Las Qolqas in Travel + Leisure: Finding Stillness in the Sacred Valley
When Travel + Leisure writer Maya Kachroo-Levine set out on her first solo hiking trip through Peru, she didn’t expect to find stillness in the rain — or a tented sanctuary waiting beside the river.
Her story, “I Went on My First Solo Hiking Trip in Peru — Here’s How You Can, Too”, captures something we hold close at Las Qolqas Eco Resort: the art of slowing down in nature, and discovering how solitude can feel like belonging.
A Journey Through the Sacred Valley
Maya’s journey began on the high trails of the Sacred Valley, hiking toward Pumamarka with her guide, Porfy Carbajal, a native Quechua who knows these paths as his own backyard.
The climb was steep, the clouds heavy with Andean rain — the kind that soaks you completely, but somehow makes the landscape more alive.
That evening, she arrived at Las Qolqas, where soft lights glowed through canvas walls, dinner was served by the fire, and the valley outside pulsed quietly in the dark.
In her words, “It’s a really nice place to do nothing.”
The Luxury of Doing Nothing
That phrase — the luxury of doing nothing — feels like the essence of what we created Las Qolqas for.
Here, “nothing” means watching the mist lift off the mountains. It means letting time pass slowly enough to hear the river change its tone after the rain.
It’s a long conversation over Andean wine, or a quiet breakfast of quinoa pancakes before the morning hike to Machu Picchu.
For solo travelers especially, Las Qolqas offers that delicate balance between solitude and connection — a space where you can be completely alone, yet never feel lonely.
A Place to Return To — In Spirit and in Story
In her Travel + Leisure piece, Maya describes the rhythm of a solo adventure: the exhilaration of hiking in silence, the kindness of local guides, the ritual of returning to warmth after a cold summit.
Her stay at Las Qolqas marked the midpoint of that journey — a pause between effort and reward, trail and train, Machu Picchu and the world beyond.
For us, that is exactly what we hope each guest finds here: a pause. A moment between worlds where the Sacred Valley can do its quiet work — grounding, softening, reminding.
Read the Full Story
We’re grateful to Travel + Leisure for capturing the spirit of solo travel in the Andes, and for including Las Qolqas as part of that experience.
You can read the full article here.
And if you’re dreaming of your own Sacred Valley journey — solo or shared — we’ll be here, where the mountains meet the river, ready to welcome you home.