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Country guide
Peru is 1,285,216 square kilometres arranged in three long bands: an arid Pacific coast, the Andes behind it, and Amazon rainforest east of the mountains. Which band a city sits in decides nearly everything about visiting it — Lima, the capital, is a coastal city under grey winter cloud, Cusco sits high enough in the Andes to cost a first day doing nothing, and Iquitos in the rainforest has no road connecting it to the rest of the country. It is the third largest country in South America. The distances between those three worlds are why itineraries here are counted in flights rather than in bus rides.
Every city catalogued in this country so far, ranked by how much there is to see.
Photograph · Corminos · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photograph · gertrudis2010 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Ranked by importance — sitelinks, pageviews and heritage status, not editor preference.
100 places match
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Typical visit duration
The Malecón de Miraflores is a clifftop park sequence forming Lima's defining Pacific walk. This linear green corridor stretches along the coastal edge of the Miraflores district, comprising interconnected parks, gardens, and paved promenades overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
The Lima Art Museum, known locally as Museo de Arte de Lima or MALI, occupies the historic Palace of the Exhibition in Lima, Peru. The building itself constitutes a significant landmark, constructed for the 1872 Lima International Exhibition.
Costa Verde is Lima's coastal corridor, a strip of land along the Pacific Ocean connecting multiple districts including Miraflores, Barranco, and Chorrillos. The area is defined by its dramatic high-cliff landscape that drops to beaches below.
Calle Loreto is a narrow pedestrian passage in central Cusco, Peru, notable for preserving a substantial section of original Inca stone wall along its eastern flank.
The Palomino Islands are a small archipelago off the coast of Callao, Lima's principal port city.
Plaza Regocijo is a secondary colonial square in the historic centre of Cusco, Peru. It sits adjacent to the municipal buildings and several museums, forming part of the city's compact old-city circuit.
La Punta is a compact peninsula district within the constitutional province of Callao, adjacent to Lima.
Plaza San Blas is a compact public square in Cusco's historic San Blas neighbourhood, perched on the steep hillside above the main plaza. It serves as the informal heart of the city's artisan quarter, where narrow cobbled streets converge.
Plaza Nazarenas is a quiet historic square in Cusco's upper old city. It connects several significant cultural sites including the Museo de Arte Precolombino (MAP) and Casa Concha.
The Bodega y Quadra Site Museum is a house museum in Lima's historic centre built over excavated colonial remains. It preserves and displays archaeological evidence of early Lima's everyday material culture beneath a historic residential structure.
Casa de Aliaga stands as one of Lima's oldest continuously inhabited colonial houses, located near the historic Plaza Mayor in Peru's capital.
Wayna Tawqaray, also known locally as Huayna Tauqaray, is a lesser-known Inca archaeological site situated near the south-eastern edge of Cusco's urban area.
Jirón de la Unión is a historic pedestrian street in central Lima, Peru. It serves as the traditional commercial spine connecting two of the city's most significant public squares: Plaza Mayor and Plaza San Martín.
Calle del Medio is a central pedestrian street in Cusco's historic core, providing a direct historic connection from Plaza de Armas into the old-city commercial fabric.
The Center for Traditional Textiles of Cusco is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and promoting Cusqueñan weaving traditions. Founded to support indigenous textile arts, the center operates as a cultural institution and social enterprise.
Paseo de Aguas is an eighteenth-century water promenade in Lima, Peru. It forms part of the extended Rímac heritage circuit situated north of the river.
The Plaza de Toros de Acho is the historic bullring of Lima, situated in the Rímac district. Constructed in 1766, it stands as one of the oldest surviving bullrings in the Americas.
Wanchaq District is one of the eight districts composing the city of Cusco, Peru. It lies south of the historic colonial core, serving as a modern commercial and transportation zone rather than a tourist monument.
Plaza Limacpampa is a public square in upper-central Cusco, Peru. It functions as a connecting space between the historic San Blas neighbourhood, the Qorikancha temple complex, and the modern commercial areas of the city.
The Puente de Piedra, or Stone Bridge of Lima, is a colonial-era bridge spanning the Rímac River in Peru's capital. It serves as a historic connection between Lima's historic centre and the Rímac district.
The Museum of Italian Art, known locally as Museo de Arte Italiano, is a compact state museum in Lima, Peru. It holds the distinction of being unique in the country for its focused collection of twentieth-century Italian art.
The Sacred Valley of the Incas, locally Valle Sagrado de los Incas, is the Urubamba River corridor northwest of Cusco. This broad valley between Pisac and Ollantaytambo served as a vital agricultural, spiritual, and administrative zone for the Inca Empire.
The Archbishop's Palace of Lima stands on the eastern side of Plaza Mayor, the historic heart of Peru's capital. Its ornate façade and carved balconies form one of Plaza Mayor's defining architectural edges.
The Museo Arqueológico Rafael Larco Herrera is Lima's leading museum for pre-Columbian art and archaeology. Founded by Rafael Larco Hoyle in 1926, it occupies an eighteenth-century vice-royal mansion in the Pueblo Libre district.
Coricancha, known locally as Qurikancha, was the most important temple in the Inca Empire. Located in Cusco, Peru, it was dedicated primarily to Inti, the sun god.
The Biblioteca Nacional del Perú is Peru's national library and principal documentary institution. Headquartered in the San Borja district of Lima, it serves as the country's central repository for published works, manuscripts, and historical records.
The Museo del Banco Central de Reserva del Perú, commonly known as Museo Central, is a museum institution located in Lima, Peru. It operates under the auspices of the Central Reserve Bank of Peru, the country's monetary authority.
The Pedro de Osma Museum is a cultural institution located in the Barranco district of Lima, Peru. It occupies a refined historic mansion that serves as both architectural heritage site and exhibition space.
Palacio de Torre Tagle is a historic palace in Lima, Peru, recognised as a canonical example of Lima Baroque domestic architecture.
The Museo Nacional de Arqueología, Antropología e Historia del Perú is Peru's oldest and largest state museum. It houses extensive collections spanning the nation's archaeological and historical heritage.
Casa Aliaga is a historic colonial mansion in Lima, Peru, situated in the city centre near the Plaza de Armas.
Urubamba is a valley town in the Sacred Valley of the Incas, situated between Cusco and Machu Picchu. It serves as a practical base for travellers exploring the region and functions as a local market centre.
Casa O'Higgins is a historic house museum in Lima, Peru, associated with Bernardo O'Higgins, the Chilean independence leader. The building preserves connections to his residence in the city during the independence era.
The José Carlos Mariátegui House Museum is the preserved final residence of Peru's most influential twentieth-century political thinker and writer.
The Lima Mint, known locally as the Museo Numismático del Perú, is a numismatic museum in Lima, Peru.
The Metropolitan Museum of Lima, known locally as the Museo Metropolitano de Lima, is a cultural institution in Lima, Peru. Its Wikidata entry Q20021983 and OpenStreetMap way/174868391 establish its documented identity.
The Panteón de los Próceres is a former Jesuit church in Lima that now functions as Peru's national memorial to heroes of Peruvian independence.
The Gold Museum of Peru and Arms of the World is a private museum in Lima housing collections assembled by Miguel Mujica Gallo. It displays pre-Columbian gold and silver artifacts alongside a substantial arms collection from various periods and regions.
Casa Goyeneche is a historic building located in Lima, Peru. The structure holds significance within the architectural and cultural heritage of the city.
Casa de Osambela, known in English as Osambela House, is a historic building located in Lima, Peru. The structure represents an important example of colonial-era architecture in the Peruvian capital.
The Naval Museum of Peru, locally known as Museo Naval del Perú, is a national maritime museum located in Callao, the historic port district adjacent to Lima.
The Pantanos de Villa Wildlife Refuge, known locally as Refugio de Vida Silvestre Los Pantanos de Villa, is a protected wetland area situated within the metropolitan boundaries of Lima, Peru.
Lomas de Lúcumo is a seasonal fog-fed hill ecosystem located on the southern outskirts of Lima, within the district of Pachacamac. These lomas formations represent one of the rare green landscapes in Peru's otherwise arid coastal desert.
The Museo Nacional del Perú, commonly known as MUNA, is Peru's flagship national museum. It stands near the Pachacamac archaeological complex southeast of central Lima.
The Inka Museum, known locally as Museo Inka, occupies the colonial Admiral's House in Cusco. As a university museum, it provides what is considered the city's strongest broad introduction to Inca material culture.
The National Museum of Peruvian Culture is a Lima institution dedicated to Peru's popular arts and traditional culture. Established under government cultural auspices, it occupies a purpose-built site in the capital.
The Place of Memory, Tolerance and Social Inclusion, known locally as LUM, is a museum in Lima dedicated to documenting and reflecting upon Peru's internal armed conflict from 1980 to 2000.
The Regional Historical Museum of Cusco, known locally as Museo Histórico Regional del Cusco, occupies the Casa Garcilaso, a key historic residence in the city.
The Museum of Contemporary Art of Lima, known locally as Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Lima or MAC Lima, is Lima's principal purpose-led contemporary-art museum.
The Museo de la Electricidad is a small science and technology museum located in Barranco, Lima. It documents the history of electrification in Peru and the development of historic urban transport systems.
The Museum of Religious Art occupies the former palace of Inca Roca, a significant noble residence in the Inca imperial capital. The building later passed to colonial religious authorities and was adapted for ecclesiastical use.
Pachacamac Archaeological Sanctuary is a major pre-Columbian archaeological site located southeast of Lima, Peru. The complex was a significant religious and pilgrimage center for multiple Andean cultures over approximately 1,500 years, from around 200 CE through the Inca period.
The Estadio Nacional del Perú is Peru's principal football stadium and a major civic landmark in Lima.
Parque de las Leyendas is a major metropolitan zoo in Lima, Peru. Its official website identifies it as a zoological park integrated with cultural and natural heritage elements.
The Amano Pre-Columbian Textile Museum is a specialized museum in Lima dedicated to preserving and exhibiting Andean textile traditions. Founded by Yoshitaro Amano, a Japanese collector who settled in Peru, the institution houses a significant private collection assembled over decades.
Source: OpenStreetMap contributors, Wikidata ·
Ten to fourteen days can combine Lima, Cusco and the Sacred Valley with one additional region. Altitude adjustment and rail or road transfers need their own time, so compressing the Andes and Amazon into the same short visit is unwise.
Peru’s Migraciones authority publishes admission information. Passport, nationality and permitted-stay rules must be checked for the actual traveller, and any border or immigration form should come from the government service.
Lima is the principal air hub, with domestic services to Cusco, Arequipa and other gateways. Intercity buses cover many routes, and selected tourist trains serve the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu area.
May to September is the broad dry-season window for many Andean routes. Lima’s coastal conditions and Amazon rainfall follow different patterns, so an itinerary spanning regions needs separate forecasts and access checks.
Peru uses the sol (PEN). Current acceptance and withdrawal charges are Not recorded here; confirm whether an operator expects soles, cards or advance payment before leaving a major city.
Peru records 105 for police and 116 for fire services. Type A and C sockets use 220 V; national tap-water guidance is Not recorded, so obtain local advice.
