Where to Stay in Cuenca With a Family

Best neighborhood in Cuenca

Where to stay in Cuenca with a family comes down to two things: how close you want to be to the historic center, and how many stairs you are willing to climb at 8,200 feet. Here is the apartment we booked for our ten days there, why the location worked so well, and what I would check before booking anywhere in this city.

Where to stay in Cuenca, like with many larger cities, is in or near the historic center!  The historic center of Cuenca puts you right in the middle of many of the sites and an abundance of restaurants.  It is also relatively flat, with good sidewalks, making exploring the city center on foot a breeze.

Since we were going to be spending nearly 10 days in Cuenca, I knew an Airbnb would be the best fit so we could cook a few meals, have access to a washer and dryer, and spread out a little.  Cuenca is a very affordable city by US/European standards and their cost of accommodations were no different.  After deliberating location vs. cost, we found a place with great reviews just two blocks from the main cathedral.

Casa Juan Jaramillo, our apartment in the historic center

The apartment was in this modern renovated apartment building (pictured above) called Casa Juan Jaramillo.  I will say it is on a busy street, but the apartment is on the opposite side of the building and we couldn’t hear any road noise inside or on the patio of the apartment.  There were two security doors you had to enter to reach the courtyard (pictured below).  It felt extremely safe.

The courtyard is beautifully maintained.  We ran into a few of the other residents in the building, seemingly permanent residents, and they were all very nice.  The apartment is on the 4th floor.  I will warn you there is no elevator, but there is a lift for luggage.  Even with the elevation we didn’t have too much trouble going up and down the stairs a couple times a day.

The apartment is on one level and well decorated with abundant light.  It is on the top floor so you have no one walking above you (unless they are on the shared rooftop terrace) and we heard very little noise from others in the building.  Here are a few more photos of the apartment…

The star of the show was really the rooftop terrace which had incredible views of the cathedral dome.

I have to say, this probably isn’t the best apartment for really young children.  The patio off the living room and master bedroom definitely is not kid proof for falls.  We mostly kept the kids off of it for that reason.  The apartment is also a bit like an art gallery, thoughtfully decorated by the owner who appreciates art.  We had no problem with our kids, but they are pretty good about not rough housing or touching things they shouldn’t be.  Older kids should be fine.

I appreciated the full kitchen and washer and dryer in this apartment.  Great for a lengthy stay.  The TV in the master also had Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc.  If we return to Cuenca for a visit I would definitely stay here again.

The location really can’t be beat!  Two blocks from the cathedral, one and a half blocks from the Cuenca sign and one of the bigger markets, and minutes from so many restaurants.  It is also a short walk down to the Rio Tomebamba (river).  The historic city center does sit higher than the river so there is a street with sloping sidewalk about a block from this apartment or there are several staircases along Calle Larga Street that take you down there.

Where to Stay in Cuenca With a Family: What I Would Check Before Booking

For anything longer than a few nights, an apartment did more for us than a hotel would have. A kitchen meant breakfast at home before anyone melted down, and the washer and dryer meant we packed less to begin with. If your stay is short the same location rules still apply, they just matter less.

Ask how many flights of stairs there are, and take the answer seriously. Cuenca sits at about 8,200 feet and our apartment was on the fourth floor with no elevator. We were fine doing it a couple of times a day, and there is a luggage lift, but your first day at that elevation is not the day to find out about four flights of stairs with a tired kid on your hip.

Check which side of the building your unit is on, not just which street it is on. Ours faced away from a busy road and we could not hear traffic inside, which is the difference between a nap happening and a nap not happening.

Look hard at the balcony photos before you book, not after. The patio off the living room and the rooftop terrace were the best part of this apartment for us, and they are also the reason I would not book it with a toddler. The same goes for how a place is decorated. Ours was thoughtfully filled with the owner’s art, which was lovely with our two and would be stressful with a climber.

Being two blocks from the cathedral bought us more than sightseeing. The market and the Cuenca sign were a block and a half away, restaurants were minutes away, and the Rio Tomebamba was a short walk downhill. If you are pushing a stroller, take the sloping sidewalk about a block from the apartment rather than the staircases along Calle Larga, which is the same route we cover on our Cuenca travel tips page.

One last thing that takes the pressure off this decision entirely: taxis in Cuenca run about two dollars to almost anywhere in town. Staying a few blocks farther out than you planned is not the mistake it would be in a more expensive city.

For everything else we learned, the Cuenca with kids hub links out to all of it, including shopping in Cuenca if you are hunting for locally made souvenirs.

To read about all of the fun things to See & Do and Where to Eat in Cuenca, check out those respective pages!  If you are traveling with littles, check out our Cuenca with Kids page.