The two Niños Hotels in Cusco, (Niños Meloc and Niños Fierro) are without doubt our favorite accommodation here. When crafting personalized itineraries for our travelers, we try to encourage each and every one of them to opt for the Niños Hotel for their stay in this vibrant city. But why is it so important to us to support the hotel? Of course, as you might have guessed, our love for Niños is not unfounded…
Besides being incredibly welcoming and comfortable places to stay, the Niños Hotels in Cusco are first and foremost a means to an end. They have been set up with the aim to financially support a social project for the protection of destitute Peruvian children. What’s the story behind the foundation and why should you trust us when we send you to the Niños Hotel? Read on to find out.
The Beginning of a Social Project
Not less than 25 years ago, the Foundation “Niños Unidos Peruanos” has been created by a Dutch philanthropist called Jolanda. Coming to Peru for the first time, a country having its bright and dark sides, she was shocked to witness one of its dark sides: the amount of neglected children on the streets, deprived of any care and basic needs. In Peru, children not being properly looked after or being exposed to domestic violence is still a reality. And, unfortunately, some of them might end up on the streets.
Having made that experience, Jolanda decided to make her way to Peru once again to help these children out. After having settled in Cusco for good, she ended up adopting 12 children from the street, giving them everything they needed and treating them like her own. Even though the fact of adopting as much as 12 children is already jaw-dropping to most of us, Jolanda did not tire. On the contrary; she wanted to do more. But the situation started to get difficult because Jolanda has only two hands to care for a whole lot of children.
Opening of the Niños Hotels in Cusco
Determined to not give up on her willingness to save more children, Jolanda finally created her own foundation for the cause. And this is where the Niños Hotel comes into play. The hotel has actually been started with the sole purpose of supporting the foundation and the many children that are under its protection. About 70% of the income of every night spent in the hotel goes to the social project.
Nowadays, some 250 children are protected thanks to the foundation. Each and every one of them is provided with shelter, food, hygiene, health services and education. The children all go to school, are helped with their homework and are supported to figure out which path they want to take later on in life. In the same building as one of the Niños Hotels, there is even a sports hall, where the children can go a few times per week. They are given the opportunities they need to get to know their abilities and likings.
RESPONSible Travel by staying at the Niños Hotels in Cusco
Projects like Jolanda’s literally call for RESPONSible Travel Peru to be involved. Our basis of existence is to support the local population of Peru and improve livelihoods throughout the country by developing travel experiences supporting that goal. Therefore, it is not a big surprise that RESPONS soon became aware of the great initiative called “Niños Hotel” and wanted to collaborate.
Guido, one of the founders of RESPONS, still lived in Huaraz when he first heard of the Niños Hotel. Especially Dutch people who had gotten to know the hotel and its Dutch owner, have spread the word to Guido. Then, in 2012, when RESPONSible Travel Peru expanded its operations from Ancash to the South of Peru, we didn’t hesitate to include the Niños Hotel as our main accommodation offer for Cusco. Being convinced of the great cause of the project, we wanted to give it as much support as possible.
Soon, we have become the agency sending most clients to the Niños Hotel and we have to say that we are more than proud of it. Mentioning the importance of the project to all of our clients, we manage to keep reservations up and continue to be an important partner of the Niños Hotel.
A peaceful haven within the busy city of Cusco
Apart from the praiseworthy project linked to the accommodation, the Niños Hotelhas another big advantage to it: it is simply an incredibly beautiful place. Especially after the renovations that have been made during the pandemic, both hotels, the Meloc as well as the Fierro, are too good to be true.
The coziness can hardly be beaten, with plants being abundant all over the place. A local artist has decorated each of the rooms, as well as the shared areas, with flower motives of her own style. The hotels also have their own restaurant; a great option if you are coming back from a long day of discovery and don’t want to head out again to have dinner. Especially when the fireplace is put on at night, you might just feel like staying in to get some rest and enjoy the atmosphere.
While both of the hotels convince with these features, there are a few differences between them. First of all; the Meloc hotel was opened first, followed by the Fierro later on. The Meloc is a bit more traditional and has an open patio, where you can enjoy some outside vibes. The Fierro, for its part, has a covered patio with a truly unique atmosphere. Here, the common area is a bit warmer thanks to the roof. Both hotels are located very close to the Plaza de Armas.
Niños Hotel in Cusco as part of our Custom Itineraries
In all of our custom itineraries, we offer not only activities to our customers. Instead, we craft a whole experience for you, including hotels, guides and transportation. Trying to create our journeys in the most sustainable way possible, we opt for local guides, shared transportation where we can, homestays and small-scale hotels. As you will have noticed by now, the Niños Hotels in Cusco fit perfectly with that goal. And besides supporting the foundation for the children, it also tries reducing plastic and energy consumption wherever possible.
As a sustainable tour operator, we are more than keen to continue supporting the Niños Hotel with all that we have. If you want to be part of this great movement, make sure you opt for this hotel when traveling with us. To get a first suggestion of a personalized journey from us, just make use of our Custom Itinerary Section and one of our Travel Designers will get in touch with you.
