Miraflores Park Hotel, Lima

The Miraflores Park Hotel, an Orient-Express property, is in an upscale area of Lima overlooking the ocean called Miraflores. I loved the Country Club Hotel Lima but here, you can walk right outside your hotel and be close to many other hotels, restaurants, and shops. The nearby shopping mall, Larcomar, is where I bought 3 pairs of great boots from Paez. Best time to go shopping for boots in Peru is when their summer is coming, and our winter is coming! Everything for cold weather was at least half off.

I loved the rooftop swimming pool, great gym, breakfast area on the roof, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde bar, which served my favorite thing, a traditional English afternoon tea. And great pisco sours, of course. I also enjoyed dinner at Mesa 18 - Chef Toshiro Konishi specializes in Japanese infused Peruvian cuisine, and worked alongside the legendary Nobu Matsuhisa. Nobu worked in Lima before going on to establish his famous restaurants around the world.

The best rooms have a small outdoor terrace. Many overlook the hotel's interior so I would definitely suggest requesting a room with a terrace.

Mesa 18

Outdoor space

Hotel Rio Sagrado - Peru's Sacred Valley

I'm usually pretty active while traveling. I like getting up early, and going all day - seeing, discovering, eating, stalking places from my lists, talking, meeting, and so on. But when I got to Hotel Rio Sagrado in Peru's Sacred Valley (more of what I loved from The Sacred Valley here), I wanted to do nothing.

Hotel Rio Sagrado I wanted to do nothing except sit on my terrace and watch the Urubamba River go by. I absolutely adored my time here and managed to muster the energy for a massage in the small but lovely spa (it was tough), to bottle feed the baby alpacas, and to have a fantastic dinner with a British journalist that had incredible stories from decades in the biz.

The shower in the bathroom was one of the coolest I've seen - all the benefits of an outdoor shower without having to actually be outside. I loved it.

I loved this shower!

My room viewFeeding time The spa deck

The waiting area in the spa If I close my eyes I can go back here!

The Lush, Gorgeous Sacred Valley of Peru

The Sacred Valley In Peru, I drove from Cusco to the Sacred Valley to stay at the Hotel Rio Sagrado. Though I wasn't there long, I now know those visiting have to spend at least one night in the landscape that meant so much to the Inca people and surrounds Cusco and Machu Picchu.

Most visitors, especially those from Lima that come for weekend getaways, spend time indulging their sporty, adventurous sides in the valley with hiking, horseback riding, rafting and more. Because of my short time there, the best I did was a long walk. I explored the local culture, which still feels somewhat undiscovered, even in well-traveled small towns like Pisaq, which has a bustling Sunday market. I also loved a 30-minute stop at Awana Kancha, an exhibition center that shows off local weavers, along with the chance to feed adorable and totally weird llamas and alpacas.

Pisaq street

The town of Pisaq from above

Shopping and trying local corn

Sunday market in PisaqLoved this tree in PisaqVisiting Awana KanchaYou have to love this one

So many Peruvian potatoes

Gorgeous Photos of Palacio Nazarenas

You may know I was in Peru for the opening party of Palacio Nazarenas, the latest Orient-Express property in Peru. I've said it before and I'll say again - this hotel is spectacular. A former 16th century convent, Palacio Nazarenas is now a 55-key hotel in the center of historic Cusco with a gorgeous outdoor pool, beautiful small spa, herb gardens, rooms that are piped with oxygen, custom furniture from local artists, and alpaca throws in the rooms. I loved seeing original Inca ruins beneath glass floors throughout the hotel. I loved every minute of my three nights there and can't wait to return one day.

The library

Choose what you want in a morning smoothie

Machu Picchu - The Holy Site of the Inca

Even after visiting Machu Picchu, I still don't know what it actually was. I heard about 10 different theories from very knowledgeable guides (and here's a great National Geographic rundown). No one really knows but it didn't take away from the sheer awe that hit me on my first glimpse of the panorama. What I didn't get from my sixth grade textbooks and photos is how high up it is and how stunningly gorgeous the surrounding mountains are - and how you feel like you can almost touch the sky. What I recommend is hiring a great guide (e-mail me for my favorite, one of the best guides I've ever had!) but also leaving at least an hour or two for alone time - to just sit, stare, and soak in that you are actually there. After long plane rides, connections, a train ride, and a bumpy bus ride, you are THERE. And it's better than expected.

Love this shot because you can see how far down the river is

Stunning surrounding landscape

If I go again, and I hope to with my future family, I will still take the Hiram Bingham train, but I will also spend one night at the Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge, the only hotel on site and owned by Orient-Express. I had tea there, and took a look around, but you have to book many months in advance. There are only 31 rooms, and because of where it is and protection rules, it will never expand. I also want to get some hiking in, though it's not for me to do the four-day Inca trail hike to Machu Picchu.

Afternoon tea at Machu Picchu Sanctuary LodgeMachu Picchu Sanctuary LodgeI'm really here!