Things to do in Arequipa
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Arequipa
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best overall: dry, clear Misti views, reliable condors and Salinas mirror.
Shoulder sweet spot: greener landscapes, warm light, fewer visitors.
Driest and busiest, coldest nights. August brings the anniversary festival week.
Rainy season: city sights fine, Colca roads, Salinas and volcano climbs risky. February is worst.
What's on
- Anniversary of Arequipa 15 August, week around it
The city's biggest party: parades, music and gastronomy fairs. Book well ahead.
- Virgen de Chapi pilgrimage 1 May
Tens of thousands walk to the Chapi sanctuary. Moving to witness, disruptive to road plans.
- Semana Santa Holy Week, March or April
Solemn processions in the historic centre and Easter food traditions in picanterias.
- Fiestas Patrias 28-29 July
National holidays with parades, full buses and higher prices across Peru.
Best things to do in Arequipa
Monasterio de Santa Catalina
A walled convent city in white, blue and red sillar: streets, cloisters and kitchens that need half a day.
Plaza de Armas
Sillar arcades, palms and the Cathedral on one square, with Misti behind it on clear mornings.
Arequipa Cathedral
Rebuilt sillar cathedral filling one side of the plaza, with a museum of colonial art and jewels.
Iglesia de la Compañía de Jesús
Mestizo baroque sillar facade and the painted San Ignacio Chapel dome, steps from the plaza.
Museo Santuarios Andinos
Small guided museum on Inca capacocha and Juanita, the Ampato ice maiden. Check she is on display first.
Mirador de Yanahuara
Sillar arches framing Misti dead centre above the city, best in late afternoon light.
Barrio de San Lázaro
Arequipa's oldest quarter: narrow sillar alleys, small plazas and geranium courtyards at village scale.
Mercado San Camilo
The city's great food market for potatoes, rocoto, cheeses and fresh juices chosen and blended to order.
Where to stay in Arequipa
Historic Centre
first trip, all-round base
Santa Catalina, the plaza, markets and most restaurants within a flat ten minute walk.
San Lázaro and Selva Alegre
quiet nights, light sleepers
Residential lanes north of the centre, still walkable to the plaza in about fifteen minutes.
Yanahuara and Cayma
repeat visitors, food lovers
Leafy local districts with the best picanterias, at the cost of taxis to centre sights.
Vallecito
quiet residential stay
Peaceful mid range hotels south of the centre with quick taxi access and no sightseeing edge.
Think twice about
- Bus terminal area, Hunter
Noisy, traffic choked and built for freight and arrivals, with terminal petty theft risk and nothing to walk to.
- Airport corridor, Cerro Colorado
Dusty industrial sprawl on the airport road. Fine for a dawn flight, isolating for sightseeing.
- Outer districts beyond Yanahuara and Cayma
Cheap listings far from the plaza cost time and taxis, with dark quiet walks back at night.
- Around Mercado San Camilo after dark
Busy and fine by day. At night use well lit populated streets and taxi back if late or far.
Best restaurants in Arequipa
La Nueva Palomino
The defining picanteria: huge sharing platters, stone ground sauces and Sunday adobo. Arrive before noon.
Chicha por Gastón Acurio
Acurio's flagship turning Arequipeno classics into modern fine dining by the monastery.
Zig Zag
Alpaca and beef cooked on hot volcanic stones at the table, with Andean French sauces.
Salamanto
Calm chef driven Peruvian tasting menus a few doors from Chicha on Santa Catalina.
La Benita de los Claustros
Proper picanteria lunch in the Claustros courtyard, no taxi needed from the sightseeing grid.
Picantería La Mundial
Century old picanteria for adobo, chupes and chicha de guinapo at local lunch prices.
13 Monjas
Sourdough pizza, pasta and small plates in a fig shaded sillar courtyard by the monastery.
Mumis
Italian Arequipeno fusion: house pastas including rocoto relleno cappelletti and strong desserts.
Outdoor things to do in Arequipa
Colca Canyon
One of the world's deepest canyons, best over two days for morning condors at Cruz del Condor.
El Misti
Serious two day guided climb to 5822 m, with base camp and a very early summit push.
Chachani
At 6057 m the highest peak here, only for climbers already proven above 5000 m.
Río Chili
Class II to III rafting twenty minutes from the centre, the easiest adventure half day in the city.
Salinas y Aguada Blanca National Reserve
High salt flat with vicuñas and seasonal flamingos, and volcano reflections in dry season shallows.
Cataratas de Pillones
Waterfalls pouring over sculpted rock shelves, usually paired with the nearby stone forest.
Bosque de Piedras de Puruña
Field of wind eroded volcanic rock columns walked in about forty minutes at altitude.
Ruta del Sillar
Working sillar quarries where masons still cut the white stone that built the historic centre.
Best hotels in Arequipa
CIRQA - Relais & Châteaux
Restored 1540 monastery of sillar vaults and courtyards, the city's design hotel benchmark.
Casa Andina Premium Arequipa
18th century mint mansion on Ugarte, polished premium chain service inside historic fabric.
Wyndham Costa del Sol Arequipa
Full service garden hotel with the city's rare outdoor pool, best for families wanting resort ease.
Casa Andina Select Arequipa Plaza
Modern rooms directly on the Plaza de Armas with terrace views to the Cathedral.
Katari Hotel at Plaza de Armas
Small plaza hotel whose panoramic rooftop terrace is worth it for sunset alone.
Los Tambos Boutique Hotel
Small sillar boutique a hundred metres from the plaza, praised for personal service and breakfast.
Hampton by Hilton Arequipa
Contemporary wing in a colonial building, chain reliability with local character in public spaces.
Hotel San Agustín Posada del Monasterio
Long running mid range hotel opposite Santa Catalina, prized purely for location.
Is Arequipa expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | PEN 160 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | PEN 380 a person |
| Splurge | PEN 950 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Colca Canyon: a few days ahead
- El Misti: weeks ahead
- Chachani: weeks ahead
- Río Chili: a few days ahead
- Salinas y Aguada Blanca National Reserve: a few days ahead
- Cataratas de Pillones: a few days ahead
- Bosque de Piedras de Puruña: a few days ahead
- Ruta del Sillar: a few days ahead
- CIRQA, Colca lodges and top dinners sell out in August, Semana Santa and late July.
- Picanterias take no reservations: arrive before noon and queue.
- If you have one day for Colca, do Salinas and Sillar instead. Two days minimum for Colca.
Is Arequipa safe?
- Petty theft, not violent crime, is the realistic risk in markets and crowds.
- Watch drinks in nightlife and use ATMs inside banks in daylight.
- Take altitude slowly: easy first day, excursions only from day two or three.
Arequipa travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- The 3 am Colca day trip is the most regretted buy in local forums.
- Plaza view restaurants charge for the view: drink there, eat a block back.
- Molino de Sabandia disappoints alone: visit it only inside a countryside loop.
Getting around Arequipa: public transport and more
- Walk the centre: plaza to Santa Catalina to San Camilo is within fifteen minutes.
- Use Uber, inDrive or DiDi, or agree taxi fares before getting in and carry small notes.
- Airport is about 8 to 9 km away, roughly thirty minutes by taxi. Arrange a hotel or app pickup.
Who Arequipa suits
| Solo travellers | Great |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | OK |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | OK |
Make Arequipa your trip
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