What to see, where to stay and the best time to visit Lima, Peru.
Photo: Joem Castillo / Pexels
Lima is Peru's capital, a coastal city of almost 9,943,800 people spread along cliffs above the Pacific. Visitors find colonial architecture in the Historic Centre, pre-Inca ruins like Huaca Pucllana sitting inside modern neighbourhoods, and strong museums such as the Larco. The city has a reputation for grey skies much of the year, since a coastal fog called garúa covers Lima for long stretches. The clearest, driest weather comes from May to August, making those months the best time to visit if you want sunshine over the ocean views.
With sights split across the Historic Centre, Miraflores, Barranco and Pueblo Libre, plus a half-day trip to Pachacamac, plan for several days to cover the main museums, ruins and neighbourhoods without rushing.
Historic Centre (Cercado de Lima)
The main square of colonial Lima is lined by the Cathedral, the Government Palace and the Archbishop's Palace with its carved wooden balconies. Come for the changing of the guard at the palace and as a starting point for walking the historic centre.
Historic Centre (Cercado de Lima)
The cathedral stands on the Plaza Mayor and holds the tomb of Francisco Pizarro, the Spanish conqueror who founded the city. Inside you will find chapels with carved altars and a small museum of religious art.
Historic Centre (Cercado de Lima)
This church and monastery is best known for the catacombs under it, where the bones of thousands of people are laid out in pits. Guided tours also show the old library, tiled cloisters and colonial paintings.
Pueblo Libre
A private museum in an old mansion with a large collection of pottery, gold and textiles from Peru's cultures before the Incas. Its storerooms are open to visitors, and there is a well-known gallery of erotic ceramics and a garden café.
Miraflores
A large adobe and clay pyramid built by the Lima culture long before the Incas, now surrounded by modern apartment blocks. Guided tours explain how it was built and used, and there is a restaurant overlooking the site.
Miraflores
A clifftop path runs for several kilometres above the Pacific, with parks, cycle lanes and views of the surfers below. Love Park (Parque del Amor) has a large sculpture and mosaic walls, and paragliders often take off along the cliffs.
Barranco
Barranco is Lima's arts district, with old mansions, street murals, galleries, bars and cafés. The wooden Bridge of Sighs (Puente de los Suspiros) leads down a green path towards the sea, and the MATE museum shows the work of photographer Mario Testino.
Cercado de Lima
Peru's main art museum sits in a grand old exhibition palace in the Parque de la Exposición. Its collection covers Peruvian art from ancient ceramics and textiles to colonial paintings and modern work.
Lurín, south of Lima
A huge archaeological site on the desert coast south of the city, used as a religious centre by several cultures and later by the Incas. You can see adobe pyramids, a restored Temple of the Sun and a site museum, with views across to the ocean.
Average weather and our month score, from 10 years of climate data.
| Month | High / low | Rain days | Sunshine | Sea temp | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 24°C / 20°C | 4 days (13 mm) | 11.1 h/day | 20°C | 9.2/10 |
| February | 25°C / 21°C | 4 days (16 mm) | 10.8 h/day | 22°C | 9.2/10 |
| March | 25°C / 21°C | 6 days (21 mm) | 10.9 h/day | 21°C | 8.8/10 |
| April | 24°C / 19°C | 2 days (4 mm) | 11.2 h/day | 21°C | 9.7/10 |
| Best month: May | 21°C / 17°C | 0 days (1 mm) | 10.5 h/day | 20°C | 10.0/10 |
| Best month: June | 20°C / 15°C | 0 days (1 mm) | 10.1 h/day | 19°C | 10.0/10 |
| Best month: July | 19°C / 15°C | 0 days (1 mm) | 10.3 h/day | 19°C | 10.0/10 |
| Best month: August | 19°C / 14°C | 0 days (1 mm) | 10.2 h/day | 18°C | 10.0/10 |
| September | 19°C / 14°C | 0 days (2 mm) | 10.7 h/day | 18°C | 9.9/10 |
| October | 20°C / 15°C | 1 day (3 mm) | 10.9 h/day | 18°C | 9.9/10 |
| November | 21°C / 16°C | 0 days (2 mm) | 11.1 h/day | 18°C | 10.0/10 |
| December | 23°C / 18°C | 2 days (9 mm) | 10.8 h/day | 19°C | 9.6/10 |
Summer heat with highs near 24°C and about 4 rain days, mostly brief showers. Sea temp hits 19.6°C. Scores rate it a best-time month.
The warmest month, highs around 25.4°C, with 4 rain days and the warmest sea water at 21.6°C. Rated a best-time month.
Still summer-warm at 25.1°C highs, but the wettest month of the year with almost 6 rain days and 21mm of rain. Still a best-time month.
Highs drop to 23.5°C and rain almost disappears, just 1.7 rain days. One of the top-scoring months.
Cooler at 21.4°C highs with barely any rain, 0.1 rain days. Sun hours dip slightly as Lima's grey season approaches. Top score.
Highs fall to 19.8°C and sun hours drop to 10.1, the start of Lima's overcast winter, but rain stays almost at zero. Top-rated month.
The coolest stretch begins, highs of 19°C with no measurable rain, though skies stay grey and sunshine is limited. Scored a top month.
Lima's coolest month, highs of just 18.6°C and only 10.2 sun hours, with the thick winter cloud known locally as garúa. Rain is essentially absent, still a top score.
Highs start climbing again to 19°C, rain stays minimal at 0.3 days, and sun hours tick up slightly. Rated a top-scoring month.
Mild at 19.6°C highs with very little rain, 0.6 days, and the sea at its coldest, 17.6°C. Top-rated month.
Spring warmth returns, highs of 20.8°C, almost no rain at 0.2 days, and sun hours rising to 11.1. The highest-scoring month.
Highs climb to 22.5°C as summer begins, with rain picking up slightly to 2 days and sea temp reaching 18.5°C. A best-time month.
Climate averages 2015–2024 · Best time to visit Peru →
The best areas to base yourself and who each one suits.
Good for first-timers, walkers, coast lovers
A safe, well-kept district on the clifftops above the Pacific, with a long green park walk along the cliff edge and many restaurants and cafés. It is the easiest base for a first visit and a practical place to arrange tours. It feels polished and less local than other areas, and the main streets can be noisy with traffic.
Good for nightlife, art, couples
A former seaside resort south of Miraflores with old colonial-style houses, murals, galleries and many bars. It has more character than its neighbour and you can walk to Miraflores along the cliffs. Weekend nights get loud around the main square and bars.
Good for business travellers, quiet
Lima's main financial district, with calm residential streets, an old olive grove park and some of the city's well-known restaurants. It is quiet and safe at night. It has less street life and fewer sights, so evenings can feel flat.
Good for history, architecture, short stays
The historic centre around the Plaza Mayor, with colonial churches, balconied mansions and major museums close together. Staying here puts the main historic sights on your doorstep. It is far from the coast, busy and chaotic by day, and some streets feel unsafe after dark, so take taxis at night.
Good for museum fans, local feel
A residential district between the centre and the coast, home to the Larco Museum and older traditional bars. It gives a more everyday view of Lima life with fewer tourists. Choice of places to stay is small and it is a taxi ride from the coast and the centre.
Typical journey times and fares from the airport and other cities.
| Route | By | Time | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lima → Huaraz Cruz del Sur runs 8 departures a day on its Evolution and Suite services. The trip takes 7 h 25 min to 8 h 30 min. Fares start at S/ 87 from Lima and S/ 65 from Huaraz. Prices change with the date, how early you book and the service. You can buy online until 1 hour before departure. The highest fare was not checked. | bus | 7 h 25 min | 87 PEN ↗ |
| Lima → Ica Cruz del Sur runs 55 to 60 departures a day. The trip takes 3 to 6 hours. Fares start at S/ 60. The highest fare was not checked. | bus | 3 h | 60 PEN ↗ |
| Lima → Trujillo Cruz del Sur runs 17 departures a day. The trip takes 9 to 12 hours. Fares start at S/ 90. The highest fare was not checked. Flight times and fares were not checked. | bus | 9 h | 90 PEN ↗ |
| Lima → Arequipa Cruz del Sur runs 17 to 18 departures a day. The trip takes 17 to 20 hours. Fares start at S/ 142. The highest fare was not checked. Domestic flights were not checked. | bus | 17 h | 142 PEN ↗ |
| Lima → Cusco Cruz del Sur runs 7 departures a day. The trip takes 21 to 24 hours. Fares start at S/ 195. The highest fare was not checked. Most visitors fly this route, but flight times and fares were not checked. Search limit reached: Cusco–Puno (PeruRail Titicaca train and bus), Arequipa–Puno, Cusco–Arequipa and Lima–Iquitos (air or river only, no road) were left out because no operator source could be checked. | bus | 21 h | 195 PEN ↗ |
Raw fish cured in lime juice with onion and chili, usually eaten at lunchtime in Lima's coastal restaurants known as cevicherias.
Strips of beef stir-fried with onions, tomatoes and French fries, served with rice. It's a staple home-cooked dish and a common lunch menu item across the city.
Shredded chicken in a creamy yellow chili sauce made with bread, nuts and cheese, served over rice and boiled potatoes. A classic weekday lunch dish.
Skewers of marinated grilled beef heart, sold by street vendors in the evening, especially around parks and busy corners in central Lima.
A cold dish of mashed yellow potato layered with avocado, chicken or seafood, seasoned with lime and chili. Common as a starter in local restaurants.
A frothy cocktail made from pisco brandy, lime juice and egg white, often drunk before dinner in bars across the city.
Yes. August scores 10 out of 10 in the data. Daytime highs average 18.6°C and lows 14.1°C, with 0 rain days and 1mm of rain for the month. It's cool and dry, part of Lima's long garúa season when the sun hides behind cloud for much of the day, so pack layers rather than summer clothes.
Plan on 2 to 3 days for the main sights. The Historic Centre (Plaza Mayor, the Cathedral, San Francisco) takes about half a day, Miraflores and Barranco each take half a day to explore, and the Larco Museum or MALI each need 2–3 hours. Add a half day if you want to see Pachacamac, south of the city.
No. Lima gets very little rain year-round. The wettest months are March (21mm over 5.8 rain days) and February (16mm over 4.2 days). From May to September rainfall drops to 1–2mm a month with almost no rain days, so rain is rarely a planning issue whenever you go.
Winter in Lima is cool, cloudy and dry rather than rainy. Highs run from 18.6°C in August to 19.8°C in June, with lows between 14.1°C and 15.4°C. Rain days are at or near zero, but the sea cools to 18.3–19°C and the sun hours drop to around 10.1–10.3 a day, so overcast skies are common.
May through August score 10 out of 10 in the data, the highest of the year, thanks to low rainfall and mild temperatures. But every month from January to December scores 8.8 or higher, so Lima works well year-round; the main trade-off is sunnier, warmer months (December–April) versus cooler, cloudier but driest months (May–August).
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