38 Best Sights in The Central Highlands, Peru

Originally a Franciscan mission whose purpose was to bring Christianity to the Natives of the Amazon, this 1725 convent has been completely reconstructed and now comprises an early 19th-century cloister, a neocolonial church erected in 1905, and a library with more than 30,000 books—some from the 15th century. The site's natural history museum displays a selection of regional archaeological finds, including traditional costumes and local crafts picked up by the friars during their evangelizing. A restaurant serves excellent, if simple, Andean food, and several spare but comfortable accommodations are available in the former monks' quarters. Take a S/25 taxi ride for a round-trip to the convent from Concepción's Plaza de Armas. Admission includes a guided tour.

Not long ago, the Central Highlands' Ferrocarril Central Andino laid claim to being the world's highest rail route. Then, in 2006, China's Qinghai-Tibet Railway opened, and the onetime Peruvian champ was knocked down to second place. Despite this loss of title, the trip still merits plenty of superlatives. As the train twists along the 335-km (207-mile) route through the Andes at an average elevation of 3,150 meters (10,335 feet), it regales travelers with some of the most heart-pounding vistas in the sierra. You feel the excitement as the engine chugs its way up the slim steel threads, traversing 58 bridges, endless hairpin curves, and 69 tunnels, including the 1,175-meter (3,854-foot) Galera Tunnel, which, at an altitude of 4,758 meters (15,606 feet), is the climax of the journey. As much as the sublime landscapes, however, it's the feats of engineering wizardry entailed in the railway's construction that leave you in awe.

Getting tickets to the Ferrocarril is a bit tricky: you have to plan around the train's infrequent departures if you want it to be a centerpiece of your Peruvian odyssey. The railway's website lists travel dates, with Lima-Huancayo service running just a handful of days between April and November. Trains leave Lima's Desamparados station for the 14-hour journey at 7 am, arriving in Huancayo around 9 in the evening. Snacks, lunch, and soft drinks are included in the price. You can request oxygen if you get short of breath over the high passes, and mate de coca flows freely at all hours. When making reservations, note that the decades-old clásico cars are okay in a pinch, but the newer turístico ones are much more comfortable, with reclining seats and access to the observation area and bar.  In 2023, the railway suffered severe damage from El Niño–caused landslides, prompting the authorities to suspend service for six months. Operators are looking to resume the Lima-Huancayo run in 2024.

This ghostly abandoned mine dates from 1563, when the discovery of mercury in the hills south of Huancavelica turned the region into a key cog in Spain's precious-metals machine. It devoured the lives of countless Indigenous mitayos (labor conscripts) until 1786, when one of the mine shafts collapsed, killing 200 workers. Thereafter it was sporadically worked by private concessioners until finally being shuttered in the 1970s. If you make the two-hour trek from town, you can see what remains of the former mining village, complete with church and school. The mine itself, however, is sealed off due to the poisonous gases still present inside. You can also pay a taxi driver S/60 to take you and wait as you explore. The mine is tentatively slated to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site, so to get the jump on the crowds, go now.

Recent excavations at this massive archaeological site have uncovered multilevel underground galleries, burial chambers, circular plazas, arched portals, and other architectural wonders. Together they make this capital city of the Huari culture one of the most impressive non-Inca ruins in the Peruvian sierra. The Huari flourished from around AD 700 to 1100, and wandering the quiet alleys of this 2,023-hectare (5,000-acre) complex gives you a sense of how its 60,000 residents lived, worshipped, and died. Especially noteworthy are the temples and communal tombs. There's a small museum on-site with mummies and ceramics, as well as a lounge to rest in after roaming the cactus-covered grounds. The best way to visit is to take a tour from a travel agency in town for S/30, as taxis and colectivos to the site are sporadic and hard to figure out.

Four long hours south of Ayacucho on winding, unpaved roads is the former Inca provincial capital of Vilcashuamán, set where the north–south Inca highway crossed the east–west trade route from Cusco to the Pacific. Erected by the great Inca Pachacutec after his defeat of the Chanca people in 1438, the site displays the same monumental stone architecture that's ubiquitous in the Sacred Valley. Especially impressive are the sun temple (sadly now capped by a Spanish colonial church) and a five-tiered platform, known as an ushnu, crowned by an Inca throne. You can also visit the trapezoidal plaza, as well as the stepped fields once farmed by Inca peasants.

An hour's walk from Vilcashuamán (or a half-hour's walk south past the main road from Ayacucho) is Intihuatana, aka Pumacocha, a site built for Inca royalty that includes a palace and tower beside a man-made lagoon. Former Inca baths, a sun temple, and a sacrificial altar can also be seen on the grounds. Check out the unusual 13-angled boulder, one of the odd-shaped rocks that are an Inca construction hallmark.

Ayacucho travel agencies can organize tours of both sites (S/65), or you can catch a bus or colectivo for S/15–S/20. Be sure to ask around to confirm where these public transport options depart from, as pickup points change frequently.

Situated in front of the Río Shulcas, the Capilla de la Merced is a national monument that marks where Peru's constituent assembly met in 1839 to draw up the country's fifth constitution. This document helped to centralize power in the fledgling nation and so promote the growth of its political institutions. The church's neocolonial design is a 20th-century addition, and the product of a 1940 earthquake that damaged many buildings in Huancayo.

Joaquín López Antay was Ayacucho's most renowned maker of retablos; this lovely museum pays homage to his work. Biographical displays, explications of the retablo-making process, and on-site classes make this a must-visit for art lovers. You can also buy finished works in the museum shop.

Across from the Iglesia Merced, one block from the Plaza de Armas, you'll see the colonial-style Casa Ruiz de Ochoa. The stately 17th-century doorway mixes European and Indigenous emblems in a cardinal example of mestizo style; over it, you'll see a stone carved with a double eagle, the coat of arms of the Hapsburg Empire. Climb up to the second floor for a bird's-eye view of the cobbled patio.

Built in the late 16th century and now part of the cultural center for San Cristóbal de Huamanga University, the Casona Velarde Álvarez is one of the oldest mansions in Peru. The colonial-era architecture includes portales (stone arches) in front and a monkey-shaped stone fountain in the courtyard.  On the left side as you enter, you'll see the remains of Inca stone walls discovered during restorations in 2003.

Begun in 1799, Huancayo's cathedral presents the odd juxtaposition of a stark, neoclassical facade and a Renaissance-style dome modeled on Brunelleschi's for the Santa Maria del Fiore basilica in Florence. The church is similar to other Andean temples in that it's been rebuilt numerous times; thus, while the sandstone masonry of the frontage is mostly original, the bell towers date from the 1920s.

The twin bell towers of Ayacucho's cathedral, completed in 1672 under the vigorous administration of Bishop Don Cristóbal de Castilla y Zamora, crown the Plaza de Armas. The church's sober Renaissance facade belies its lavish interior, which boasts no less than 10 baroque retablos bathed in gold leaf, a silver-embossed tabernacle, and an intricately carved black-walnut pulpit. Also open to visitors are the church's crypt and a small museum of religious art. Look for the plaque inside the entrance that quotes from Pope John Paul II's speech during his visit in 1985.

Dual white bell towers and a striking, red-volcanic-stone doorway carved in ornate churriguresco- style make Huancavelica's cathedral one of the most attractive buildings in town. Begun in 1673, the cathedral was added on to several times, achieving its final form sometime around 1733. The retablo behind the main altar has silver appliqué worked into the gold-leaf finish.

Tarma sits at more than 3,000 meters (10,000 feet), but it's just a stone's throw from the ceja de selva, where many of Peru's citrus plantations lie. For around S/60, you can organize a day trip from town to visit Chanchamayo's magnificent waterfalls, butterfly-filled forests, and local Indigenous groups. These tours take you to the major attractions in the area and typically include a refreshing dip in the 35-meter (114-foot) Tirol Falls, a jungle lunch of cecina (cured pork) or doncella (river fish), a visit to the local Ashaninka tribe at Pampa Michi, and a tasting of local coffees and other artisanal products. If you can't otherwise make it to the Amazon during your time in Peru, this is an inexpensive way to experience the pleasures of jungle living (as well as a welcome escape from the cool highland air). Perla Tours offers daily outings. It's also possible to take a bus directly to La Merced, the main town in Chanchamayo. There are simple hotels and restaurants surrounding the small plaza, and from there you can undertake excursions that go deeper into the central jungle to the fascinating German-Austrian colony of Oxapampa or the coffee plantations near Villarica.

The Sunday market (feria dominical) attracts artists and shoppers from all the nearby mountain towns. It's a good place to browse for local crafts—though you'll get better quality (and sometimes better prices) in the villages.

Head northwest of Tarma 28 km (17 miles) to Palcamayo, then continue 4 km (2½ miles) west to explore the Gruta de Huagapo limestone cave system, a national speleological area and the deepest caverns yet discovered in South America. Guides live in the village near the entrance and can give you a short basic tour, but you'll need full spelunking equipment for deep-cavern explorations. Numerous tour operators in Tarma offer day trips to the caves and the surrounding villages. It is also possible to arrive at the caves independently by taking a colectivo at the corner of Jirón 2 de Mayo and Jirón Puno.

Also known as Huánuco Viejo, this 2-square-km (0.8-square-mile) complex was formerly the capital city of Chinchaysuyo, the northern portion of the Inca Empire. The town was constructed in the late 1400s, during the reign of Túpac Yupanqui, and served as an important administrative outpost for the region. Here the Incas would temporarily house agricultural products en route from the Pacific coast to Cusco, as well as settle disputes among the vassal tribes their generals had overrun. When you visit, you'll find temples, storage areas, and kanchas (single-room structures encircling an open patio), all built around a central ushnu, or platform. Note the trapezoidal double-jamb doorways—an Inca hallmark. The site is near the small village of La Unión, a S/50 taxi ride from Huánuco.  During the last week of July, the Fiesta del Sol (Sun Festival) takes place at the ruins.

This ruined temple was built by the pre-Inca Huari culture and later occupied by the Huancas between AD 800 and 1200. It comprises stone cells where captives were held prior to being sacrificed to the huamani (local deity), as well as underground conduits to bring water to the precinct. You can still see the sacred spring that flows through the channels; according to legend, it was this rivulet that spawned the foreparents of the Huanca people. Several mummies have also been discovered at the site. The ruins are near the district of Huari, which has a little museum on its main square with ceramic figures, pottery, and a few bones and skulls.

This strikingly asymmetric Franciscan church boasts a white-stone, Renaissance-style facade, complete with unusual ornamental scrollwork and a majestic triumphal arch over the doorway. The church was originally built in the late 17th century but had to be reconstructed in the 18th after a 1746 earthquake knocked down one of its bell towers. The 11 towering retablos inside are justly renowned.

This humble colonial church was Huancavelica's first house of worship. Built by Dominican friars in 1593, it still retains the portal of red volcanic stone that is its most striking feature. Inside, the ornate baroque altarpiece belies the rustic facade: legend holds that the church's most celebrated sculpture, La Virgen Forastera (the Foreign Virgin), was brought all the way from Quito, Ecuador, at the end of the 16th century.

The Iglesia La Merced was built circa 1566 in a simple Renaissance style with Romanesque accents, reportedly at the behest of the missionary friar Diego de Porras. Colonial treasures here include a silver tabernacle, paintings of the Cusco School, and the images of the Virgen Purísima and the Corazón de Jesús that were gifts from Spain's King Philip II.

Fronting a landscape of steep, grassy mountain slopes, the Iglesia San Cristóbal was erected in 1542, making it the first local church built by Spanish settlers. Inside is a valuable collection of colonial-era paintings and baroque wood sculptures of San Agustín, the Virgen de la Asunción, and the Virgen Dolorosa. Sadly, the church's three-tiered bell tower collapsed in 2014; reconstruction work commenced in March 2024. 

The 16th-century Iglesia San Francisco, the city's second-oldest church, has unusual, icinglike scrollwork on its yellow-brick Renaissance facade and bell gables. Peek inside to see the spectacular gilt altarpiece and a handful of Cusco School paintings.

Considered one of South America's oldest religious sanctuaries, the 4,000-year-old Kotosh is famous for its Templo de las Manos Cruzadas (Temple of the Crossed Hands). The partially restored ruins are thought to have been constructed by a pre-Chavín culture whose origins are still unknown; some of the oldest Peruvian pottery relics in existence were discovered below one of the niches surrounding the temple's main room. Inside, you'll see only a replica of the image of the crossed hands: the original mud molding is dated 2000 BC and stored at Lima's Museo Nacional de Antropología, Arqueología e Historia del Perú.

The site was named Kotosh, Quechua for "pile," in reference to the piles of rocks found strewn across the fields. Taxi fare is S/30 for the round-trip journey from Huánuco, including a half hour to sightsee.

This Jesuit church’s facade is one of the most striking in the Peruvian sierra. A relatively simple Renaissance design flames vividly into life due to the blood-red brick used around the main doorframe. No less intriguing are the floral ornaments that stud the twin bell towers, carved in a decorative style known as plateresco that derives from some of Spain's most flamboyant palaces. Built in the mid-1600s, the church retains the Jesuits' insignia on the frieze above its entrance, despite King Carlos III's having banished the society from Latin America in 1767.

Located in the Casona Vivanco, a 17th-century mansion, the Museo Cáceres was once the home of Andrés Avelino Cáceres, an Ayacucho resident and former Peruvian president best known for his successful guerrilla leadership during the 1879–83 War of the Pacific against Chile. This is one of the city's best-preserved historic buildings, and today houses a mix of military memorabilia and ancient local artifacts, including stone carvings and ceramics. Note the gallery of colonial-style paintings. The Museo de Arte Religioso Colonial can also be found within these storied walls, and exhibits antique objects from the city's early days.

Regional finds from Peru's various pre-Hispanic cultures are on display at this small museum, with artifacts from the locally based Huari logically given pride of place. Highlights include textiles, domestic implements, and mummies from some of the area's earliest inhabitants. The museum is located in the Centro Cultural Simón Bolívar of Ayacucho's local university.

Immerse yourself in Latin American revolutionary history through exhibits in the compact Museo de Quinua, which has on display relics from the Battle of Ayacucho. Next door, be sure to visit the room where the Spanish signed the final peace accords recognizing the continent's independence. Come the first week in December to celebrate the town's role in Peru's democracy, when you'll see extravagant local performances, parties, parades, and crafts fairs. There's also a little local market on Sunday.

Look for some well-preserved rainforest creatures and butterflies from the northern jungle among this museum's more than 10,000 objects. Local fossils and archaeological relics are also on display.

The focus of the beautiful Parque de la Identidad Huanca (Huanca Identity Park) is the pre-Inca Huanca culture, which once occupied the area but left few clues to its way of life. A 5-km (3-mile) drive from downtown Huancayo, the park has pebbled paths and small bridges that meander through blossoming gardens, as well as a rock castle that's just the right size for children to explore. An enormous sculpture at the park's center honors the artisans who produce the city's mates burilados.