Peru
Arequipa
Peru's White City: a colonial centre cut from volcanic stone beneath El Misti, and the gateway to Colca Canyon.
Arequipa, Peru's second city, is built from sillar, a pale volcanic stone that earns it the name the White City, and sits at around 2,300 metres beneath the snow-streaked cone of El Misti. Its colonial centre, a World Heritage site, is anchored by the walled Santa Catalina Monastery, and its picanterias make it one of the great food cities of Peru. Most visitors also use it as the base for Colca Canyon and its condors.
Suggested stay
3–5 days
Language
Spanish, Quechua
Currency
PEN
Timezone
UTC-5
Why you'll love Arequipa
The White City Arcades, churches and mansions carved from pale volcanic sillar give the centre a look found nowhere else in Peru
Santa Catalina A walled convent the size of a small town, with painted lanes, cloisters and cells you can wander for hours
Volcanoes on the skyline El Misti, Chachani and Pichu Pichu frame almost every street view and rooftop
Picanterias Arequipa's own cooking, from rocoto relleno to chupe de camarones and queso helado, is a reason to come in itself
Best time to visit
all year
20-22° days
16.399° S, 71.537° W
UTC-5 · America/Lima
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Weather & when to go to Arequipa
Month by month: typical highs and lows, rainfall and rain days.
✓ Best all year
Cards tinted by calculated verdict · big number = typical daily high, small = low · hover for conditions
When to avoid Arequipa
No bad season: the city sits in dry, sunny highland desert and is pleasant year-round. The real quirks are altitude, fierce midday sun and cold nights, which bite much harder up on the high passes on the way to Colca.
Top things to do in Arequipa
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Santa Catalina Monastery - a city within the city
history culture arts 👍 PopularFounded in the late 16th century and closed to the outside world for nearly four hundred years, the convent is a walled maze of streets named after Spanish cities, cloisters, kitchens and nuns' cells painted in deep blue and terracotta. A small community of nuns still lives in one corner. Evening visits by lamplight are especially atmospheric.
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Plaza de Armas and the Cathedral - the sillar heart
history scenic 👍 PopularOne of the finest main squares in South America, lined on three sides by two-storey sillar arcades and on the fourth by the long neoclassical Cathedral, rebuilt more than once after earthquakes. Climb to the Cathedral roof for El Misti rising over the bell towers.
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Museo Santuarios Andinos - Juanita, the ice maiden
history culture arts ⭐ Highly recommendedA small university museum built around the frozen body of an Inca girl sacrificed on the summit of Ampato volcano more than five centuries ago and found in 1995. Guided visits explain the capacocha ritual and show the offerings buried with her.
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Iglesia de la Compania - mestizo baroque in stone
history culture artsThe Jesuit church just off the main square has one of the richest carved facades in Peru, where Andean motifs mix with Spanish baroque. Inside, the Capilla de San Ignacio has a painted dome of jungle plants and birds, and the old cloisters beside it are a quiet stop.
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Yanahuara - the mirador and its arches
scenic culture artsAcross the Chili River, this old village-turned-district has a small square with a row of sillar arches carved with verses, framing a classic view of El Misti. Its church has a fine carved facade, and the lanes around it are some of the prettiest in the city.
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Picanterias - rocoto relleno and chupe de camarones
food ⭐ Highly recommendedArequipa's traditional lunch houses serve big plates of rocoto relleno, chupe de camarones made with river shrimp, solterito salad, pastel de papa and, on Sunday mornings, adobo pork stew, washed down with chicha. La Nueva Palomino in Yanahuara is a classic. Finish with queso helado, the city's cinnamon ice cream, sold around the centre.
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Monasterio de la Recoleta - books and cloisters
history culture artsA Franciscan monastery across the river with quiet cloisters, an old library of thousands of antique volumes and maps, and an eclectic museum of Amazonian artefacts gathered by missionaries.
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Mercado San Camilo - the city's larder
foodThe big central market a few blocks from the main square is the place to see the produce behind the picanterias: potatoes in dozens of varieties, rocoto peppers, cheeses, fruit juices and stalls serving cheap breakfasts and soups.
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Colca Canyon - condors and terraced valleys
nature wildlife scenic 👍 PopularAmong the deepest canyons in the world, reached by a high road past vicunas and a pass near 4,900 metres. Andean condors ride the morning thermals at Cruz del Condor, pre-Inca terraces line the valley around Chivay and Yanque, and hot springs wait at the end of the day.
Best areas to stay in Arequipa
$ Budget $$ Mid-range $$$ Premium
Historic Centre
First-time visitors $$Sillar streets around the Plaza de Armas
Explore hotels in Historic Centre →
San Lazaro
Budget travellers $Oldest barrio of lanes and hostels
Explore hotels in San Lazaro →
Yanahuara
Couples $$Quiet old village across the river
Explore hotels in Yanahuara →
Live nightly prices from Booking.com, Agoda and others, centred on Arequipa
Getting to & around Arequipa
Getting there
Fly into Arequipa's airport (AQP) from Lima or Cusco, or arrive by long-distance coach from Lima, Cusco or Puno
Flight
Alfredo Rodriguez Ballon International Airport (AQP)
The airport lies northwest of the city, around 20-30 minutes by taxi to the Plaza de Armas. Most flights are domestic, with frequent connections from Lima and Cusco.
Coach
Terminal Terrestre and Terrapuerto
Overnight coaches from Lima take around 15-17 hours; Cusco is roughly 10 hours and Puno 6. The two adjoining terminals sit south of the centre
Train
The Belmond Andean Explorer, a luxury sleeper train, links Cusco and Puno with Arequipa on multi-night journeys
Getting around
Walking
The historic centre is compact and flat enough to walk, and Yanahuara is a stroll over the river
Free
Taxi
Cheap and plentiful; use app-based rides or radio taxis booked by your hotel, and agree the fare first if hailing
TBC
Combi and bus
Minibuses and city buses run everywhere, but routes are hard to read for visitors and they get crowded
TBC
Tour transport
Colca, El Misti and the countryside are usually reached on agency tours that pick up from hotels
TBC
Day trips from Arequipa
Colca Canyon
1-2 daysCondors and terraced canyon
The classic trip from Arequipa. One-day tours leave before dawn; an overnight in Chivay or Yanque adds hot springs and an unhurried morning at Cruz del Condor. Hikers go on to Cabanaconde to trek down to the Sangalle oasis on the canyon floor.
Getting there
tour | bus | car
About 3-4 hours by road to Chivay over a high pass, mostly on agency tours or tourist buses
El Misti
2 daysVolcano ascent
The city's volcano, at 5,822 metres, is a non-technical but punishing guided climb with a high camp and a pre-dawn summit push over loose scree. Proper acclimatisation first is essential. Chachani, just over 6,000 metres, is climbed the same way.
Getting there
tour | car
4x4 from the city to the trailhead, then on foot with a guide
Ruta del Sillar
Half dayStone quarries and canyon
See where the White City's stone comes from: quarries where workers still cut sillar blocks by hand, giant carvings in the quarry walls, and the narrow Culebrillas gorge in the Anashuayco ravine.
Getting there
tour | car
About 30-40 minutes by car or tour to the quarries on the city's northern edge
Campina and Sabandia Mill
Half dayCountryside and colonial mill
The terraced farmland around the city, with the working stone Sabandia mill, the hillside Mansion del Fundador and village viewpoints over the volcanoes. A good gentle half day, often combined with a long picanteria lunch.
Getting there
tour | car
About 20-30 minutes by taxi or tour into the farmland south and east of the city
A little history of Arequipa
Arequipa's valley was farmed long before the Spanish, and Inca-era terraces still line the countryside around it. The Spanish city was founded in 1540 beside the Chili River and grew rich as a farming and trading town between the coast and the silver of the highlands. It was built, and rebuilt, in sillar, the white volcanic stone of the surrounding hills, after a string of earthquakes and the 1600 eruption of Huaynaputina, which buried the region in ash.
The city has a long independent streak, with a history of revolts and a local pride that still jokes about the Independent Republic of Arequipa. It is the birthplace of the writer Mario Vargas Llosa, and its historic centre was listed as a World Heritage site in 2000. The discovery of the Inca girl Juanita on Ampato in 1995 made it a centre of high-altitude archaeology.
The Spanish city is founded beside the Chili River
Santa Catalina Monastery is founded as a convent for daughters of wealthy families
The eruption of Huaynaputina buries the region in ash
A great earthquake devastates the city, and the Cathedral is rebuilt once more
Mario Vargas Llosa is born in Arequipa
Santa Catalina opens to visitors after centuries of enclosure
The frozen body of the Inca girl Juanita is found on the summit of Ampato
The historic centre is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site
A major earthquake brings down one of the Cathedral's towers, later restored
Know before you go
Payment
Cash preferred
English
Widely spoken
Wifi
Reliable
Power
Type A / B / C
230 V, 60 Hz
Dialing
+51
Mobile network & SIM card
Get an eSIM before you fly
A Peru eSIM installs in minutes and works the moment you switch off flight mode. No SIM swap, no roaming bill.
FAQs about Arequipa
▸ When is the best time to visit Arequipa?
Any time of year works: the city is dry and sunny most days, with warm afternoons and cool nights. The main thing to plan around is the cold at altitude, which is sharper at night up in Colca Canyon and on the high passes.
▸ Is altitude a problem in Arequipa?
The city sits around 2,300 metres, high enough to feel breathless on stairs but low enough that most people adjust quickly. It is a good place to acclimatise before Cusco or Lake Titicaca. The road to Colca crosses a pass near 4,900 metres, which is a real jump, so take the first day easy.
▸ Can you visit Colca Canyon as a day trip?
Yes, but it is a long day with a pre-dawn start and many hours in a vehicle. An overnight in Chivay or Yanque is far more relaxed, adds the hot springs, and puts you at Cruz del Condor in the morning when the condors fly. Trekkers allow two or three days from Cabanaconde.
▸ How many days do you need in Arequipa?
Two days covers Santa Catalina, the main square, the Juanita museum, Yanahuara and a picanteria lunch. Add one or two more for Colca Canyon, and several extra if you plan to climb El Misti or Chachani.
▸ What should I eat in Arequipa?
Rocoto relleno, a spicy stuffed pepper, is the signature, alongside chupe de camarones, a rich river-shrimp soup, and solterito salad. Sunday brings adobo, a slow-cooked pork stew. For something sweet, try queso helado, the local cinnamon-dusted ice cream.
More in Peru
Cusco
The Inca empire's capital, still standing underneath the colonial city built on top of it.
✓ best Apr-NovIquitos
The biggest city on earth you cannot drive to, and the jumping-off point for Peru's Amazon.
✓ best May-OctLake Titicaca (Puno)
The Inca birthplace of the sun: reed islands, weaving islands and island homestays on a high Andean lake.
✓ best Mar-Jan