Positive points of Sixpac Manco Hospedaje
- Very friendly service
- Clean
- Hot water showers
- Electrical sockets in all rooms
- Free hot drinks and bread on arrival
- Outside seating area with table and chairs for each room
- Laundry sink and a place to dry clothes rain or shine
- Reasonably priced, secure luggage storage
- High quality local-style meals available on request
- Extremely knowledgeable of the local region ( this is the Cobos family - guides of the many explorers and researchers of Incan history in the area, such as Vincent Lee, Bernard Bell, Hugh Thompson, Gary Ziegler, Edmundo Guillen and other names in the literature of the region. )
- Very well located for trips out to the local sites; less than one hour to Yurac Rumi ( the white rock ) and Vitcos loop walk, and two hours to the trailhead for Puncuyoc - Inca Wasi
- Great base for deeper trips into the Vilcabamba region and a great place to walk back into!
- The owners have and lend for use within the hospedaje copies of Vincent R. Lee's
Forgotten Vilcabamba: Final Stronghold of the INCAS
and Chunasaya - The ruins of Inca Vilcabamba
Negative points of Sixpac Manco Hospedaje
- Only single beds available
- Mattresses are a little thin
- Some rooms have gaps around the doors that let in sandflies
- The electricity can be erratic
- Communal bathrooms only
Local attractions and facilities
- Inca and indigenous sites
- Rosaspata / Vitcos: Palace of Pachacuti Inca and its associated dwellings and temples, also the place where Manco Inca was murdered by seven Spanish outlaws he had taken in several years prior and considered friends.
- Yurac Rumi / the White Rock / Piedra Blanca / Ñusta Ispanan / Ñusta Hispana: giant carved rock and remains of the Sun Temple
- Inca Wasi / Incahuasi / Puncoyuc / Inti Wasi / Inti Huasi: two story building possibly the site of the oracle consulted by Sayri Tupac to decide whether to leave Vilcabamba and live with the Spanish conquerors
- Espiritu Pampa / Old Vilcabamba: last capital of the Inca empire
- Incapampa: a royal ushnu ( podium ) thought to have been used by Pachacuti Inca and Titu Cusi Yupanqui Inca
- La Mesada: the lost town of Guarancalla, the indigenous town where Padre Diego Ortiz ( 'He who would not die' ) set up the second Augustinian mission in Incan Vilcabamba
- Tambo / Huaynapucara / the New Fort: on the top of a narrow ridge complete with large boulders still ready to roll onto the approaching Spanish
- Inca Huaracana: a site on a mountain shaped like a giant bird, though the head of the bird is no longer existent.
- and more...
- There are around half a dozen local grocery stores, all carrying much the same fare: eggs, pasta, tins of atún ( actually sardines ), vegetables of variable freshness, chocolate bars and carbonated drinks. This is not the place to collect supplies before heading off on a trip. That is best done in Cuzco as while Quillabamba has a few more options than Huancacalle, there are not many that are worth carrying on your back.
- Three or four restaurants offering menú meals for S/.1.50-3.00
- The village likes to have visitors and is very welcoming
- Telephone 'call centre', currently ( 2004 ) no internet connections are available
- Local guides abound, every local seems to have some horses and a desire to take tourists out to the local sites
This is the only hostal in Huancacalle that has hot water, and despite the proximity on the map to tropical Quillabamba it can and does get cold in Huancacalle: the hot water is a real bonus.
There are two other hostals in Huancacalle, one run by the grocery store, that come in at around half the price of Sixpac ( S/.5 as opposed to S/.10 ). Having looked at both of the others, we were happy to pay the extra. The others are cold shower only, one is friendly but has a ceiling so low a person of average european height can't stand up - though the owner can. The other was just plain unfriendly. We would stay at Sixpac Manco again without a second thought.
If you have had a different experience or have something to add please send us a mail
