Guide to Quillabamba (the city of eternal summer)

When planning our Vilkabamba trip we decided to stay a couple of days in Quillabamba, as Vilkabamba is too far away from Cusco and lacks accommodation options (and also my uncle lives here and wanted to show us around "his" city).

Quillabamba has around 30'000 habitants and is at around 1050 m above sea level (which is very low compared to Cusco that is located at 3400 m above sea level). Thus the climate is very different and temperatures are at an average of 25 degrees Celsius. Hence the name of the city of eternal summer.

Plaza de Armas ("main square") of Quillabamba

Getting to Quillabamba from Cusco is unfortunately a bit time consuming. Because of the lack of tunnels, cars from Cusco have to drive all the way up to the Abra Malaga at 4316 m above sea level and then again down. The travel time in total is around 4 to 5 hours, depending on how fast you get carsick of all those curves. There is also an option to stay a night somewhere in the middle or combine it with a Machu Picchu visit (just take the train from Machu Picchu village to Hidroelectrica, from there it's only 2 hours). There used to be a direct train connecting Cusco with Quillabamba through Machu Picchu but because of heavy rains in the late 90s a large part of the train tracks was destroyed and – because of a lack of demand – not rebuilt.

We decided to the stay at the Casa Plaza Bolivar, a small boutique hotel with a large and clean pool, which definitely came in handy during those hot days. They also include a delicious breakfast and a mosquito net above the bed.

There were two things that immediately stood out to me:

1. How green and full of plants Quillabamba is (no wonder most of the fresh fruits and vegetables that you can buy in Cusco come from here);

2. The lack of "normal" cars and how motorcycle taxis basically dominate the whole traffic. They are everywhere and can fit up to three people. The price within the city is between 2 and 3 Soles (around 0.70 USD).

We decided to take such a motorcycle taxi up to a nearby mirador ("viewpoint") which was easier said than done. Neither we nor our taxi driver (that only recently took up this job) knew how to exactly get there. When we got to the desired hill (Morro San Juan), there was no designated mirador to be found, only some restaurants and hotels. Since we already made our way up there, we asked one of the restaurants (Quinta Mirador Morro San Juan) if we could take some pictures and they were really nice and even took some pictures of us. 

Another place I was really impressed with is the Alameda Bolognesi, a large park / avenue along the main street that was very clean and well-maintained with picturesque spots along the way.

Lastly, Quillabamba is also the largest coffee producer within the Cusco province. Unfortunately, we didn't find any option or tour to visit one of the local coffee providers. However, we did find a local coffee shop that grows and roasts their own coffee that we kept getting back: The Cafe Aicasa. The coffee was delicious, they provided vegan milk options and their menu was also available in English.

Finally, we made our way back to Cusco. The weather was a better this time, providing beautiful sights on the way down from the Abra Malaga.