May 302014
 

Thanks to the hotel, had another “taxi of death” experience up to El Alto, where the driver showed absolutely zero fear weaving in and out of traffic as he worked his way up the side of the mountain to the airport.  There was no traffic at this hour, and we made great time.  Got to checkin, and only had to wait one person to get an agent…who was so uncomfortable in English that we carried on the check-in in Spanish.  I mean, I really appreciate all the practice, but I was blown away by just how reluctant Bolivians were to speak English.  All four boarding passes came out, and I was set for today and tomorrow.  Then, it was off to passport control.  There was a 15 minute wait or so, but no problems at all…but again, the whole thing was conducted in English.

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Most surprising, was after exit immigration…there was a luggage check.  Open it up, and go through everything.  Not too sure what they were looking for, but I got really good at the phrase “es ropa…sola ropa!”  (it’s clothes, just clothes!) on this trip…and they let me go with a fairly minimum check.

Headed into the lounge, which was surprisingly nice.  Juice, water, etc and a few small munchies on display, but more importantly there were outlets and a comfortable quiet place to wait for the flight.  I could have used Priority Pass to get in, but Avianca business class also did the trick.

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When it was time to board, the lounge agent came and got us, and escorted us to the plane.  The jetbridge had an entrance from the lounge, so there was no need to go back into the terminal.  A very nice touch which I never would have expected in La Paz!

Avianca flight 908 (Operated by TACA Peru)
La Paz, Bolivia (LPB) to Lima, Peru (LIM)
Depart 8:00, Arrive 9:05, Flight Time 2:05
Airbus A320, Registration N492TA, Manufactured 2005, Seat 2A

OJ and water offered prior to pushing back, and a view of the airport:

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There was a great graveyard of old planes, but unfortunately with the sun and earlier rain, it was hard to get a good shot:

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A view of El Alto on climbout.  It was really unnerving taking off from El Alto, because with the high altitude the plane takes what feels like forever to get off the ground. I was hoping we’d go over the city to get a shot of how it sits in the valley, but no such luck.  I was so excited to take pictures that I asked for a window seat, something I rarely do.  Didn’t matter, because the aisle ended up staying empty.

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Mar 262013
 

Fortunately our train out of Aguas Calientes was in the afternoon, so we had a chance to sleep in and take it easy in Aguas Calientes before we had to be at the train station for the ride back. We grabbed a casual lunch near the train station as I mentioned in another post, and then it was back to Cuzco first by train, then by shuttle bus, and finally a taxi to our hotel. We’d decided to stay at the Hotel Monasterio again, and they had our driver waiting at the train/shuttle station and our stored bags already in our new room. Absolutely perfect.

One last dinner in Cuzco, and it was up early for our series of flights back home. One last breakfast at the hotel, and they arranged a taxi for us to the airport. Once again, everything at this hotel was flawless, and geared towards people visiting Cuzco and/or Machu Picchu. A very early breakfast before our taxi, taxi to the airport arranged and on time…it was excellent.

The Cuzco airport is relatively small, and the business class/Star Alliance Gold line had a 15-20 minute line before we could check in. However, when we did, we were surprised to hear the agent say “I am adding your name to the list, you can ask about an upgrade at the gate.” I didn’t question her, but why was this? Are Star Alliance Gold members (and companions!) automatically upgraded space available at the gate on TACA?!

Immigration and security were maybe a 10 minute affair, and soon we were in the very congested departures area for our flight.

TACA Peru flight 830
Cuzco, Peru (CUZ) to Lima, Peru (LIM)
Depart 8:05, Arrive 9:30, Flight Time 1:25
Airbus A320, Registration N498TA, Manufactured 2008, Seat 2K

About two minutes before boarding, the gate agent called our names, and wrote new seat numbers on our boarding passes…upgrade confirmed!  I still don’t know why, since coach was only about 75% full, and we were two of four in business, but I’m not complaining at all!

It was a pretty routine flight, with a small meal offered.  Seats were typical US-style up-front seats, so nothing special, but it was nice having all sorts of extra room!  A shot of the meal:

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Mar 112013
 

We’d booked a slightly later flight to Cuzco, thinking it would let us sleep in at least a little bit and a terribly early morning, but the one thing we didn’t take into account is that a 9:55 departure meant we’d be leaving for the airport in the middle of rush hour traffic. Fortunately, the trip was still quite quick and maybe 30 minutes at most, and we got to the airport just a bit over an hour before the departure of our flight.

The domestic check-in line for TACA was crazy long, and even the business class/Star Alliance gold line took probably 15 minutes, but check-in was pretty easy. Unfortunately, the flight was going to be rather full meaning the middle seat in between us wouldn’t stay open. Security took another 15 minutes or so, and by the time we made it to the gate it was 30 minutes before departure and we expected them to be boarding. Except they weren’t. Boarding finally started about 9:50, when we were allow to go out to…the bus. No jetways here. By the time we boarded and closed the door it was nearly 10:30. Not horrible because we had no place to be, but it was handled very casually as if this was completely normal.

TACA Peru flight 809
Lima, Peru (LIM) to Cuzco, Peru (CUZ)
Depart 9:55, Arrive 11:20, Flight Time 1:25
Airbus A319, Registration N520TA, Manufactured 2007, Seat 8K

The flight was almost completely full in economy, meaning the seat in between us was taken, so we shifted to the middle and window seat.  It was maybe an hour in the air, so no big deal.  During the flight, the crew managed to serve a quick snack/sandwich and drinks to a full plane, which was pretty impressive.  The snack didn’t look appetizing and we’d just had breakfast so I decided to skip it, but it was still pretty impressive that they offered it.  Overall, there was nothing special about TACA, but at the same time nothing really went wrong.  To top it off, milage posted to United about five days after the flight, so score one for the partnership working as well.

Upon landing we got our checked baggage in 10-15 minutes, and had arranged for the hotel to meet us and transfer us so I can’t comment on how easy it would be to get a taxi.  On the way back to the airport, however, we had the hotel call a taxi which was many, many times less expensive at only 20 soles.  It was not quite as comfortable, but still plenty nice, so I think this is definitely the way to go.

When we arrived at the Hotel Monasterio we were asked to take a seat in the lounge / bar area while they got our check-in information.  They brought us a pot of coca tea to help with the altitude, and sat at the table with us while they completed registration.

Room:

The room was spacious and comfortable, and had the added benefit of extra oxygen being pumped into the room to help with the altitude.  The hotel was a converted monastery, so it definitely had that “something old” charm about it.  It’s not usually my preferred decorating style, but it was really cool to be staying in a place with so much history.  The beds were extremely comfortable with great bedding, and the only small gripe I had about the rooms is that both rooms we had were slightly on the warm side for sleeping.  We tried to get them cooler, but no matter what they stayed quite warm despite the fact the temperature would drop to about 10C outside at night.

On our second stay, the hotel actually upgraded us to a small two-level suite for the night, with the bedroom and bathroom upstairs, and a large sitting area on the entry level.  It was very nice considering we hadn’t requested it, and the bags we stored with the hotel were waiting for us in the room when we checked in.  Big plus!

Service:

As mentioned above, service was amazing.  From our bags waiting for us in the room on the second stay, to friendly staff everywhere (reception, breakfast, bar/lounge, etc) the hotel really went out of its way to go that little extra step from doing what was expected to anticipating what would make your stay easier and more comfortable.  Despite some challenges in communication (English skills of some staff were rather limited) it was still clear they were intent on delivering excellent service and it really showed.

Location:

The location of the hotel was absolutely perfect, located 2-3 blocks off the main plaza.  Just far enough away that the noise of the plaza was nonexistent, but close enough that it was an easy walk.  Location was absolutely perfect!

Breakfast:

What can I say about the breakfast – absolutely awesome.  The only thing that was slightly lacking is that the staff seemed slightly overworked, and getting refills of coffee took a bit of time.  Now, onto all the great stuff!  There were amazing breads of all sorts, pastries, danishes, meats, cheeses, cakes, pies, pretty much you name it and they had it.  Not to mention fresh squeezed orange-carrot juice that was amazing.  Oh, and the first day…we actually had breakfast in the courtyard of the hotel with a musician playing soft music while we ate.  It blended in perfectly with the old monastery atmosphere, and again although it’s not really my style I definitely enjoyed breakfast al fresco!

A shot of the courtyard, you can see the tables we ate at:

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Restaurants / Bars:

We didn’t have any meals other than breakfast at the hotel, but we did have evening cocktails before dinner each night at the hotel.  I really enjoyed the lounge space.  There was a nice fire going in the fireplace each night, big cozy leather couches to relax on, and fantastic service.  They also made amazing cocktails with pisco, and I really wish I could remember the name of the one I ordered over and over – it was delicious, and at roughly $10 for a drink in the lounge of a rather nice hotel I thought prices were incredible reasonable.  There were also small bar munchies too, which were kept filled.

Pool / Gym / Facilities:

Unfortunately we didn’t check out any of the facilities, but there was a rather nice little gift shop that sold local items.

Overall Review:

I think the best thing I can say that illustrates how much we like it is that we stayed for two nights once we arrived from Lima, and then promptly canceled the hotel we’d booked on our way back from Machu Picchu in order to stay at the Monasterio again – it was just that good.  On top of everything, the taxi that took us to the train station for Machu Picchu was waiting for us upon our return, and drove us back to Monasterio.  It was little details like that made this one of the most flawless hotel stays I’ve ever had.  I’ve never felt a hotel went so far above and beyond with little details that you have a hard time thinking of negative things to say about it.  I’m even willing to give them a pass on the room temperature, since I know I like my rooms a bit closer to arctic than most people do.  Other than that, to me, there’s no doubt this is the place to stay in Cuzco!