Belmond to keep operating Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge until 2028

Peru Belmond Hotels will keep operating the Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge until March 2028 after an arbitration panel granted the luxury brand a 33.6-month extension.

Belmond had sought a 59.1-month extension, citing losses tied to the COVID-19 pandemic and social unrest in the Cusco region. The tribunal granted a shorter term, allowing the company to continue operating the hotel until about March 6, 2028, RPP Radio reported.

A hotel with a uniquely strategic location

The Sanctuary Lodge occupies one of the most privileged hospitality locations in Peru: it is the only hotel located at the entrance to Machu Picchu, giving it unusual logistical and commercial value within one of the country’s most important tourism destinations. Belmond describes the property as the only hotel at the entrance to the citadel.

The hotel’s location makes it more than a lodging property. The Sanctuary Lodge stands beside Machu Picchu, Peru’s best-known archaeological attraction and a major tourism draw in Cusco. Control of the hotel therefore carries symbolic and economic weight.

The dispute has attracted attention not only as a contract case, but also as a question of who should manage one of the assets most closely tied to Machu Picchu.

How the dispute developed

he conflict sharpened after the concession expired in May 2025. The Cusco regional government argued that control of the property should return to the state. Peru Belmond Hotels, however, sought to stay on under an extension tied to losses it said were caused by the pandemic and later unrest in the region.

Before Wednesday’s ruling, Belmond had continued operating the hotel under a provisional court measure while the arbitration moved forward. Earlier on April 8, RPP reported that the arbitral award would determine whether the hotel would stay under Belmond’s management or revert to the Cusco regional government.

The longer concession history

The case also sits within a longer legal and political struggle over the property. Belmond’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission reportedly show that the Cusco regional government challenged a 10-year extension of the Sanctuary Lodge concession. That extension began in May 2015 and was set to run through May 2025.

In a September 2024 notice, the Cusco regional government cited Belmond’s 10-year concession addendum and said it would expire on May 16, 2025. The notice also said authorities wanted the hotel returned once the term ended.

Regional government opposed a longer extension

The Cusco regional government had rejected Belmond’s request for a much longer extension and maintained that the property should return to public control after the concession ended. Gov. Werner Salcedo said before the ruling that the region expected an impartial decision and warned that officials would evaluate legal options if the outcome went against them.

As of the updated reports published Wednesday afternoon, Salcedo had not publicly responded to the final ruling extending Belmond’s operation through 2028.

What the ruling means for tourism

The decision averts an immediate management change at one of Peru’s most sensitive hotel properties. For now, it keeps operations in place at the entrance to Machu Picchu while the broader dispute continues over control of sanctuary-linked infrastructure and the management of tourism assets around the site.