Hotels near Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport - CUZ, Cusco

Quaint, historical, great jumping point for Machu Picchu, & seemed very safe. But the high altitude made for low oxygen and, thus, difficulty sleepy(felt like I was continuously being slightly suffocated! 😳

We stayed at Casona Santa Catalina, which was near the main square, so we didn't have too much time to visit several interesting places, but we went to the Artisans Market where we found different shops with good deals on souvenirs. We ate at a Pizza place in front of the Casona, it had a delicious vegetarian pizza, and some other dishes, there was "La Concha museum" I think is where there are the artifacts found in Machu Picchu, we found the last day so we didn't have time to visit, if I had known about the interesting places Cusco has I would have spent more days there, my main point was Machu Picchu. We love the juices at the Market Place. we bought a huge round bread "Chuta" (Shuta) which is very popular a lady told us where to buy it fresh, but we didn't want to risk taking the bus or taxi, so we limited ourselves to going to nearby places. Be very careful when walking here the pedestrians don't have the right of way and the traffic lights can only be seen from the direction the cars are driving, so it is hard to know if the light is green or red in some streets in some others it even has the traditional timer. Most of the people are friendly. During August is a little cold, but one warm jacket will be enough. A friend told me to be careful with pickpocketers, avoid too crowded areas, keep your money /documents safe.

What a fantastic place. We walked around stunned by it's beauty for days. Definitely a city worth visiting at least ones in your life. The inka architecture, the local markets, the llamas and alpacas everywhere, the ladies in traditional clothes, the lights at night, the smells and the delicious cuisine are just the beginning.

People were super friendly. Never felt at risk on the streets day or Night. Wonderful restaurant Fusion Andina Restobar & Grill. Great massage parlor Cusco Massage and Spa. Loved San Pedro's Market. Above all can't rave enough about our Hotel... Casa San Blas!! Hiked Machu Picchu with Sam's Travel. Can't say enough good things about this company. AMAZING company and trip.

Interesting city. Lovely places to eat and stay. Friendly people. Loved walking round the city even though it was very steep in places. We went to the booking office to buy tickets for the bus from Agua Calientes up the mountain to Macchu Picchu to save time the next morning as our entrance to MP was at 8am. The woman in the booking office was the rudest person we encountered in the whole of South America and did not want to accept the money we had literally just taken out of the ATM round the corner because it had a small (ie minute 1-2mm) tear in it, not our fault, the bank should not dispense notes like that if it's then not acceptable to over-zealous power-crazy bus ticket officials! However we got more money out and this saved us time, as when we went to Agua Calientes the ticket office had a huge line both the evening before and in the morning, and although we had tried to book online it wouldn't let us probably because of our foreign bankcard we think (although most other websites we had no bother with). Be careful on some of the narrow streets as the cars don't always slow down but the pavements are too narrow to pass another person. Recommend getting a smoothie at one of the stalls inside the food market.

Best to stay here to explore the sacred Valley and surrounds. Spend one night in Aguas Calientes for Machu Picchu and then return to Cusco. buy a tourist pass to visit all the Inca sites and include a day trip to Pisac (a must).