Whilst on our road trip from Cusco to Machu Picchu we stopped off in Urubamba. The drive is long even though you don’t travel that far. It takes nearly 5 hours to drive 200km just because of the slowly winding roads up and down the mountainside. We decided to stop at the sacred valley as the towns and villages are few and far between. Also, how can you not with an enchanting name like that?
The Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba provided us with a very luxurious shelter for the night. The small cabanas nestled into the hillside look down over organic plantations in the middle of the valley, farmed for the use of the hotel restaurant to provide ecological farm to table cuisine for the guests.
I really loved the feel of the hotel. The traditional Peruvian hacienda felt super cosy with nooks to relax in around every corner. Built in the historic sacred valley of the incas but with contemporary colonial design. Surrounded by imposing green mountains it was easy to feel cut off from the world. I just wanted to look at that view all day. From the bedside you can look out at the same view through giant terrace door that open out. Even more perfect to enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning! I had to tear myself away to head for breakfast at the restaurant in the main building.
Peru is famous for it’s grains and they farm quinoa on site as well as medicinal plants and native foods such as the corn. I had the quinoa omelette and a selection of fresh pastries before heading out to see the farm site for myself. I was in awe of the different types of herbs, trying all the different fresh mints and other plants that accompanied the dishes I had eaten the night before.
Growing up on a farm myself I’m used to seeing yellow corn growing in the fields, but white and black corn was something completely new to me. A delicious fermented ancestral corn beer called Chicha, that guests are given on arrival, is made from this black corn. There are many excursions available at the hotel which sadly we didn’t have time for. You can take part in the harvesting and fermenting of your very own Incan drink, or if you prefer to see the nature in the valley they have hummingbird-watching, and many hikes along the mountain trails to see the ruins nearby.
See my next post for my visit to the salt flats, just a short drive away from Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba. One of my favourite and inspiring trips whilst I was in Peru!
In collaboration with Inkaterra Hacienda, Urubamba
