If you’ve ever wanted to live in a tree house, Las Chullpas (Gonzalo Muñoz, tel. 084/20-1568, chullpas [at] uhupi [dot] com, www.chullpas.uhupi.com, US$20 pp) is your chance. The Chilean Chalo and his German wife Leonie have created a lovely set of nine bungalows, interlaced with gardens, whose tree-trunk floors, tile mosaics, and adobe walls remind you that nature can be playful. One room has a slide in the bathroom, and all beds are covered with homemade alpaca duvets. Leonie is a midwife, the restaurant is vegetarian, and there is a meditation room. You can’t fault Leonie and Chalo if you don’t leave here feeling pure and relaxed.

Mexican Claudia calls her flower-lined, central walkway the hummingbird corridor. She’s right. Walking down it, you’re almost guaranteed to see the world’s largest hummingbirds. But even better is when the birds flit around your private house, which is what Claudia and her architect husband rent to their lucky guests. Kuychi Rumi Lodging (Km 74.5 Urubamba-Ollantaytambo Highway, tel. 084/20-1169, info [at] urubamba [dot] com, www.urubamba.com, US$100 s or d) offers six fully-equipped houses with two bedrooms, a sitting room, and a kitchenette. Tastefully designed and decorated, the houses are meant for a several-day stay, but even if you only have a night, they are worth the privacy and comfort.

The Hotel San Agustín Monasterio de la Recoleta (Recoleta s/n, tel. 084/20-1004, US$82 s, US$96 d) occupies a stunning, 16th-century Franciscan monastery, though erratic service continues to keep guests away. There is a modern addition with a few spectacular rooms upstairs, outfitted with exposed beams, stone showers, and sun windows. Rooms in the old section are surrounded by a stone courtyard and cannot be renovated because of historical restrictions—they are nicer than the bland modern rooms. All rooms have private baths.