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A decade ago, Lima was a single overnight before the flight to Cusco. Now, a two-day trip can be filled with clifftop parks, spectacular culture, and some of the best cooking in the Americas.
Day One: Miraflores and the Coast
Start in Lima’s historic centre, a short taxi ride from Miraflores, for the Cathedral and the catacombs beneath the Monastery of San Francisco. Back in Miraflores by afternoon, the clifftop parks along the Costa Verde give an easy hour of walking with the Pacific below, and the Larco Museum’s pre-Columbian collection is worth the detour even for travellers who plan to see Machu Picchu later in the trip.
Day Two: Barranco and the Galleries
Barranco moves at a slower, more bohemian pace than Miraflores, and a morning spent walking from the Bridge of Sighs through its street art and galleries covers most of the neighbourhood on foot.
Afternoons are for wandering rather than sightseeing, small independent shops, a coffee stop, or whatever the neighbourhood happens to be doing that day.
Where to eat
Central and Maido, Lima’s two most internationally recognised kitchens, both require reservations arranged two to three months ahead, so these are worth booking before anything else on a Lima itinerary.
For a more spontaneous evening, Barranco’s smaller restaurants, several run by chefs who trained under the city’s better-known names, serve a version of the same Nikkei cooking without the lead time.
Where to stay
Belmond Miraflores Park sits on the clifftop edge of the neighbourhood, within walking distance of the parks and restaurants, and its rooftop pool makes it a convenient base for both days without needing to change hotels for the Barranco half of the stay.
Two days, well spent
Two days is enough to leave Lima with more than a stamp in a passport, without stealing time from Cusco, the Sacred Valley, or Machu Picchu further into the trip.
For travellers extending north to the Amazon or south to Lake Titicaca, Lima works just as well as a closing stop as an opening one.
