Lima/Central Lima - district of Peru

Central Lima, Peru comprises the districts of Lima (Cercado), Breña, Jesús María, Lince, La Victoria, San Luis, El Agustino and Rímac.

Get in

Get around

Lima Metro

In Central Lima, Line 1 of the Metro has 5 stations. It runs every day from 06:00 to 23:00. You must purchase a rechargeable card for S/5.00 to use the service and each trip costs S/1.50.

StationDistrictLocation
ArriolaLa VictoriaAv. Aviación / Ca. 25 de Diciembre (near Óvalo Arriola)
GamarraLa VictoriaAv. Aviación / Jr. Hipólito Unanue
Miguel GrauLima Cercado / El AgustinoAv. Miguel Grau / Av. Nicolás Ayllón
El ÁngelEl AgustinoAv. Locumba S/N - Cementerio El Ángel
Presbítero MaestroLima CercadoMuseo de Sitio Cementerio Presbítero Maestro

See

Lima Cercado

  • Congreso de la Republica, Plaza Bolívar, Av. Abancay s/n, +51 1 311 7777. The main seat of the Congress of the Republic of Peru. Completed in 1908.

  • Correo Central, Pasaje Piura, next to the Palacio de Gobierno. Glass-covered shopping arcade. A 19th-century copy of one in Brussels. San Fernando Faculty of Medicine

  • Facultad de Medicina "San Fernando" (San Fernando Faculty of Medicine), Av. Grau between Huanta and Cangallo, -12.0578°, -77.0230°. Part of the National University of San Marcos, the building requires ID for entry. There is a botanical garden at the rear, and some nice old buildings. 2017-12-05

  • Gran Biblioteca Pública de Lima, Av. Abancay Cdra. 4.

  • Hotel Bolivar, Plaza San Martín. Visited by the likes of John Wayne and Orson Welles in times gone by.

  • El Molino de Santa Clara, Jr. Ancash.

  • Portada China.

  • Quinta Heeren, Cuadra 12 del Jr. Junín, -12.049444°, -77.017778°.

  • Teatro Felipe Pardo y Aliaga, cuadra 4 del Jr. Apurímac.

  • Teatro Municipal, Jr. Ica.

  • Teatro Segura, Huancavelica 261, Lima, Perú.

Churches and convents

  • Convento de San Francisco (Museo del Convento de San Francisco de Asis de Lima, The Franciscan Monastery or Catacombs), Plaza San Francisco, -12.0455°, -77.0272°, +51 1 426 7377. Daily 09:30-17:45. Fans of colonial churches will be pleased with the architecture of this well-known church in downtown Lima. However, the more compelling reasons to visit this cathedral include underground catacombs featuring over 25,000 real human skeletons (buried between the late 16th and early 19th centuries) arranged in artistic patterns, and also a beautiful library with mysterious, oversized books and spiral staircases in Harry Potteresque form.
  • Catedral de Lima, Plaza de Armas, +51 1 427 9647. M-F 09:00-17:00, Sa 10:00-13:00. Construction began in 1535 and completed in 1649. It is dedicated to St John, Apostle and Evangelist.
  • Convento de Santa Clara, Jr. Huanuco.
  • Convento de los Descalzos (Convento de los Padres Franciscanos Descalzos), -12.0335°, -77.0248°. Tourists have access by the museum entrance.
  • Convento de Santo Domingo, Corner of Jr. Conde de Superunda and Camana, +51 1 427 6792. M-Sa 09:00-13:00, 15:00-18:00; Su 09:00-13:00.
  • Santuario de Santa Rosa de Lima, +51 14251279.

Cultural centers

Houses and palaces

Museums and art galleries

Parks

  • Parque de la Exposicion (Parque de Lima), Bordered by the avenidas Paseo Colón, Garcilaso de la Vega, Paseo de la República y 28 de Julio, Santa Beatriz, -12.0623°, -77.0359°. W-Su. Features a large fountain, Japonese gardens, Teatro La Cabana. Museo Metropolitano de Lima is in the south east corner and Museo de Arte de Lima is in the north of the park.
  • Parque Juana Larco De Dammert, Bordered by Garcilaso de la Vega, Paseo de la República and 9 De Diciembre, -12.0585°, -77.0372°. Features a fountain and is home to the Museo Militar and the Museo de Arte Italiano.
  • Parque de la Reserva (Circuito Magico del Agua), Bordered by Paseo de la República, Sanchez Cerro, Arequipa and Madre de Dios with Petit Thouars running right through the middle, -12.071°, -77.0341°, +51 1 427 1993, +51 1 427 1021. W-Su closes 23:00, light shows at 19:15, 20:15, 21:30, 22:30. Re-opened on July 27, 2007, with 13 fountains and a Guinness World Record for the highest public fountain at over 80m tall. Best time to go is right at sunset and stay till dark to see all the lights in full effect in each one of the fountains. The laser show at the Fuente de la Fantasia fountain lasts about 30 minutes. S/4

The Parque Universitario is located in front of the National University of San Marco's cultural center.

Plazas

  • Plaza Mayor (Plaza de Armas), -12.0458°, -77.0306°. This is the main square of downtown Lima. In the Spanish tradition, it's bordered in four sides by Government/Presidential Palace or Palacio de Gobierno, the Cathedral and Archbishop's Palace, the Municipalidad or City Hall, and assorted businesses.
  • Plaza Bolivar, Corner of Abancay and Junin, -12.0477°, -77.0260°.
  • Plaza Bolognesi (Plaza Francisco Bolognesi), -12.0602°, -77.0416°. A large round park with a statue in the center, surrounded by curved buildings. A few blocks west of Parque de la Exposición.
  • Plaza Carrion, Corner Av. Grau and Huanuco.
  • Plaza Dos de Mayo, -12.0463°, -77.0428°. A large round park with a statue in the center, surrounded by curved buildings. Similar to Plaza Bolognesi.
  • Plaza Francia, Corner of Villaran and Camana, next to Iglesia de Recoleta, -12.0532°, -77.0378°.
  • Plaza Italia, Corner of Huanta and Junin, -12.0506°, -77.0227°.
  • Plaza Peru, next to the Palacio de Gobierno, adjoining the north corner of Plaza Mayor, -12.0448°, -77.0308°.
  • Plaza San Martín, 9th block of Jirón de la Unión, -12.0514°, -77.0347°. A beautiful plaza in the historical district of Lima. A walk along Jirón de la Unión will take you to the Plaza de Armas and past many historical buildings.

Jesús María

Breña

  • Museo Andrés Avelino Cáceres, Avenida República de Portugal 258 - Breña, +51 1 423 5884.
  • Museo Multidisciplinario del Colegio La Salle, Av. Arica 601 - Breña, +51 1 424 5750. W-Su 10:00-14:00, Th Sa 10:00-17:00. Natural history. Adults S/3, students S/2, children S/1

Do

Buy

La Victoria

Gamarra is a fantastic area to shop for a bargain. It's a busy area with street side shops. It doesn't have the security or the price tags of the modern shopping malls. Take only essentials and exercise caution in Gamarra.

  • Polvos Azules, Av. Paseo de la República esq. Jr. Garcíaa Naranjo - La Victoria, -12.0616°, -77.0342°. A crazy indoor market. Buy cheap clothes, CDs, DVDs, software, games, shoes, backpacks, spirits or perfumes. Most things are counterfeit, but nevertheless of good quality. There are several similar markets in, or near, central Lima.

Lima Cercado

Jesús María

Breña

  • La Rambla Breña, Av. Brasil cuadra 6 (6 blocks from the Plaza Bolognesi.). 09:00-23:00. Plaza Vea, Ripley, Paris, Promart, Cineplanet, shops.

Eat

Lima Cercado

Breña

  • El Rinconcito de Chela, Jr. Chamaya 1208, Breña, +51 1 423 0748. Seafood

Jesús María

La Victoria

  • Huanca Huasi, Av. Javier Prado Este 1405, Urb. Santa Catalina, La Victoria, -12.08908°, -77.01288°, +51 1 225 3654. Traditional Peruvian food.
  • Trattoria El Italiano, Jr. Enrique León García S/N Urb. Santa Catalina - La Victoria. Delicious Italian food.

More

  • Norkys, Jirón de la Unión 748, Cercado de Lima, +51 1 4285763. Chicken, chips, salad, steak, deserts, delivery
  • Roky's, Jirón de la Unión 800, Cercado de Lima, +51 1 613 5000. Roast chicken, chips, salad, steak, deserts, delivery.
  • Rústica, Civic Center, CC Real Plaza, Garcilaso de la Vega 1337 (in Real Plaza Centro Cívico), +51 1 3442920. Pizzas, pastas, chicken, grilled meat, buffets.

Drink

Around the Plaza Mayor, you can find some nice bars. Around Plaza San Martin you can find "El Directorio", "De Grot" and "Mao Bar", which are small rock pubs occasionally hosting shows from local bands and low-priced beer, when compared to similar places in Barranco or Miraflores.

Sleep

Lima Cercado

  • 1900 Backpackers Hostel, Av. Garcilazo de la Vega 1588, +51 1 424 3358, customerservice@1900hostel.com. It's the only hostel in the Historic Center and in front of the Museum of Art. It is in a fantastic colonial mansion. It blends the comfort of new amenities and services with the old charm of colonial architecture. It's clean and with English speaking and well-educated staff which is really helpful in a city where not many people speak English. dorms from S/26
  • Gran Hotel Bolivar, Jr. De La Union 958, Centro Histórico (at the Plaza San Martin, 650 m from Plaza de Armas), -12.050908°, -77.035103°. The cocktail Pisco Saur was invented here. Royalty stayed here, and the Rolling Stones had to leave for bad behavior.
  • Hotel Continental, Jr. Puno 196 Centro Histórico, +51 1 205 6200, info@hotelcontinentallima.com. Looks nice, in central Lima. Single about S/100, double about S/140
  • Hotel España, Corner of Ancash and Azangaro (across from San Francisco Convent), +51 1 428 5546. Traditional hotel with wide range of accommodation options. Lots of rooms including dorms starting at 18 soles/night, although prices for all rooms have almost doubled in the past year. Internet cafe and travel help on site. Rooms a bit outdated at times but decorated with paintings, a minimal amount of furniture and the occasional Greek statue. This family run hotel/hostel is full of greenery and generally has guests from all over the world. The restaurant serves only breakfast which can be inconvenient if you want to sit anywhere outside your room after 11:00. The crowd of guests is a great mix of different cultures and backgrounds. It can get a bit noisy with traffic around the downtown area and the constant bird noise from the two parrots who live in the rooftop courtyard. The wifi is unreliable and only reaches a few rooms.
  • Hotel Mandarin, Av. Petit Thouars 1301 esq. Teodoro Cárdenas, Urb. Santa Beatriz, hotel_mandarin@hotmail.com. A large, very good value hotel located in the Santa Beatriz neighborhood, near to the water fountain park. One block from Arequipa, the boulevard that runs between downtown and San Isidro/Miraflores. A large supermarket, cinemas, bars and restaurants are a few blocks away. Clean, modern rooms with cable TV, WiFi, etc available for S/40.

Jesús María

Breña

  • El Sol, Av. Rep. de Portugal 169-171, Breña (Two blocks from Plaza Bolognesi). Clean, modern rooms with cable TV and WiFi. S/35

La Victoria

Connect

Emergencies

Lima District

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Date Time:Please wait...Timezone:America/LimaPopulation:268,352Coordinates:-12.05, -77.04

Lima

2nd-order administrative division

Lima region

Primary administrative division

Peru

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Population:32.0 MDial code:+51Currency:Sol (PEN)Voltage:220 V, 60 Hz
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