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Arequipa
City in Peru

Arequipa

Arequipa is a city in southern Peru and the capital of Arequipa Province and the Department of Arequipa.

Plan a trip to Arequipa→From Juliaca

With a projected population of 1,195,700 in 2025, it is the country's second most populous city after Lima. It is the official seat of the Constitutional Court of Peru and is known as the "Legal Capital of Peru". Arequipa joined the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities in 2020.

Get in

Getting to Arequipa

By far the easiest way to get to Arequipa is by plane, 1 Rodríguez Ballón airport (AQP IATA), Av Aviacion S/N, Cerro Colorado (8.5 km north of the city along Av Ejercito and Av Aviacion in Cerro Colorado). The following airlines serve Arequipa: Latam (Lima, Cusco) JetSmart (Lima) Sky Peru (Lima) A taxi from the airport to the Plaza de Armas costs a flat-rate of S/25 (soles).

See

Worth seeing

Many of the almost 250 colonial buildings named as Human Heritage by UNESCO, are close to the main square. Some have been turned into banks, stores, restaurants and private residences. Churches are among the most beautiful buildings preserved. They are all Catholic and you can visit them but always with a respectful eye towards the people there who may be worshiping.

Do

Things to do

  1. 01
    Free Walking Tour
Eat

Where to eat

Arequipa features some of the most varied and flavorful cuisines in the country. Meals are robust with soups as one of their main dishes. Local food is usually served at lunch time but you can also find it in locals for tourists during dinner time. The better restaurants are near the Plaza San Francisco. Spicy food is very popular. Locals use rocoto (Capsicum pubescens) to provide the hot taste to their foods.

  1. 01
    Picantería La Capitana

    Old and the truly old cooking in Arequipa, is behind Saga Falabella, this picantería observes the old traditions.

  2. 02
    Picantería La Lucila Sachaca

    Calle Miguel Grau 147 (in Sachaca, 5 km southwest of Centro Historico).

  3. 03
    Tacos y Tequilas

    The Mexican meals here are delicious, with an excellent guacemole.

  4. 04
    Mandala

    At lunch time, the menú ejecutivo, including a small salad, a soup, a main dish, a dessert and a drink costs S/9.

  5. 05
    Restaurant Dhamodar

    You can get the menu of the day for S/4 including soup and a main dish and a soft drink.

How locals move

Getting around Arequipa the local way

  • Get inCharter trains to Juliaca and Puno are only available for groups of 40 or more.
  • Go nextThere are many travel agencies, but only a few tour operators without commissions.
  • Go nextThe Colca Canyon: Theoretically possible as a day trip but not recommended; count a minimum of two days.
  • Go nextTrekking Colca Canyon without a guide or a tour is also possible and costs less.
  • Go nextThe trek beyond can be dangerous if you're not an experienced mountaineer.

From Wikivoyage: Arequipa, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-09.

Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Wikimedia Commons (see file page), Wikimedia Commons.