Attractions in Lima

The Cathedral of Lima dominates the eastern flank of Plaza Mayor and has stood in various forms since 1535, making it one of the oldest cathedrals in the Americas. The current structure, rebuilt after the devastating 1746 earthquake, blends Renaissance, Baroque, and Neoclassical styles.

Romantic 19th-century bridge in Barranco, traditionally crossed with held breath to grant a wish..

Plaza Mayor (formerly Plaza de Armas) is the founding center of Lima, established by Francisco Pizarro in 1535. Surrounded by the Cathedral, the Government Palace, the Archbishop's Palace, and the Municipal Palace, it remains the ceremonial heart of Peru's capital.

Iglesia de San Pedro is one of Lima's most lavishly decorated Baroque churches, built by the Jesuits in 1638. Its gilded altars and colonial-era ceiling paintings are among the finest in South America.

Huaca Pucllana is a monumental adobe and clay pyramid built by the Lima culture between 200 and 700 AD, rising dramatically amid the restaurants and apartment buildings of modern Miraflores. This archaeological complex served as an important ceremonial and administrative center.

The Convento de Santo Domingo is one of Lima's oldest religious foundations, established in 1535 shortly after the city's founding. It is the burial place of three Peruvian saints — Santa Rosa de Lima, San Martín de Porres, and San Juan Macías — making it an important pilgrimage site.

Pachacámac is one of the most important archaeological sites in coastal South America, a vast complex of pyramids and temples spanning over 1,500 years of continuous occupation. Located 30 km southeast of central Lima, it was the most important oracle and pilgrimage center in the pre-Columbian Andes.

Plaza San Martín is a grand neoclassical square in central Lima, named after the Argentine general José de San Martín who declared Peru's independence in 1821.

The Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Merced is one of Lima's oldest religious foundations, with a magnificent Churrigueresque granite façade and peaceful colonial cloisters.

The Fortaleza del Real Felipe is the largest Spanish colonial fortress in South America, built to defend the port of Callao against pirates and naval attacks. Its star-shaped bastions and thick stone walls now house a military museum with artifacts spanning 300 years.

Presbítero Maestro is South America's first monumental public cemetery, a remarkable outdoor gallery of 19th and early 20th-century funerary architecture.

Huaca Huallamarca is a restored adobe stepped pyramid from the Lima culture (c. 200–700 AD) sitting incongruously amid the skyscrapers of San Isidro. A small museum displays excavated artefacts.

The Monasterio de San Francisco is Lima's most architecturally impressive colonial religious complex, renowned for its underground catacombs, Moorish-influenced cloister, and historic library. Built in the 17th century, it survived the catastrophic 1746 earthquake largely intact.

Beneath the Basílica de San Francisco, an ossuary of 25,000 bones arranged in geometric patterns..

Casa de Aliaga is the oldest colonial mansion in the Americas still inhabited by the same family. Granted to Jerónimo de Aliaga by Francisco Pizarro in 1535, it has been continuously occupied for 17 generations.

The Palacio de Gobierno (Government Palace) is the official residence of Peru's president, occupying the north side of Plaza Mayor on the site where Francisco Pizarro built his original residence in 1535. The current French Baroque-inspired building dates from 1937.

The Puente de los Suspiros (Bridge of Sighs) is Barranco's most romantic landmark, a small wooden bridge spanning a pedestrian alley that descends to the Pacific shore. According to local legend, those who cross it while holding their breath will have their wish granted.

The Circuito Mágico del Agua (Magic Water Circuit) holds the Guinness World Record for the world's largest fountain complex in a public park. Located within the Parque de la Reserva, its 13 imaginatively designed fountains combine water, light, and music in spectacular evening shows.

Salto del Fraile is a dramatic ocean-side cliff in Chorrillos where, on weekends, a performer dressed as a friar leaps from the cliff into the Pacific as a tourist spectacle.