It must have been about fifteen or maybe twenty years ago that I traveled through Peru with some good friends. For three weeks we traveled through the country from the capital Lima, armed with a backpack and with the Lonely Planet as the ultimate signpost within reach. We traveled by public transport. Occasionally by train, but more often by bus, which proved to be an efficient and economical way of transport for longer distances. Those buses, where we were often the only passengers with four people, drove into the walled bus station when they arrived in the next hamlet. Those bus stations looked like mini-sized fortresses, with large doors that were slid open as the bus approached. As soon as we stepped outside, we were surrounded by a group of local hoteliers, who were selling their offers like market vendors. They proudly showed old binders with grubby plastic sleeves, with yellowed photos of their hotels. Like cheap tourist restaurants have discolored photos of their dishes hanging above the counter. Because I had found at the beginning of our trip that few hotels outside Lima had hot water, my first question was always about the hot water supply. I’m not demanding, but I thoroughly dislike cold showers. I had memorized two words of Spanish for this: agua caliente? I said the two words with raised eyebrows to give my question more weight. “Hot water?” The hotelier’s answer was in all cases in the affirmative: si si si… How did we come to know that there would be no hot water in his hotel, tsss… At least that’s how we understood. Until we arrived at the hotel, turned on the hot water tap in our room and the water remained stone cold. Due to the limited availability, a hot shower turned out to be the ultimate form of luxury in Peru. In the current issue of TravMagazine, we pay a lot of attention to the growing luxury travel segment. We asked some industry peers for their own definition of the term ‘luxury’. The answers vary from attention to detail, being unburdened to gaining unique experiences. No one answered: a hot shower at the end of a long and tiring day of travel. (Photo: Shutterstock) theo.de.reus@travmedia.nl
