Valentine’s Day is less than two weeks away, and if you’re traveling to Peru during this time you might be wondering what options you have for a memorable Valentine’s Day in Lima. We’ve compiled our top four romantic sites to visit in Lima, all of which are scenic and easy on a backpacker’s wallet!
The ample gardens and parks of Miraflores’ seaside cliffs and its central park make it the city’s greenest area. Thanks to these, the district offers travelers a scenic, laidback respite from the gray city of Lima. Miraflores is the place to go in Lima if you are looking for freshly-prepared ceviche or hip nightlife. Because it has traditionally been a slightly more affluent district, and is now so popular with travelers, Miraflores is the safest area of Lima. You’ll still want to be wary of pickpockets, but you can certainly go out at night without worry.
On January 18th, Lima will celebrate its 480th founding anniversary. The City of Kings always marks the event in style, with weeks of events. Unfortunately, the official program has yet to be announced, but we’ll be checking every day to get that information to our guests and readers as soon as possible.
October 31st in Peru is not just Halloween, but also Día de la Canción Criolla, Creole Music Day, which honors the unique blend of African, Spanish, and Andean music that has characterized the Peruvian coast since the colonial period. The genre includes the graceful national dance of Peru, the marinera, as well as the upbeat festejo, the bluesy landó, the vals criolla waltz, and the zamacueca, among others. Its superstars include the internationally renowned Susana Baca, Eva Ayllon, and Chabuca Granda.
Just 3 miles west of modern Trujillo, one finds the sprawling, crumbling, and extraordinary ruins of Chan Chan, the former capital of the Chimú Kingdom. The site has been under excavation since the mid 60’s. During its time, Chan Chan was the largest city in the Americas, and it was and remains the largest adobe city on earth. It covered 600 miles along the northern Peruvian coast and housed around 60,000 inhabitants. Even the ruins show how massive the site was: an estimated 10,000 structures remain.