TIPS ON: What The Weather Feels Like During High-Season

Oddly enough, your summer vacation is actually winter in Cusco.  So you're wondering what it feels like.  Well everyone says it's cold.  What kind of cold?
I'm from Ontario, Canada.  For those of you who think that means my standard is super cold and we live in igloos.... we don't.  Our winters feels similar to the winters in New York.

I can tell you June/July in Cusco feels like October-November.  It is cold enough for a padded jacket.  What I mean by that is not a winter jacket, but a thinner winterish jacket.  Not a spring or fall jacket or wind breaker, but a little bit thicker. 

You'll feel pretty cold walking around, but it's not like your cheeks or hands get cold. 
Your hotel blankets at night will be cold to the touch, so it is better to have socks and maybe a hoodie and sweat pants to sleep in.

It is best to book a hotel that has a heater if you want to get good sleep.  Add to the altitude sickness symptom of sleeplessness of being cold at night - its not a fun mix.  Most hotels in Cusco and the Sacred Valley don't have heated rooms, but they may have portable plug-in heaters they may give you for free or rent to you for about 10 soles.  So definitely check that out.

Hope that gives you an idea of what to pack and what to wear!

TIPS:
-pack a Fall season jacket
-pack socks
-pack sweat pants to sleep in
-pack a hoodie
-before booking in June/July, ask you hotel if they have portable heaters

TIPS ON: What To Do If You're Lost

Sometimes you might go out for the night and forget how to get back to your hotel or you may get off the bus or plane and not know where your hotel is, nor does the taxi driver.

Here are some tips that will help you in such situations:

1.Before you leave for your trip write down the name of all your hotels, the address, phone number and website address.

e.g.:

Ccapac Inka Ollanta

Los Eucaliptos street n/n Ollantaytambo

+51 84 204 186 reservas@hotelinkaollanta.com

http://www.hotelinkaollanta.com/en/hotel-ollantaytambo

This way, if you land and don't know the address nor does the staff at the airport or bus station, they can look up the website.  If the taxi driver doesn't know where the street is, he can use his cell or a public phone to call and get directions.  Keep two copies, 1. in your purse or backpack and 2. in your suitcase in case you lose the first one

2. Once you get to your hotel, get two copies of their business card.  When you go out, make sure you have this card in your pocket, purse or backpack.  Again, if you're coming back to the hotel later and the taxi driver doesn't know the location of your hotel, he can check the address clearly written on the card.

3.  If for any reason the taxi driver doesn't know where your hotel is or you dont have a card, address or number of the hostel, drop in to the nearest hotel you can find.  At this point, you can do two things, ask them to search the address of your hotel and write it down, or you can ask to use their public computers to search it yourself.

4. If you have the number of the hotel on you, and the taxi driver doesn't want to call for directions, then drop in at the first hotel or hostel you can find, ask the hotel or hostel to call your hostel and have your hotel or hostel send a taxi to the place you're at.

5. Ask the hotel to call your next hotel and write down directions from the bus station or airport to the next hotel.


From my experience, taxi drivers often don't know the hotels.  We can't expect them to know every hotel and hostel in town or every district.  A number of times I've been at one hotel and have asked them to write down the directions to the next hotel, and they respond with "Every taxi driver knows this place, it's okay".  I end up getting in the taxi and the driver has to stop every two minutes to ask a pedestrian, "I have a question, do you know the hotel __________?"  Its a waste of time and a huge risk, so make sure you have the number and address and get the directions if you can.

I once went for a walk at night to get a bite to eat, and I knew my hostel was two blocks from the Plaza De Armas, but was it two blocks from the Northern side of the Plaza? From the South-Eastern corner?  I walked in the direction I thought I came from, but ended up down a dark dead-end street.  I went back to the Plaza De Armas and asked about 5 taxi drivers to take me to my hostel and none knew where it was.  I stopped in at a few hostels and asked them to call my hostel (I happened to memorize the number because I had to call a few times before).  The hostel I stopped in at called my hostel and someone came to pick me up. 

The last thing you want to do is walk around asking locals.  You don't want to appear lost, because that makes you vulnerable to being jumped/robbed.

Primary tip: Ensure you have the address and number on you. 

Secondary tip: if you don't have it or lost it, stop in at your nearest hostel to have them search the address or ask to use one of their public computers to search the address yourself. Say: "No puedo encontrar mi hotel. Puedes busque la dirección con su computador? Se llama _______" (I can't find my hotel. Can you please search the address with your computer?) or "Me gustaria usar su computadora.  No se la direccion de mi hotel" (I would like to use your computer. I dont know the address of my hotel).

DO NOT walk around asking locals. You don't want to appear lost and confused.  That makes you an ideal target for getting robbed.