Lima: a first-timer's guide to Peru's capital on the Pacific

Why go

Lima is the place to understand Peru's cooking, from street stalls to tasting menus. It also holds treasures from every era: adobe pyramids built long before the Incas, baroque churches from the Spanish viceroyalty and a creative bohemian quarter by the sea. Because it is at sea level, it is also the easiest place to rest after a long flight.

Getting your bearings

The city is huge, but visitors mostly use three areas. **Miraflores** is the modern seaside district, with the clifftop **Malecón** walkway, parks, hotels and restaurants. Next door, **Barranco** is the arty, bohemian neighbourhood of colourful mansions, murals, bars and the **Puente de los Suspiros** bridge. The **historic centre**, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is about half an hour north by road around the **Plaza Mayor**, with the cathedral, the Government Palace and the **San Francisco Monastery** with its catacombs. **San Isidro** is the business district, with an ancient olive grove park.

What to do

Walk or cycle the Malecón from Miraflores to Barranco and watch paragliders launch from the cliffs. Visit **Huaca Pucllana**, an adobe pyramid right in the middle of Miraflores, and the **Larco Museum** in Pueblo Libre for pre Columbian ceramics, gold and textiles in a colonial mansion. In Barranco, the **MATE** photography museum and **MAC Lima** show contemporary work. In the centre, see the changing of the guard at the Government Palace and the **Casa de Aliaga**, one of the oldest family houses in the Americas.

In the evening, the **Magic Water Circuit** in the Parque de la Reserva puts on a fountain and light show that children love.

Food and drink

Eat ceviche at lunchtime, the way Limeños do, since fish is freshest early. Try **causa**, **lomo saltado**, **anticuchos** (grilled heart skewers) and **ají de gallina**, and look for chifa, the Peruvian Chinese cooking born in Lima's Chinatown near the central market. Sip a pisco sour in a historic bar, and visit **Mercado de Surquillo** for tropical fruit and lunch counters. For a special night, Lima's tasting menu restaurants book up weeks ahead.

Day trips

**Pachacamac**, an hour south, is a vast pre Inca sanctuary with a modern site museum. **Caral**, further north, is one of the oldest cities in the Americas. Many people head south to **Paracas** for the Ballestas Islands boat trip and the desert reserve, either as a long day or an overnight stay.

Safety

Most visitors stay safely in Miraflores, Barranco and San Isidro, but bag snatching and phone theft happen, including from cars stopped in traffic. Use ride-hailing apps or taxis booked by your hotel, keep phones out of sight on the street and visit the historic centre by day. Read your government's current travel advice for areas to avoid.

Where to stay

Miraflores is the easiest first base, close to the sea, restaurants and the airport road. Barranco suits people who want nightlife and character. San Isidro is quieter and businesslike.