Must-see attractions in Peru

  • Stone mask on the ancient temple at Chavin de Huantar in Peru

    Chavín de Huántar

    Huaraz & the Cordilleras

    In most people's minds, Chavín is less a town and more a set of ruins – not any old ruins, but the erstwhile ceremonial center of one of Peru's most…

  • The Sacred City of Caral-Supe reflects the rise of civilisation in the Americas. As a fully developed socio-political state, it is remarkable for its complexity and its impact on developing settlements throughout the Supe Valley and beyond. Its early use of the quipu as a recording device is considered of great significance. The design of both the architectural and spatial components of the city is masterful, and the monumental platform mounds and recessed circular courts are powerful and influential expressions of a consolidated state.

    Caral

    North Coast

    Before metal or ceramic was invented and well before the Maya and Inca cultures ruled, there was Caral, the oldest civilization in the Americas. Having…

  • Wooden boats anchored on Paron lake in Cordillera Blanca.

    Laguna Parón

    Cordillera Blanca

    The largest lake in the Cordillera Blanca — a snowcapped range of the Andes in west central Peru — and a gorgeous natural reservoir, Laguna Paron is a…

  • nScenery when walking around Amantaní­ Island on Lake Titicaca on the border between Peru and Bolivia in South America.

    Isla Amantaní

    Lake Titicaca

    Of the small remote islands dotted around Lake Titicaca, Isla Amantaní is the least visited. Its population is just 4000, is a few kilometers north of the…

  • Crosses in courtyard of Cloister of Orange Trees in Monasterio de Santa Catalina (Santa Catalina Monastery), Arequipa, Peru

    Monasterio de Santa Catalina

    Arequipa

    This convent shouldn’t be missed, even if you’ve overdosed on colonial edifices. Occupying a whole block and guarded by imposing high walls, it is one of…

  • Intricate carved interior of Huaca de la Luna (Temple of the Moon) archaeological site.

    Huacas del Sol y de la Luna

    North Coast

    If there's one must-see archaeological site in the region, this is it. The Temples of the Sun and the Moon, attributed to the Moche period, are more than…

  • The Larco Museum in Lima, Peru

    Museo Larco

    Lima

    In an 18th-century viceroy’s mansion, this museum offers one of the largest, best-presented displays of ceramics in Lima. Founded by pre-Columbian…

  • Museo Tumbas Reales de Sipán

    North Coast

    Opened in November 2002, the Museum of the Royal Tombs of Sipán is the pride of northern Peru – as well it should be. With its burgundy pyramid…

  • Lima, Peru: Santo Domingo Monastery; Shutterstock ID 134781179; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; GL account no.: 56530; Netsuite department name: Online Design; Full Product or Project name including edition: Digital Content/Sights

    Iglesia de Santo Domingo

    Lima

    One of Lima’s most historic religious sites, the Iglesia de Santo Domingo and its expansive convent are built on land granted to the Dominican friar…

  • Fountain at night in Park of the Reserve, Lima

    El Circuito Mágico del Agua

    Lima

    This indulgent series of illuminated fountains is so over the top it can’t help but induce stupefaction among even the most hardened travel cynic. A dozen…

  • Belén Mercado

    Iquitos

    At the southeast end of town is the floating shantytown of Belén, consisting of scores of huts, built on rafts, which rise and fall with the river. During…

  • Cruz del Cóndor

    Cañón Del Colca

    This famed viewpoint is for many the highlight of their trip to the Cañón del Colca. A large family of Andean condors nests by the rocky outcrop and, with…

  • Fundación Museo Amano

    Lima

    The well-designed Fundación Museo Amano features a fine private collection of ceramics, with a strong representation of wares from the Chimú and Nazca…

  • Peru, Lima, Museo de Arte, facade

    Museo de Arte de Lima

    Lima

    Known locally as MALI, Lima’s principal fine-art museum is housed in a striking beaux-arts building that was renovated in 2015. Subjects range from pre…

  • Santuario de Mama Ashu

    Huaraz & the Cordilleras

    Chacas’ showpiece building, dedicated to Our Lady of the Assumption, is not just a work of art but an admirable rehabilitation project, courtesy of a…

  • Museo Santuarios Andinos

    Arequipa

    There’s an escalating drama to this theatrically presented museum, dedicated to the preserved body of a frozen ‘mummy,’ and its compulsory guided tour …

  • Cathedral

    Ayacucho

    This spectacular 17th-century cathedral on the Plaza de Armas has a religious-art museum inside. The moody facade doesn’t quite prepare you for the…

  • Museo Inkariy

    The Sacred Valley

    This wonderful new museum takes visitors into the world of the fascinating pre-Colombian civilizations that came before the Inca. It acknowledges the…

  • Museo de la Memoria

    Ayacucho

    Ayacucho’s most haunting museum, remembers the impact the Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) had on Peru in the city that was most deeply affected by the…

  • Museo de Arte Popular

    Ayacucho

    Displays popular art covering the ayacucheño (natives of Ayacucho) spectrum – silverwork, rug- and tapestry-weaving, stone and woodcarvings, ceramics …

  • Museo Machu Picchu

    Cuzco

    This newish museum exhibits 360 pieces from Machu Picchu taken by Hiram Bingham's expeditions and recently returned by Yale University, including stone…

  • Iglesia de Santiago Apostol

    Lake Titicaca

    Worth seeing and the pride of locals, this lime-mortar church includes fascinating features, such as a life-sized sculpture of The Last Supper; Santiago …

  • Museo de la Catedral

    Arequipa

    A must for visitors who want to see more of Arequipa's cathedral, the included 45-minute bilingual tour of this 'museum' is actually a peek at the inner…

  • Mirador de San Miguel

    Cañón Del Colca

    The spectacular views here are a highlight of Cabanaconde, taking in the mountain range, with the villages resembling specks of white dust clinging to its…

  • Parque Arqueológico Choquequirao

    Cuzco & the Sacred Valley

    Translating as 'Cradle of Gold,' this remote Incan site (3050m) in the Vilcabamba mountain range over the Apurimac canyon bears a strong resemblance to…

  • Cusco Planetarium

    Cuzco

    An excellent way to explore the fascinating Inca cosmovision. They defined constellations of darkness as well as light, used astronomy to predict weather…

  • Monumental Callao

    Lima

    Superstar graffiti artists are helping to revive the rough neighborhood surrounding Casa Ronald, a 1920 architectural masterpiece. Now a center for…

  • Isla Taquile

    Lake Titicaca

    Miniscule Taquile may be only 7-sq-km, with a population of merely 2000 people, but this island has a distinct culture famous for its colorful textiles…

  • Yanahuara

    Arequipa

    This tranquil neighborhood makes for a pleasant, walkable excursion, with a mirador (lookout) as its centerpiece providing excellent views of Arequipa and…

  • Historical Ships Museum

    Iquitos

    Moored below Plaza Castilla is the diverting Historical Ships Museum, on a 1906 Amazon riverboat, the gorgeously restored three-deck Ayapua. The…

  • Tschudi ruins. Chan Chan, north of Trujillo, Peru.

    Chan Chan

    North Coast

    Built around AD 1300 and covering 20 sq km, Chan Chan is the largest pre-Columbian city in the Americas and the largest adobe city in the world. Although…

  • A large fountain and Cusco Cathedral in Plaza-de-Armas.

    La Catedral

    Cuzco

    A squatter on the site of Viracocha Inca’s palace, the cathedral was built using blocks pilfered from the nearby Inca site of Sacsaywamán. Its…

  • The temple of the sun or "Qorikancha" in Cusco during Inti Raymi (hence the solar disc), Peru.

    Qorikancha

    Cuzco

    If you visit only one Cuzco site, make it these Inca ruins forming the base of the colonial church and convent of Santo Domingo. Once the richest temple…

  • El Brujo Archaeological Complex, just north of Trujillo, La Libertad Province, Peru, is an ancient archaeological site of the Moche Civilisation in the Chicama Valley. Building archaeology unveils seven phases of construction spanning the early and middle phases of Moche era. Huaca Cao Viejo is famous for its polychrome reliefs and mural paintings, and the discovery of the Señora de Cao. The 25 year old woman buried here was believed to be a 3rd century AD female ruler of the Moche state, and her tomb was full of gold and other previous artifacts. The murals at the complex also depict the ritual human sacrifice that took place here regularly: teams of men would engage in ritual battles and the losing team would willingly be sacrificed to the gods to ensure fertility and peace in the community. Murals show the naked warriors (with fully erect penis) being marched to the sacrificial platform to be decapitated and blood to be collected for the gods.

    Complejo Arqueológico la Huaca el Brujo

    North Coast

    This archaeological complex right on the coast, about 60km from Trujillo, consists of the Huaca Prieta site, the Huaca El Brujo, which has only been…

  • Pachacamac ruins in Lima, Peru.; Shutterstock ID 135292445; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; GL account no.: 56530; Netsuite department name: Online Design; Full Product or Project name including edition: Digital Content/Sights

    Pachacamac

    Lima & Around

    Situated about 31km southeast of the city center, the archaeological complex of Pachacamac is a pre-Columbian citadel with adobe and stone palaces and…

  • Reserva Nacional Pacaya-Samiria

    Amazon Basin

    At 20,800 sq km, this is the most immense of Peru’s parks and reserves. Pacaya-Samiria provides local people with food and a home, and protects…

  • Sipán

    North Coast

    The story of Sipán reads like an Indiana Jones movie script: buried treasure, huaqueros (grave robbers), police, archaeologists and at least one killing…

  • Sacsaywamán

    Cuzco & the Sacred Valley

    This immense ruin of both religious and military significance is the most impressive in the immediate area around Cuzco. The long Quechua name means …

  • Ollantaytambo ruins

    Ollantaytambo Ruins

    Ollantaytambo

    Both fortress and temple, these spectacular Inca ruins rise above Ollantaytambo, making a splendid half-day trip. (Admission is via the boleto turístico…

  • Interior of La Catedral de Lima

    La Catedral de Lima

    Lima

    Next to the Palacio Arzobispal, the cathedral resides on the plot of land that Pizarro designated for the city’s first church in 1535. Though it retains a…

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