Chachapoyas & Kuélap · eco-lodge
A cloud-forest lodge near Kuélap
Round cabins in the cloud forest, with hummingbird feeders on the porch and Gocta's waterfall across the valley.
The North
Chachapoyas & Kuélap
A cloud-forest fortress, cliff tombs and one of the world's tallest waterfalls
- Altitude
- ~2,335 m (7,661 ft)verify
- Altitude band
- Moderate
- Time needed
- 3 nights
- Zone
- The North
The Chachapoya, the 'cloud people', built Kuélap on a ridge 3,000 metres up, centuries before the Incas arrived. Today a cable car takes you most of the way. Add the sarcophagi of Karajía on their cliff ledge and the long, green walk to the Gocta waterfall.
Altitude note: Chachapoyas about 2,335 m; Kuélap fortress about 3,000 m (verify).
Few people notice it. A good place to sleep while you adjust. Altitude, explained
Highlights
- Kuélap fortress
- Gocta waterfall
- Karajía sarcophagi
- Revash cliff tombs
What to eat here
Coffee
Grown on the misty eastern slopes. Salkantay trekkers pass coffee farms on the way down to Machu Picchu.
Cacao
Peru grows fine-flavour cacao, much of it from native varieties. The beans taste fruity long before they become chocolate.
Juane
Rice, chicken, olives and egg wrapped in a bijao leaf and boiled. Traditionally eaten for the San Juan festival in June.
Accommodation
Where to stay in Chachapoyas & Kuélap
Journeys
Journeys that go here
12 daysThe Wild North
Glacier lakes above Huaraz, adobe cities near Trujillo and the cloud-forest fortress of Kuélap.
From US$4,900 pp
The North
Nearby too
Huaraz & the Cordillera Blanca
~3,050 mThe highest tropical mountain range on Earth, and turquoise lakes below it
Trujillo & Chan Chan
~35 mThe largest adobe city in the Americas, and the coast where surfing began
Máncora
~5 mWarm water, long waves and a hammock after the Andes
Add Chachapoyas & Kuélap to your trip
Tell us when you'd like to go and what you'd love to see. Your Peru Specialist will come back with ideas, honest advice on altitude and timing, and a clear price.