Best hotels in Machu Picchu

With terraced hills, organic gardens, waterfalls and cobblestoned pathways, Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo feels like an intimate village of its own. A 5-hectare mountainside reserve, the pristine cloudforest setting is a dream for all travellers, but even more so for nature enthusiasts and birdwatchers, with over 210 bird species and 370 orchid species (making it the world’s largest native orchid collection) recorded in the exact area. Amazingly, the hotel’s sustainability efforts have helped preserved hectares of Amazonian forest and native fauna, while also striving to make stays 100% carbon neutral. Staying here for the full Machu Picchu experience just feels right.

This Peruvian-owned boutique sits right alongside the rushing Vilcanota River, a two-minute stroll from the train station. With only 28 rooms dressed in polished wood, Andean textiles and slate-stone bathrooms, it's reassuringly intimate. The fern-filled Manka restaurant does a surprisingly accomplished multi-course dinner using local ingredients, breakfast is a generous spread served from the crack of dawn (essential for early citadel starts), and the K'intu Spa (river-view jacuzzi, anyone?) is exactly what tired legs need. The warm staff and that constant soundtrack of rushing water make it one of the most comfortable bases in town.