Destination four · The altiplano
Whole villages built and rebuilt from totora reed, floating on the lake and anchored in place. The ground gives softly under your feet. Go early, choose a smaller island, and buy something from the family that hosts you.
Two hours out, terraced islands where the men knit and the weaving is UNESCO-listed. No cars, no streetlights, and the clearest night sky either of us has ever stood under. Go for the day and sleep back on the shore.
On the water rather than in Puno: warm rooms, big windows, hot soup and the lake going silver at dusk. Puno itself is a working port town — useful, but not where you want to spend your evenings.
Sleep on the shore, not in Puno — everything here starts at dawn.
Lakeside · Our pick
Lake-facing rooms, heating that works, and a jetty for the morning boats. The whole reason to come this far.
Chucuito · Quiet
Stone and adobe houses on the water, twenty minutes from Puno and a world away.
Private peninsula · Five stars
The finest hotel on the lake: eighteen suites alone on a peninsula, floor-to-ceiling windows over the water, and every excursion, meal and drink included.
Eat trout, go slowly, and stop at Sillustani on the way in.
Everywhere · Order it
Grilled with quinoa and a little chilli. The best thing on any menu on this lake.
En route from Juliaca
Pre-Inca funeral towers on a peninsula above a second, smaller lake. Stop on the way in.
Cusco to Puno · Onward journey
The most scenic way onward: a full day of altiplano out the window and lunch served on board.
Lakeside · The premium table
A tasting menu of altiplano produce — trout, quinoa, alpaca, native potatoes — served at a window table as the sun goes down over the water. Open to outside guests by reservation.