to going through the hotel? I.e. are we essentially getting the same level of service without the extra cost the hotel charges for these kinds of services? I am seeing Cusco to Ollantaytambo for $37, and the hotel concierge said: "The cost is $50.00 USD up to 3 people and $80.00 USD up to 6 people per way and it could be charged to your room bill." So I don't know if that means we're $80 or somewhere in between, I'll have to confirm. I've been told drivers can be hit or miss in terms of safety; but I don't know if there's a way to land a safer driver.

I traveled around SA in college when my Spanish were pretty good, but now it's gonna need some practice.

Dzigavertov

Very helpful, thank you. With younger kids, having some flexibility really helps as you never know how they'll handle the day. We are very interested in textiles and weaving if you remember where that was?

Dzigavertov

They do have a kids menu, but nothing vegetarian on it, so we'll have to work with the chef. I hear there are potatoes aplenty in Peru! :-D They will be 4 1/2 and almost 7 when we go, so a bit younger than yours. I'll bet it was really memorable for your children. Mine are really looking forward to the pool, and now the river after I told them what you wrote. I hear there's an animal sanctuary somewhere in the area, and we'll want to visit that.

RafKa

Chances of finding a taxi (or even hotel car) with a car seat are close to zero, so I'd avise you to bring your own. The concierge are responsive and you could e-mail them in advance seeing if they can arrange something. An alternative would be to take the train from Cusco as the hotel has its own train station. Same for MP (although it's a slower ride than leaving from Ollantaytambo).

Dzigavertov

I hear ya. I think I've found some interesting solutions that would allow a younger child to use an adult seat belt that doesn't require a huge car seat to lug around. Maybe not as safe as a Britax booster seat, but definitely a big improvement from an ill fitting seat belt.

Fizzer

The textiles were in Chinchero if I recall correctly. Depending upon the age of your kids there is also a great pottery right in Urubamba, well worth a visit. Seminario is it's name and it is walkable from the resort. Ollantaytambo is also worth half a day at least IMO.

Dzigavertov

Regarding taxis, can I use taxidatum.com to get a cab from Machu Picchu (Aguas Calientes) back to the hotel? How long would the ride be?

Thunderroad

You've already gotten some great advice here. I'll just add:

1. Particularly but not only because you have kids with you, make sure you look into altitude sickness prevention and remedies. Tambo (7,500 feet???) and MP(8,500 feet???) are not as high as some other spots in the Sacred Valley, but precautions are still in order. The most common symptom of altitude sickness is just a headache, but that can be a real drag. The majority of visitors don't get it at all, but it does occur for a non-trivial minority.
2. While it's a great city well worth visiting, Cusco (11,500 feet???) is one of the higher spots in the Sacred Valley. Perhaps you're already planning on going straight to Tambo as soon as you get off the plane in Cusco. But if not, I'd urge you to do so. You have a greater chance of getting altitude sickness if you stay in Cusco right off the plane - or even later in the trip, though the chances go down since by then your bodies will have adjusted. And if you do stay there later in the trip, don't be surprised if you're somewhat short of breath walking up and down hills.
3. While nothing really fancy, the town just across the road from Tambo is pleasant enough with some very good restaurants (with English language menus) that seem to be quite hygienic. I'd say that even without Spanish, visitors can get by there. But if your Spanish is even very basic (as mine and my wife's is), you'll be fine.
4. Speaking of that town, on our first day there we stumbled on a little fiesta going on and it was a lot of fun. So feel free to explore it a little. It's certainly safe to wander around in during the day and I suspect at night (though some of the streets do seem kind of dark and empty then). Also, up the main road to the left as you exit the hotel, there's a largish park that was quite a scene of soccer, volleyball and general family fun on a Saturday that we visited. Again, maybe we just got lucky with the timing, but I thought I'd mention it.

Have a great trip!