PRHusky

Has anyone stayed here recently? Has the hotel fixed their early "problems"? Reviews on TA are mixed, but it appears they are getting better lately.

thegoderic

I'm staying there this week, checking in on Sunday for a reward stay and my room has already been upgraded to a suite!

Looking forward to a good stay - will let people know what it's like.

thegoderic

Arrived earlier today and the first impressions are excellent.

The hotel is located in a side street a couple of blocks from the cathedral and main square. The entrance area is very grand but cold - the huge studded doors do seem to remain open all the time.

On arrival, we were taken around the corner into the bar area, sat down, brought a cup of coca tea, which is one of the local remedies to deal with the altitude and then escorted to our suite - a cracking upgrade for a 3 night rewards stay. Separate sitting / dining area, nice bedroom, bathroom with tub and shower and an additional half bathroom.

The lady who checked us in was wonderfully attentive and checked with us if all was in order when we passed her a few hours later.

The suite is beautifully appointed in a very traditional manner with furnishings and drapes very much in keeping with the traditional and historic feel of the building. We have a balcony that overlooks the central courtyard of the hotel. Everything looks and feels brand new.

We have been offered free breakfast in the restaurant each morning and obviously free internet.

All in all, an excellent first impression.

This improved the next day with breakfast - a quite outstanding buffet with make to order eggs bar (including Eggs Benedict on offer), great hot selection and lots more. Really very good indeed.

thegoderic

Another thing to add, is that they offer a tour of the hotel each evening which is quite fantastic. They take you through the history of the hotel from Inca days through to 2006 when Marriott bought what was essentially a ruin and rebuilt it from the ground up.

There are some areas in the basement where they have preserved original Inca and Spanish walls that you can see. It gives a great sense of history and the more I see of the hotel, the more I like it.

beofotch

I will be checking in here in less than a month for a 5 night stay and am very excited to see it!

Does the hotel arrange "to-go" breakfasts for those that are taking early trains to get to MP? Would this be included as part of the "platinum breakfast amenity" for Platinum members?

thegoderic

I seem to remember that breakfast is on offer from a ridiculously early time, something like 0500 for those heading to get an early train.

ymcarthur2

Can you book day trips to Macchu Picchu with the concierge, or do you have to do that beforehand with a tour company?

escapefromphl

The train gets booked up well ahead so its not something you want to leave 'till that late.

thegoderic

You can do a day trip to MP but that leaves you not much time at the ruins, or spend a night in Aguascalientes and head to MP early the next day.

AC has nothing to recommend it, but we found getting to MP at 0730 when it was less crowded and the early morning mist was adding to the atmosphere was something special.

We booked train and tickets ourselves, through the various websites without any real issues.

escapefromphl

We stayed the night at Inkaterra in Aguascalientes which I can recommend, we climbed Wayna Picchu (the steep peak behind the ruins) early the next morning, then explored the ruins after that and walked up to the sun gate Intipunku. Personally I think 4 hours is as much as you need on the ruins themselves. If you want to climb you need a reservation, the views were amazing.

PaulMCO

Any idea how the hotel stacks up against he Monesterio.

Have stayed there in the past and certainly would stay there again if no JW was there.

escapefromphl

I haven't stayed there but we did look inside, it looked pretty nice! The prices were close to double the JW and we were happy enough with the JW.

SkyTeam777

I, too, am interested in just a day trip. Does anyone have an email address for the hotel? I can't seem to find one online.

BayAreaTraveler

Recently completed a two night stay at the JW. I don't have status but think I got a pretty good room rate - breakfast/dinner/minibar/oxy/wifi was included as part of their promotional package. Got room 208 with views facing the courtyard. Very quiet room. The food and service were excellent. For those who have early train departures to MP, you can request a breakfast box to go - they packed in a couple pieces of bread, an apple, and pineapple juice.

I didn't have much of an issue with the altitude but just noticed within a couple of hours of arriving from LIM that I was just a tad bit sluggish and tired. That is expected when your body begins acclimating. Afterwards, I had no problems adjusting.

IMO, I don't think you need more than a couple of hours at MP. I wouldn't arrange tours at the front desk - I heard ridiculous rates being offered. There are tour guides at MP where you can negotiate on a much lower price.

Since no one has posted photos of the property yet, I'll start off:

Notenut

We recently had a 1 night stay here, preceded by a 1 night stay at the Sheraton's Palacio del Inka. Our rate here included a dinner and breakfast for two, free wifi, drinks from the minibar, and oxygen. With the prices charged for food it turned out to be a good deal. The dinner was a 3 course 'top chef' quality meal, and the full breakfast buffet was quite broad.
I really preferred this property to the PdI. Nicer, larger rooms, especially the bathroom. We got a room with a window facing the street and there was quite a bit of noise in the evening- that's about my only complaint- but after 11:00 it calmed down considerably. The location is slightly closer to the Plaza de Armas than PdI, and it is very close to the San Blas area and several reasonable restaurants around there.
Overall I really enjoyed my stay here and it would be my choice if I were to return to Cusco.