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Welcome to Peru is as complex as its most intricate and exquisite weavings. Festivals mark ancient rites, Wel the urban vanguard fuels innovation and SHU bestows splendid diversity. Ima Peru is a place of ancient beliefs where age-old pageants unfold to the tune of booming brass Clou PERU bands. Its rich cultural heritage is never more Inca real and visceral than when you are immersed TOP SIGHTS, AUTHENTIC EXPERIENCES streetside in the swirling madness of a festival. By: Deities of old are reincarnated as Christian saints, pilgrims climb mountains in the dead of night and Key icons are paraded through crowded plazas as logic once were the of Inca rulers. cult inca Visitors flock to the glorious Inca citadel of Machu lous Picchu, yet this feted site is just a flash in a 5000- year history of Peruvian settlement. Explore the peru dusty remnants of , the largest pre- sky, Columbian ruins in all the . Fly over the trav puzzling etched into the arid earth at . Or peruse ’s great museums that reveal in full detail the sophistication, skill and passion of these lost civilizations. Save time for adventure too. Giant sand dunes, chiseled peaks and Pacific breaks are a few heartbeats away from rush-hour traffic: this vast country translates to paradise for the active traveler. Take it in small bites and don’t rush. Festivals can swallow you whole for days. And that’s when you realize that in Peru the adventure usually lies in getting there.

Brendan Sainsbury, Alex Egerton, Carolyn McCarthy, Peru is a place where age-old Phillip Tang, Luke Waterson pageants unfold to the tune of booming brass bands

Machu Picchu (p200) THE WORLD IN HDR/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

001-welcome-to-bo-per2.indd1-welcome-to-bo-per2.indd 1 99/04/2019/04/2019 9:55:599:55:59 AMAM #_ QUITO Caq egro uetá N N O R T H 2 P A C I F I C Napo O C E A N urá Jap Unini Sa ntiago PERU Contents Golfo de Putumayo Guayaquil Am az on a Plan Your Trip Tumbes #] s ^# Iquitos Peru’s Top 12 ...... 4 Tours ...... 86 Lampa ...... 137 Tru Tumbes Need to Know ...... 16 Eating ...... 86 Pucará ...... 138 ...at Ta la ra #] Hot Spots For...... 18 South Shore Towns ....139 Javari Cha í Essential Peru...... 20 Lagunas a a t Hua Piura ^# g #\ Reserva u Month by Month .....22 Arequipa 89 a J ll Nacional Coari Sigh Jaén Bagua Grande a Pacaya-Samiria Get Inspired ...... 25 ...at a glance 90 Cuzco 143 #] #] u To u r H#] Yurimaguas Itineraries ...... 26 ...at a glance 144 ^# El Misti ...... 92 Eatin Moyobamba U Family Travel ...... 32 c Marañón #] Ta ra p o to a Monasterio Cuzco’s Cuisine ...... 146 Drin y

a de Santa Catalina .....94 Festivals & Events ...148

^# l Ente

Chiclayo i uá Cajamarca Jur AMAZON Architecture Qorikancha ...... 150 ^# Juanjuí #] BASIN Pacasmayo #] Lima 35 Walking Tour ...... 96 Sacsaywamán ...... 152 Parque BRAZIL Parque ...at a glance 36 Sights ...... 98 Cuzco Walking Tour ..154 Nacional Nacional The Río Abiseo H Cordillera Azul ^# u Activities ...... 99 Sights ...... 156 TRUJILLO p221 Reserva a Top Museums ...... 38 Cor l Nacional l #] Courses ...... 101 Activities ...... 164 a ...at Calipuy g Pucallpa Eating in Lima ...... 40 a Tours ...... 101 Courses ...... 167 rús ...... 44 Pu Shopping ...... 102 Tours ...... 167 Cord Chimbote #] THE CORDILLERAS Downtown Lima #] ira Huaraz de Eating ...... 102 Shopping ...... 169 Cha Casma#] #] p235 a Walking Tour ...... 48 M Drinking Eating ...... 170 San Parque uxi Sights ...... 50 Nacional ^# Huánuco It & Nightlife ...... 104 Drinking & Nightlife ....174 Hua Huascarán Activities ...... 53  Parque Nacional THE AMAZON Entertainment ...... 175 Yanachaga Tours ...... 56 Chemillen BASIN p253 Where to Stay ...... 179 o Shopping ...... 56 Santuario Histórico b m Cañón del The Chacamarca a Eating ...... 57  T Madre de Dios Ta r ma #] o Colca 107 Bas #] i Parque Parque Drinking & Nightlife ...... 61 Chancay nete

R a Nacional Nacional ...at a glance 108 The Sacred ...at

C Entertainment ...... 62 Huancayo Otishi Manu LIMA p35 #_ ^# Valley 181 Rio Where to Stay ...... 67 Visiting Parq Reserva Nor THE Puerto ...at a glance 182 Yauyos-Cochas MACHU Nac Huancavelica SACRED ^# Maldonado Gu the Canyon ...... 110 ^# PICCHU Reserva apo S O U T H #] VALLEY Nacional ré Reserva Nacional Pisac Ruins...... 184 Rese p197 Tambopata P A C I F I C Ayacucho ^# p181 Paracas & the Salinas y Paca O C E A N U S ca Beni a Pisco ya ^# Parque Nacional n Islas Ballestas 69 Aguada Blanca ...... 116 Ruins ...... 186 Iquit #] Andahuaylas #] #] li CUZCO p143 Bahuaja Sonene M Mamoré a Abancay r ...at a glance 70 Chivay ...... 118 Chinchero ...... 188 Lagu PARACAS & THE ISLAS BALLESTAS p69 #]  ti Ica n Yanque ...... 120 Pisac ...... 190 Reserva Islas Ballestas ...... 72 Nacional Cabanaconde ...... 121 Urubamba ...... 191 Paracas Reserva Nacional #\ R í Ollantaytambo ...... 194 o Pucará de Paracas ...... 74 NAZCA p79 O #\ c LAKE TITICACA p123 o Juliaca El Chaco (Paracas) ...... 76 ña CAÑÓN DEL #] Sa Lake Titicaca 123 Lago Pisco ...... 77 COLCA p107Titicaca n ...at a glance 124 197 Puno #] M

Reserva Nacional i ...at a glance 198 Salinas y i g Islas Uros...... 126 ^# n u AREQUIPA p89 e Aguada Blanca a l #_ LA PAZ c Nazca 79 Chullpas ...... 128 Visiting  a 0400km p ...at a glance 80 N# a Isla Taquile ...... 130 Machu Picchu ...... 200 0 200 miles Y Río Tambo Puno ...... 132 The Inca Trail ...... 210 ...... 82   Juliaca ...... 136 Aguas Calientes ...... 216 Tacna Sights ...... 84 ^#  

001-welcome-to-bo-per2.indd1-welcome-to-bo-per2.indd 2   99/04/2019/04/2019 9:56:199:56:19 AMAM CONTENTS PLAN YOUR TRIP 3 *

137 Trujillo 221 138 ...at a glance 222 139 Chan Chan ...... 224 ...... 226 143 Sights ...... 228 144 Tours ...... 229 Eating ...... 231 146 Drinking & Nightlife ....231 148 Entertainment ...... 231 150 152 154 The 156 Cordilleras 235 164 ...at a glance 236 167 167 Cordillera Blanca ....238 169 Chavín de Huántar .. 242 170 Santa Cruz Trail ...... 244 174 Huaraz ...... 246 175 179 The Amazon Basin 253 ...at a glance 254 181 Parque 182 Nacional Manu ...... 256 184 Reserva Nacional Pacaya-Samiria ...... 258 186 Iquitos ...... 262 188 Lagunas ...... 267 In Focus 269 Survival Guide 298 190 .191 Peru Today ...... 270 Directory A–Z ...... 299 194 History ...... 272 Transportation ...... 308 Outdoor Activities ..... 283 Language ...... 312 The Natural World ...... 287 Index ...... 314 197 Food & Drink ...... 291 Symbols & Map Key ....322 198 Music & the Arts ...... 295

200 210 Woman in traditional dress holding a baby llama, Cuzco (143) 216 MEDIAPRODUCTION/GETTY IMAGES ©

001-welcome-to-bo-per2.indd1-welcome-to-bo-per2.indd 3 99/04/2019/04/2019 9:56:209:56:20 AMAM 8 PLAN YOUR TRIP PERU’S TOP 12 4 Arequipa Cuisine and architecture in an ethereal cityscape Crowned by dazzling baroque architecture hewn out of the local white sillar rock, Arequipa is primarily a Spanish colonial city that hasn’t strayed far from its conception. Its beautiful natural setting amid volcanoes and high pampa is complemented by a 400-year-old monastery, a huge cathedral and innovative fusion cuisine.

5 Cuzco The ancient Inca capital With ancient cobblestone streets, grandiose baroque churches and the remnants of masterful Inca temples, no city looms larger in Andean history than Cuzco, which has been inhabited continuously since precolonial times. Cuzco also serves as the gateway to Machu Picchu. Mystic, commercial and chaotic, this unique city is still a stunner. Where else would you find ornately dressed women walking llamas on leashes, a museum for magical plants, and the wildest nightlife in the high ?

002-top-12-bo-per2.indd2-top-12-bo-per2.indd 8 002/04/20192/04/2019 118:12:328:12:32 PERU’S TOP 12 PLAN YOUR TRIP 11 MATYAS REHAK/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Nazca Lines Mysterious giant geoglyphs Made by aliens? Laid out by prehistoric balloonists? Conceived as a giant astronomical chart? No two evaluations of Peru’s giant geo- glyphs – known as the Nazca Lines – are the same. The mysteries have attracted outsiders since the 1940s, but no one has been able to fully crack the code. The lines remain unfathomed, enigmatic and loaded with historic intrigue. 7

002-top-12-bo-per2.indd2-top-12-bo-per2.indd 1111 002/04/20192/04/2019 118:12:348:12:34 PERU’S TOP 12 PLAN YOUR TRIP 15 CHRISTIAN DECLERCQ/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Trujillo Colonial architecture and modern culture Old Trujillo boasts a dazzling display of preserved splendor. The city’s historic center is chock full of elegant churches, mansions and otherwise unspoiled colonial constructions, which are steeped today in a modern motif that lends the city a lovely, livable feel. Add the close proximity of impressive Chimú ruins such as Chan Chan, and the Moche pyramids at Huacas del Sol y de la Luna, and Trujillo easily trumps its northern rivals in style and grace. 11 CHRISTIAN VINCES/SHUTTERSTOCK©

Islas Ballestas The Pacific Ocean’s most astonishing fauna A barren collection of guano-covered rocks, the Islas Ballestas sup- port an extraordinary ecosystem of birds, sea mammals and fish. They also represent one of Peru’s most successful conservation projects. Boat trips around the island’s cliffs and arches allow close encounters with barking sea lions, huddled Humboldt penguins and tens of thousands of birds. 12

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