Arequipa Sights and Landmarks Guide, Peru

Arequipa - Peru; Tourist attractions

Arequipa is one of the most beautiful cities in Peru. With a backdrop of snowcapped mountains and unique colonial architecture consisting of structures made from sillar stone give Arequipa a mesmerizing tourist appeal. Now a commercial center of Peru, it was founded in the 1500s. Some of the promising tourist attractions of Arequipa are:

Arequipa Cathedral - Constructed in 1656, it is a very dominating structure and stretches along the northern end of Plaza de Armas. It was rebuilt twice; once after it was gutted in fire in the year 1844 and once after its destruction brought by an earthquake in 1868. In the year 2001 too, one of its towers toppled and the other was damaged, however what stands today is a completely repaired structure.

Church of La Compania - It is the oldest church in Arequipa with a structure made of siller stone and it was completed in 1698. The baroque style stone arches have carvings from the Jesuit order and very impressive gargoyles disgorge the rainwater from the roofs.

Casa del Moral - This largest colonial mansion in Arequipa consists of a library that has over 3000 books on Hispanic literature.

Chivay -A side trip from the town, Chivay is located at the east end of Colca Canyon and is a small town. The tourists here make the best of natural hot springs. To make it more convenient there are changing rooms and showers for tourists supplemented with a small café. 

Colca Canyon - This canyon is twice as deep as the Grand Canyon of the United States. At a distance of about 4 hours drive from Arequipa, it is definitely worth a two days trips as there is lots more to see and do apart from the viewing the canyon. The Inca ruins, hot springs and churches make it a wholesome trip.

Museum of Andean sanctuaries: Here one can get to see the mummies that were found at high elevations of volcanoes. This is also where one can see the ice maiden of mount Ampato, the mummy of a 12 year old girl who was a ritual sacrifice done by the Inca priests.

Recoleta Monastery: for tourists searching for more interesting historical collections, the Recoleta monastery provides a view of pre Inca artifacts, mummies and religious art. It also has a collection of artifacts brought by the missionaries from the Amazon basin.