Sep 21, 2014, 10:18 am
Last edit by: margarita girl
Peruvian Tax Information
Per local tax laws, an 18% tax must be paid by Peruvian citizens and foreigners staying more than 59 days in Peru. To be exempt from this 18% tax (IVA), a guest must present both a valid, original passport and a copy of an immigration card. Guests who are unable to present both documents will be required to pay the tax.
SPG INSTANT AWARDS
None.
01/04/24 - e-mail address: [email protected]
Per local tax laws, an 18% tax must be paid by Peruvian citizens and foreigners staying more than 59 days in Peru. To be exempt from this 18% tax (IVA), a guest must present both a valid, original passport and a copy of an immigration card. Guests who are unable to present both documents will be required to pay the tax.
SPG INSTANT AWARDS
None.
01/04/24 - e-mail address: [email protected]
Palacio del Inka, Cusco, Peru, Luxury Collection [Master Thread]
May 27, 2016, 6:56 am
#106
Suspended
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Barcelona
Posts: 3,317
Greetings from the Palacio. I'm here on a 2-night stay. As others have commented, it's a very nice property in a great downtown location. The staff I've interacted with have all been polite and helpful. I'm quite enjoying the décor of the public areas; the paintings in particular are quite nice. The overall feeling of this hotel is peaceful and it's clearly a higher-end kind of place.
That said, I'm not exactly having a Luxury Collection experience here. My feeling is that this property should be downgraded to a Westin or maybe a St. Regis.
- SPG status never acknowledged. This isn't a huge deal to me, but it's odd that as a Plat there was no comment from anyone.
- Checkin took 30 min. There was one perfunctory apology for the delay but no real explanation as to what was happening.
- Lunch at the (one) restaurant here was nice, but they started off by giving us dinner menus. Had to ask if there was a lunch menu available.
- Ordered a sandwich from the lunch menu but it took 45 min to arrive.
- Turndown service included some ice in the bucket. Nice touch. But there was hardly any ice. Makes me wonder if they're rationing ice here. My ice melted in less than an hour.
- Luggage brought to room (I wasn't here when it was brought up). It was left unceremoniously in the sitting area instead of placed on the luggage rack in the closet. Normally I couldn't care less, but this is supposedly a Luxury Collection property.
- The room is a pleasant 2-room suite. The décor is comfortable but I wouldn't say it's luxurious. The doors in the room for example are Home Depot $30 standard 6-panel molded. I would have expected something a little nicer for a Luxury Collection property.
Am I being nit-picky? Perhaps. But this is a Luxury Collection. I think if a property bills itself at the highest end of SPG, the customer has a right to expect a little more. Besides which, luxury goes far beyond the physical surroundings. IMHO "luxury" is really about how one is made to feel. And thus far, I'm not really feeling the luxury at this otherwise quite nice property.
That said, I'm not exactly having a Luxury Collection experience here. My feeling is that this property should be downgraded to a Westin or maybe a St. Regis.
- SPG status never acknowledged. This isn't a huge deal to me, but it's odd that as a Plat there was no comment from anyone.
- Checkin took 30 min. There was one perfunctory apology for the delay but no real explanation as to what was happening.
- Lunch at the (one) restaurant here was nice, but they started off by giving us dinner menus. Had to ask if there was a lunch menu available.
- Ordered a sandwich from the lunch menu but it took 45 min to arrive.
- Turndown service included some ice in the bucket. Nice touch. But there was hardly any ice. Makes me wonder if they're rationing ice here. My ice melted in less than an hour.
- Luggage brought to room (I wasn't here when it was brought up). It was left unceremoniously in the sitting area instead of placed on the luggage rack in the closet. Normally I couldn't care less, but this is supposedly a Luxury Collection property.
- The room is a pleasant 2-room suite. The décor is comfortable but I wouldn't say it's luxurious. The doors in the room for example are Home Depot $30 standard 6-panel molded. I would have expected something a little nicer for a Luxury Collection property.
Am I being nit-picky? Perhaps. But this is a Luxury Collection. I think if a property bills itself at the highest end of SPG, the customer has a right to expect a little more. Besides which, luxury goes far beyond the physical surroundings. IMHO "luxury" is really about how one is made to feel. And thus far, I'm not really feeling the luxury at this otherwise quite nice property.
Never really associated Luxury Collection properties with true luxury...always thought LC was just a half-baked name for properties that didn't fit into a Westin/Sheraton/St. Regis mold. It should really be called the Independent Collection, not the Luxury Collection.
But yeah, not sure giving you dinner menus by mistake, not giving you 'enough' ice, and 'unceremoniously' placing your luggage in your room are valid concerns. This isn't an Aman...
May 27, 2016, 10:37 am
#107
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: MCO, YEG
Posts: 1,182
Yes, you have a very different idea of where the luxury collection fits in the SPG hierarchy. It definitely is not above St. Regis. My only stay in a luxury collection hotel was the hotel elephant in Weimar Germany. There weren't even bellboys that I saw, never mind putting our suitcases in the right place in our rooms!
Remarkably charming little inn, but there was nothing luxurious about it.
Remarkably charming little inn, but there was nothing luxurious about it.
May 27, 2016, 7:20 pm
#108
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Body in Downtown YYZ, heart and mind elsewhere
Programs: UA 50K, refugee from AC E50K, Marriott Lifetime Plat
Posts: 5,132
Maybe my expectations are skewed, but I do think that if a property is "luxury" then it should be at least better than a Westin.
I would contrast Palacio del Inka with Tambo del Inka which is just down the road in Urubamba. Tambo, where I stayed 2 nights, was a fantastic experience which met and exceeded my expectations. Palacio is just a nice place to stay. I would go out of my way to stay at Tambo; I don't think I'd bother coming back to Palacio.
I also just returned from having dinner at the main restaurant at the J.W. Marriott (we all need to start getting used to Marriott after all ...). Now that was a luxurious experience. The physical aspects of the lobby / bar area of the J.W. were IMHO superior to Palacio. The service I received at the J.W. restaurant exceeded what I've had here at Palacio.
Palacio del Inka is a nice hotel. The staff are all very polite and pleasant enough to deal with. But I maintain, the experience I'm getting here is not "luxury" therefore I don't think this property belongs under the Luxury Collection banner.
I would contrast Palacio del Inka with Tambo del Inka which is just down the road in Urubamba. Tambo, where I stayed 2 nights, was a fantastic experience which met and exceeded my expectations. Palacio is just a nice place to stay. I would go out of my way to stay at Tambo; I don't think I'd bother coming back to Palacio.
I also just returned from having dinner at the main restaurant at the J.W. Marriott (we all need to start getting used to Marriott after all ...). Now that was a luxurious experience. The physical aspects of the lobby / bar area of the J.W. were IMHO superior to Palacio. The service I received at the J.W. restaurant exceeded what I've had here at Palacio.
Palacio del Inka is a nice hotel. The staff are all very polite and pleasant enough to deal with. But I maintain, the experience I'm getting here is not "luxury" therefore I don't think this property belongs under the Luxury Collection banner.
May 27, 2016, 8:51 pm
#109
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: MCO, YEG
Posts: 1,182
Yes, definitely a questionable marketing decision calling them luxury collection. I would guess that no more than a quarter of them would commonly be considered luxurious and don't know that you would find any that would be superior to St Regis in terms of "luxury"
May 28, 2016, 6:45 am
#110
Join Date: Jun 1999
Location: Rio de Janeiro, BRAZIL
Programs: AA 4MM EXP; Starwood Lifetime Plt
Posts: 2,498
Yes, definitely a questionable marketing decision calling them luxury collection. I would guess that no more than a quarter of them would commonly be considered luxurious and don't know that you would find any that would be superior to St Regis in terms of "luxury"
Jan 6, 2017, 12:43 pm
#111
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Pittsburgh
Programs: MR/SPG LT Titanium, AA LT PLT, UA SLV, Avis PreferredPlus
Posts: 31,010
Anyone know what the deal is here with award rooms? When available, they are called "Superior" rooms, which appear to have no other way to purchase. Not cash, not SET code, not AAA, not AARP, etc.
"Premium" rooms are available for C&P and all other payment forms, but not straight awards, and the C&P rates are the same as Superior C&P rates.
Reports are positive, so I'm not really concerned about being stuck in an "awards only" broom closet, but it seems odd. If a "regular" room is never for sale, award redemption seems to be at the whim of the property.
And for those searching - award "Superior" rooms are listed at the bottom - for a while I thought nothing was available.
"Premium" rooms are available for C&P and all other payment forms, but not straight awards, and the C&P rates are the same as Superior C&P rates.
Reports are positive, so I'm not really concerned about being stuck in an "awards only" broom closet, but it seems odd. If a "regular" room is never for sale, award redemption seems to be at the whim of the property.
And for those searching - award "Superior" rooms are listed at the bottom - for a while I thought nothing was available.
Jan 7, 2017, 7:04 am
#112
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 799
When I stayed there I got a suite. There are a few types, but the one I had was large with two outdoor terraces. There are also suites without the outdoor space.
I suspect if there is room you will see one of those.
EDIT: Sorry, the outdoor space was in Paracas. I had a suite here as well which was nice. One thing I noticed - no AC. the rooms can get terrible stuffy.
I suspect if there is room you will see one of those.
EDIT: Sorry, the outdoor space was in Paracas. I had a suite here as well which was nice. One thing I noticed - no AC. the rooms can get terrible stuffy.
Jan 7, 2017, 2:17 pm
#113
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Pittsburgh
Programs: MR/SPG LT Titanium, AA LT PLT, UA SLV, Avis PreferredPlus
Posts: 31,010
When were you there? June shows an average high of 67 and a low of 36, so A/C wasn't on my list of worries. No month averages a high above 69 in Cusco, so I can see why they don't bother with A/C.
Jan 29, 2017, 2:43 pm
#114
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Denver, Colorado
Programs: IHG Spire, Hilton Honors Gold, Marriott Titanium, Mileage Plus Gold
Posts: 1,736
I stayed at Palacio Del Inka and Tambo Del Inka last September. Please remember, that Palacio Del Inka is a 500+ year old building. The stone walls are original Inca and the building was built by the Spanish after they conquered the place.
Tambo Del Inka is a completely newly built resort from the ground up. You really need to take the historic building into consideration before nitpicking about things. I do see the lacks of air conditioning being a problem during the summer months, but we were there during the Southern Hemisphere winter so it wan't a problem for us.
Here is my full review on my stay including pictures: http://seat38a.com/palacio-del-inka-hotel-cusco-peru/
Cusco is a historic city and as far as I know all of the major hotel chains, are located inside old historic buildings so your probably not going to find anything different by hotel hunting.
Also, checkin takes LONG everywhere in Peru. This is due to the fact that at least 5 photocopies of your passport and immigration card in different combination needs to be taken so you don't get charged the room tax. The tax is significant and I would gladly take the longer checkin so I don't have to pay it.
The picture above is of the personalized letter and dessert waiting for us when we checked in. The letter welcomed us and explained the history of the building as well.
Jun 7, 2017, 6:06 pm
#115
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Pittsburgh
Programs: MR/SPG LT Titanium, AA LT PLT, UA SLV, Avis PreferredPlus
Posts: 31,010
I'm in the middle of a wonderful stay here.
Check-in took no longer than check-in at a typical property when I'm on vacation with my family. A bit longer than a 1-person business stay, but no more than a few minutes.
I didn't take a picture of my welcome gift, but it was substantial - meats, cheeses, fruits, etc - 2 plates and a basket.
We were semi-upgraded to a 2-bed suite connecting to our reserved standard King room. With 2 room reservations, and a request to have them connecting, I can see how dual upgrades would be challenging. 2 bed rooms with a living room in the middle works fine for us.
Breakfast for 2 each day as the amenity. MrsCP and one daughter went today - "largest breakfast buffet I've ever seen, plus a menu to order from, all included". Additional breakfasts are at a special US$23pp rate - we passed on that.
Great property, fabulous city. A steal at 40K points for 5 nights.
Check-in took no longer than check-in at a typical property when I'm on vacation with my family. A bit longer than a 1-person business stay, but no more than a few minutes.
I didn't take a picture of my welcome gift, but it was substantial - meats, cheeses, fruits, etc - 2 plates and a basket.
We were semi-upgraded to a 2-bed suite connecting to our reserved standard King room. With 2 room reservations, and a request to have them connecting, I can see how dual upgrades would be challenging. 2 bed rooms with a living room in the middle works fine for us.
Breakfast for 2 each day as the amenity. MrsCP and one daughter went today - "largest breakfast buffet I've ever seen, plus a menu to order from, all included". Additional breakfasts are at a special US$23pp rate - we passed on that.
Great property, fabulous city. A steal at 40K points for 5 nights.
Jun 8, 2017, 7:36 am
#116
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: EZE
Programs: UA Gold,Delta Gold Bonvoy Titanium Elite, HH Diamond , AA Platinum, EENational, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 1,548
I'm in the middle of a wonderful stay here.
Check-in took no longer than check-in at a typical property when I'm on vacation with my family. A bit longer than a 1-person business stay, but no more than a few minutes.
I didn't take a picture of my welcome gift, but it was substantial - meats, cheeses, fruits, etc - 2 plates and a basket.
We were semi-upgraded to a 2-bed suite connecting to our reserved standard King room. With 2 room reservations, and a request to have them connecting, I can see how dual upgrades would be challenging. 2 bed rooms with a living room in the middle works fine for us.
Breakfast for 2 each day as the amenity. MrsCP and one daughter went today - "largest breakfast buffet I've ever seen, plus a menu to order from, all included". Additional breakfasts are at a special US$23pp rate - we passed on that.
Great property, fabulous city. A steal at 40K points for 5 nights.
Check-in took no longer than check-in at a typical property when I'm on vacation with my family. A bit longer than a 1-person business stay, but no more than a few minutes.
I didn't take a picture of my welcome gift, but it was substantial - meats, cheeses, fruits, etc - 2 plates and a basket.
We were semi-upgraded to a 2-bed suite connecting to our reserved standard King room. With 2 room reservations, and a request to have them connecting, I can see how dual upgrades would be challenging. 2 bed rooms with a living room in the middle works fine for us.
Breakfast for 2 each day as the amenity. MrsCP and one daughter went today - "largest breakfast buffet I've ever seen, plus a menu to order from, all included". Additional breakfasts are at a special US$23pp rate - we passed on that.
Great property, fabulous city. A steal at 40K points for 5 nights.
Jun 8, 2017, 3:58 pm
#117
Join Date: Jul 2007
Programs: AA Executive Platinum, Marriott Titanium, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 283
I had a wonderful 4 day stay here in late January - used the Better Tomorrows promotion to get 40% off every second day stay, effectively giving me a 20% discount.
I am not exactly sure how it happened but when I inquired at the Palacio booth in the Cusco airport the girl working there arranged for a taxi and I was not charged for it. I did tip the taxi driver. I had not made any prior arrangements.
I am not exactly sure how it happened but when I inquired at the Palacio booth in the Cusco airport the girl working there arranged for a taxi and I was not charged for it. I did tip the taxi driver. I had not made any prior arrangements.
Jun 8, 2017, 8:10 pm
#118
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 347
If you don't care about car type, UberX works in Cusco. The ride from the airport can cost between PEN 6 to 15 depending on traffic. Meanwhile, the hotel wants $25 per person for their shuttle and the local taxi company tries to get PEN 30+ from the airport.
Jun 9, 2017, 9:59 am
#119
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: EZE
Programs: UA Gold,Delta Gold Bonvoy Titanium Elite, HH Diamond , AA Platinum, EENational, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 1,548
Uber it will be then.
Jun 13, 2017, 12:52 pm
#120
Join Date: Apr 2015
Posts: 21
I have a question about the TAX in the wiki...
To be exempt from this 18% tax (IVA), a guest must present both a valid, original passport and a copy of an immigration card. Guests who are unable to present both documents will be required to pay the tax.
I am citizen, born and raised in the USA, I only have a USA Passport, what exactly is "an immigration card". I know what a green card is, but why would I need that? Can anyone answer this?
Thanks
To be exempt from this 18% tax (IVA), a guest must present both a valid, original passport and a copy of an immigration card. Guests who are unable to present both documents will be required to pay the tax.
I am citizen, born and raised in the USA, I only have a USA Passport, what exactly is "an immigration card". I know what a green card is, but why would I need that? Can anyone answer this?
Thanks