Lima · boutique
A garden house in Miraflores
A restored 1920s house a short walk from the clifftop parks, with a quiet garden and a bar that takes its pisco seriously.
The Coast
Lima
The capital, the clifftops and the best tables in South America
- Altitude
- ~150 m (492 ft)verify
- Altitude band
- Low
- Time needed
- 1–3 nights
- Zone
- The Coast
Most people treat Lima as an airport. Don't. Spend at least a night here and you'll find clifftop walks above the Pacific, colonial churches, Barranco's murals and a food scene that brings chefs here from around the world. It's also near sea level, so your body gets a gentle first day.
Altitude note: Most of the city sits between sea level and about 160 m (verify).
No altitude effects expected. Altitude, explained
Highlights
- Miraflores and Barranco clifftops
- The historic centre and its balconies
- Surquillo market
- Pre-Inca huacas in the middle of the city
What to eat here
Ceviche
Raw white fish 'cooked' in lime juice with red onion, chilli and salt, served with sweet potato and corn. Lunch food: Peruvians rarely eat it at night.
Tiradito
Ceviche's Japanese-influenced cousin: thin slices of fish, no onion, a smooth chilli sauce poured over the top.
Causa limeña
Layers of yellow potato mashed with lime and ají amarillo, filled with chicken, tuna or crab. Cold, bright and very Lima.
Lomo saltado
Beef, tomato and onion stir-fried in a wok with soy sauce, served with chips and rice. Chinese-Peruvian cooking at its most loved.
Ají de gallina
Shredded chicken in a creamy yellow-chilli and walnut sauce. Comfort food, mild enough for most children.
Anticuchos
Skewers of marinated beef heart grilled over charcoal, with an Afro-Peruvian history going back centuries. Street food at dusk.
Pisco
Grape brandy from the valleys south of Lima. Drink it in a pisco sour, or neat to taste the grape.
Picarones
Squash and sweet-potato doughnuts fried to order and drizzled with fig-leaf syrup.
Lima's restaurant scene
From tasting menus that map Peru by altitude to cevicherías that close at 5pm, Lima is the place to book a table months ahead.
Accommodation
Where to stay in Lima
Journeys
Journeys that go here
10 daysFirst Peru, Done Right
Lima's tables, the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu and Cusco, in the order your lungs would choose.
From US$4,200 pp
8 daysThe Classic Inca Trail
Two nights acclimatising first, then four days on original stone paths to the Sun Gate.
From US$3,600 pp
14 daysAndes & Amazon
The Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu and Cusco, then down into the rainforest, and a last night by the Pacific.
From US$6,800 pp
10 daysPeru for Food Lovers
Lima's tables, Sacred Valley farms, Cusco's markets and Arequipa's picanterías.
From US$4,800 pp
12 daysThe Wild North
Glacier lakes above Huaraz, adobe cities near Trujillo and the cloud-forest fortress of Kuélap.
From US$4,900 pp
11 daysPeru with Kids
Sea lions, Inca ruins, a train through the gorge and three days in the rainforest, at a family pace.
From US$4,600 pp
The Coast
Nearby too
Sea lions, desert cliffs and a boat ride to the 'poor man's Galápagos'
Huacachina
~400 mA palm-ringed oasis surrounded by giant dunes
The Nazca Lines
~520 mGiant figures drawn across the desert, best seen from above
Add Lima to your trip
Tell us when you'd like to go and what you'd love to see. Your Peru Specialist will come back with ideas, honest advice on altitude and timing, and a clear price.