On Saturday 30th March, we will be taking part in the significant ‘La Hora del Planeta’ (Earth Hour) to make a contribution to helping the planet both environmentally and socially.
Earth Hour is the largest global initiative championing environmental conservation, and this year the objective is even greater than before:
To raise awareness of climate change and warn about its extremely destructive effects on the environment.
Across all of our lodges between 8:30 pm and 9:30 pm on Saturday 30th March we will be switching off the lights and observing the important 60 minutes wherever possible. Throughout the weekend to celebrate Earth Hour each Inkaterra hotel will have its own programme of activities, which guests, staff and the local communities are invited to join, in conjunction with all other conservation efforts. At Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel and El Mapi byInkaterra there will be reforestation projects taking place with some of the students and children of Machu Picchu Pueblo and much more.
Earth Hour began in 2007 with 2.2 million people in Sydney Australia turning their lights off in unison for one hour to bring awareness about climate change. Since then, this number has increased exponentially and in 2009 8 million Peruvians joined the movement for the first time, a brilliant time! Political and business support for the event has been growing rapidly. During the hour the world’s largest and most impressive landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, Buckingham Palace, the Empire State Building and Christ the Redeemer will have their lights turned off to show their commitment to the planet during Earth Hour.
Encourage your friends and family to take part this year. We invite you all to join us for this momentous occasion by switching off your lights, or all of your power, for one hour this Saturday. Light some candles and enjoy an activity free from devices. The movement is already underway and it is important to keep sharing the message. Share your experience with us and others, by tagging @inkaterrahotels and using the hashtag #CONNECT2EARTH!
In February 2019, Inkaterra was thrilled to welcome the UK’s youngest Michelin-starred chef Merlin Labron Johnson to a number of our properties as he travelled through Peru on a culinary adventure.
Nine months after opening his first restaurant, Portland, in 2015, Merlin was awarded a Michelin star at the age of 24. Having cooked all over the world, from France to Switzerland and Belgium, Merlin is now the Executive Chef at The Conduit, a social club in London devoted to social change.
As part of Merlin’s foodie journey, he stayed at four of our hotels located across Peru. Starting in the depths of the rainforest, Merlin travelled to the Sacred Valley before finishing his journey in Cusco, later sharing his thoughts on his time with us.
With local cuisine at the heart of his itinerary, Merlin began his Inkaterra experience at Inkaterra Reserva Amazònica, in the Amazon rainforest of South Eastern Peru. Describing it as ‘a marvellous hotel with a calm atmosphere and with welcoming and knowledgeable staff’, Merlin made the most of all the activities the hotel has on offer.
“The excursions on offer at Inkaterra Reserva Amazónica are superb. We decided to experience the fishing tour as it was related to food and fun to do. We got some good content for our social media and Instagram stories.”
Other activities available for guests to enjoy include taking a voyage down the river at twilight with a local Explorer-Guide as well as a walk through the Ecological Reserve by night.
From the rainforest to the Sacred Valley, Merlin’s next stop on his journey was to Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba, in the Sacred Valley of the Incas, near Cusco. With our ‘Earth to Table’ concept and Chicha de Jora making classes, there were plenty of opportunities for Merlin to learn more about our local cuisine.
“We fell in love with the breathtaking setting and the lovely staff at Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba. The spa was very well thought out and we ended up having a treatment both nights! We collected herbs for the treatments beforehand, and sipped local juices after they finished. The food was also great and of a high standard. I particularly enjoyed the ‘cuy’ dish which I shared on my Instagram.”
The final leg of Merlin’s journey took him to the cobbled streets of Cusco and Inkaterra La Casona. Not only did the “beautiful setting and incredible room” impress Merlin, but the additional services we provide our guests did not go unnoticed.
“The bathrooms were just delightful. I was so surprised that there was a service to run a bath before you get to your room – what a nice touch.”
Merlin was equally impressed by our final food offering. “The food there was outstanding. It was also just the right amount and portioned perfectly. I had a wonderful poached pear, chicha and cream dessert. The flavour combination was very unique and blew me away.”
“It was also nice to meet Chef Rafael, Inkaterra`s Corporate Head of F&B. He recommended we had a cocktail at Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, where we also ended up trying what might have been our standout meal from our trip, a duck and rice dish.”
Of Inkaterra, Merlin said: “All of the hotels were beautiful and each with their own individual charms and surprises. The food was always delicious and exactly what I felt like eating and an extra special mention for the service and reception staff who provided the nicest and friendliest staff I think I’ve ever received.”
Authentic, sustainable and delicious Peruvian cuisine is at the heart of all of our properties. Using locally grown fruits, vegetables, grains and herbs on all of our menus, Chef Rafael Casin places emphasis on the importance of harvesting seasonal products in order to prepare hearty and high-quality meals for guests. From the Native Farm and ‘Earth to Table’ concept at Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba, to the Green Farm at Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel and the Bio-Orchard at the Inkaterra Guides Field Station, guests can be sure that the food they enjoy during their stay is responsibly sourced from the local environment.
After getting the youngest Michelin-starred chef’s seal of approval, we can be sure that a visit to Inkaterra will tickle the taste buds and leave a good taste in your mouth.
For more information on Inkaterra, please visit our website www.inkaterra.com
This year Peru was included in the list of the world’s most Instagrammable places. With more than half a million visitors to Machu Picchu every year, the historical Incan site has over 2 million tagged posts on Instagram. At Inkaterra we love to hear, see and listen to all of our guests’ unique experiences during a visit to the beautiful and diverse Peru.
From the colourful landscape at Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba in the Sacred Valley of the Incas to the thriving wildlife and scientific research at Inkaterra Guides Field Station in the Amazon rainforest of South Eastern Peru, we have been inundated with numerous stunning photographs and videos shared by our guests on Instagram. We wish we could share all of them with you but this post would be never ending! So here are a few of our favourites from the last year:
This is a small selection of the wonderful photos that have been shared with us. We are always delighted to see that our visitors are keen to post their individual perspectives of our properties with us and their followers. If you’re planning to visit Peru this year be sure to explore our blog and create your perfect trip by reading our Peruvian bucket list. You can also find out exactly what to pack and discover six of Peru’s most historical sites.
Make sure to tag @Inkaterrahotels to share your adventures with us and if you ever find yourself daydreaming of Inkaterra, be sure to search #Inkaterra and @inkaterrahotels to fulfil your Peruvian wanderlust…
For more information on Inkaterra, please visit our website.
With over 40 years of experience pursuing sustainable tourism initiatives, Inkaterra is well known for our positive approach to environmentally conscious travel. By preserving the environment surrounding our hotels, and educating guests and locals alike on the importance of conservation, we have always led the way when it comes to sustainability in hospitality.
However, it isn’t just tourism that is at the forefront of our sustainability drive but also farming. With all of our properties set amidst the incredibly fertile Peruvian land, the opportunities to harness these naturally occurring assets are readily available.
Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel is one of our properties with a considerable number of sustainable farming initiatives in place. Growing fruits and vegetables indigenous to the Andes at our Native Farm, the produce is used both at the hotel restaurant as well as for research purposes.
The harvest at Inkaterra isn’t only dedicated to fruits and vegetables, as our bounty extends to honey, tea, coffee and medicine too. Sustainable hive harvesting is practiced in the grounds of Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, giving guests the chance to learn about our beekeeping methods and try the honey being produced.
Our passion for local produce and responsible farming can also be seen in Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba’s ‘Earth to Table’ initiative. Home to an organic farm plantation, we invite guests to immerse themselves in the local experience, harvesting their own produce to later be cooked by Inkaterra chefs. With the region’s traditional cuisine and the land’s bountiful produce at the heart of the concept, we use ancient farming methods to provide guests with an authentic culinary experience.
In addition to our luxury eco-lodges, the Inkaterra Guides Field Station located near the Tambopata National Reserve offers an even more hands-on opportunity for adventurous travellers to participate in the sustainable farming activities. Encouraging travellers, researchers, families and students to come and help conserve the local biodiversity, we also grow produce at the nearby green farm, which is consumed both on site as well as at some of our regional lodges.
So, whether guests simply want to enjoy a meal that has been locally sourced, or if they want to immerse themselves in the ongoing research projects taking place at the Inkaterra Guides Field Station, all of our properties provide opportunities for visitors and locals of all ages, abilities and interests to be a part of our sustainable farming initiatives. Discover more about Inkaterra by visiting inkaterra.com.
For those of us who live in more temperate zones, the rainforest is a source of exotic enchantment, a world apart where nature hides some of its most fabulous creations. When our boat pulled up to the narrow clearing within tall trees at the entrance to Inkaterra Hacienda Concepción, I remember feeling delightfully overwhelmed by the wild beauty of it all. We were hot and tired from the journey and so excited to be there.
And then the excitement turned into something richer. We met Elias Léon, our naturalist guide, and he led us on our first walk in the forest. With a calm voice and kindness in his face, he taught us how to listen to the forest’s sounds, how to look closer to see the creatures hiding in plain view, how to walk softly so as not to disturb the ecosystem. His love for the forest was palpable and infectious—after all his years in the Amazon, he was still full of wonder, and that made our own sense of awe even stronger.
Elias started working as a naturalist guide when he was 16 years old. His father had taught him and his six brothers to be builders, but he chose instead to work at an eco-lodge, assisting the other guides. He learned quickly, and the owner encouraged him to take a course in biology so that he could become a professional naturalist someday. For several years, he made ends meet working as a builder and then in the gold mines. But before long he learned English and returned to guiding. When we met him in 2016, he had just come to Hacienda Concepción after eight years at Reserva Amazonica. “It’s just 10 minutes by motor canoe,” he told me, “but I see a lot of different species here.”
Elias loved birds.“Every single day you can see more and more species,” he said as we paddled the lagoon one morning. No one else in my group had come along on the canoe outing, so Elias and I drifted quietly along in no rush at all, watching nightjars and bee-eaters. He told me how his family—10 kids in all—fled to the Amazon from the Highlands when he was young to escape the Shining Path. How working in the mines was dangerous, and it was so hot in the gravel pits he often felt like he was being barbecued. Guiding, he said, was much better work. The month of May was his favorite time to be in the jungle. “The rains are finished and everything is fresh and beautiful.”
I got the sense that Elias would be happy to paddle that lagoon every day, that he was apassionate man who found peace in the forest. During our three days at the lodge, he told us about howler monkeys and caimans, stinkbirds and macaws, traveling trees and the cleverness of ants. “People should come here to be in contact with nature,” he said, “to understand the importance of this forest for our Earth.” And by the end of our time there, we had begun to understand. He had endowed us with a reverence and respect for the forest he called home. He may no longer be with us, but his legacy remains. For me and so many others, he brought to life a place we had dreamed about, and in his own quiet way, he made us care about it.
