Casa Esmeralda By Katari

After we checked out, my husband noticed bedbug bites all over his body three days later, and I had a few on my ankles too. We had stayed two nights in a ground-floor room with little or no ventilation. It felt stuffy, and got cold at night despite staff saying the heat would turn on automatically after 9pm. After the first night, I saw a notice telling guests the hotel would be fumigated from 11:30am to 1:30pm, which made me suspect bedbugs.

The room looked nice and clean, but the shower never got properly hot. The curtains let in all the light, so a sleep mask was needed, and the sheets were so thin there was no proper duvet, leaving us to sleep in thermal underwear. Breakfast was extremely limited, and the breakfast staff spoke no English. On arrival, the staff weren't helpful, and we had to find our way through a fairly complex building to locate our room. We knew the hotel was outside the center, but for the price we expected good or even excellent service. We'd stayed at another Cusco hotel in the same price range and had a much better experience. We booked this one because its Booking rating was a little above 9 at the time. We don't understand that score, found the value poor, and don't recommend it.

The room was spacious and clean, but I can't recommend the hotel after the service problems we had. Both breakfasts went wrong during our two-night stay. We told staff about our 6am excursion, and they promised takeaway breakfasts would be ready, but they weren't. When we messaged on WhatsApp, they said someone else must have taken them, then gave us juice boxes, an orange, and crackers instead. At 8am the next morning, we waited 15 minutes downstairs without seeing any staff. We also paid for laundry drying, and one of my shirts came back stained.

Breakfast and the coffee bar were the highlight, with fresh, delicious choices brought right to the table each morning. Casa Esmeralda was clean, lovely, and felt safe before and after our Inca Trail trek. It's around a 15-20 minute walk from the Centro Histórico, which I liked because it was away from the main square's chaos. The hotel sits in a small alley, so excursion pickups were a little awkward, but meeting the drivers on the street worked fine. Reception was incredibly kind and helpful, and our room was cleaned daily. The internet caused no problems for me. We were very cold, though, so bring layers. I'd definitely recommend it for a comfortable stay in Cusco.