By Renato Romero

The region of Arequipa is located south of Lima and its capital is the city of Arequipa. This beautiful region has always been the second economy of Peru and locals where always proud of that to the point that it has common to hear that Arequipa could easily become independent from the rest of the country and do better that way. I was born in the city of Arequipa at the beginning of the last quarter of the twentieth century, and I remember my city to be a mix of a colonial style city with beautiful green areas, a river and three volcanoes surrounding the city. There is so much to see in Arequipa that I discovered the majority of its tourist attractions as an adult.  

My parents were not adventurous when it came to traveling and getting to know new places; therefore, I didn’t travel a lot when I was a child. I started to travel around Arequipa and other regions in Peru while I was studying law at a local university, and the older I got the more places I got to go. Even though, I didn’t travel much was a kid, I started to collect great memories of some of the places I used to visit frequently and in some cases of places I visited once. In this post, I am listing my favorite tourist attractions ordered as my memories recollect them.

Chilina Valley in Arequipa City

The Chili River runs through the city of Arequipa and the Chilina valley takes its name after this important river. The valley is located at only 15 minutes from downtown Arequipa, and I have great memories of this beautiful attraction. When I was 5 or 6 years old, I used to visit my dad’s cousin house in the district of Carmen Alto which is located at the top of one of the margins of the valley and from there my brothers, cousins and I walked to the bottom of the valley. On the way, we walked through ancient Andean terraces and we used to cross cows, dogs, donkeys, sheep, and goats. Nowadays, little has changed and travelers can still enjoy of the beauty of the valley.

Downtown Arequipa

Growing up I spent a lot of time in downtown Arequipa with my mother. She used to own a small restaurant located one block away from the main square and I used to go there whenever I didn’t have school to help. I used to spend most of time exploring around downtown, and one of my favorite places was the main square where I used to feed the doves. As I grew older, I started to discover the colonial buildings and small passages where I passed my time trying to figure out how live was in Arequipa during the colonial times. This World Heritage Site is ideal for travelers who enjoy historical sites.

Mejia Lagoons National Sanctuary in Islay Province

This is one of the hidden gems of the Arequipa region since its lagoons are home to at least 200 species of resident and migratory birds, 48 species of vascular plants and 17 species if algae. I was 9 years old when I visited the district of Mejia for the first time, but at that time I didn’t get to visit the lagoons since I spent the majority of my time at the beach with my cousins. It wasn’t until I was 14 years old that I discovered this beautiful place and from that moment I have tried to visit it as many times as possible to observe its rich flora and fauna.

Puerto Inka

Puerto Inka is a small bay located in the middle of nowhere and around five hours from the city of Arequipa (by car). I was about thirteen years old when my older brother took me there for the first time. We went camping with a few families from my city and we spent most of the time exploring around the remains of the pre-Inca and Inca site located as well as swimming in the ocean while the adults were fishing. After this first visit, I have been able to go there a few more times, but I have never gone camping again and this is something I really want to do again since this is great place to relax and disconnect from the world.

Santa Catalina Monastery

The first time I visited this small citadel I was around fourteen years old and I went there with my high school. This was a special visit because I could relate the tales of my father related to one of his aunts who spent most of her life inside its walls as a nun. One story I remember from my father is that me that he used to go there with my grandpa to leave the desserts she liked among another things she could need, but he was never able to see her face. When we arrived to the entrance gate of the Santa Catalina Monastery with my classmates, I finally understood what my dad used to tell me and why is that he never saw her face. After that first visit, I have been there dozens of times and every time I learn something new about it, and I can say that truly enjoy every visit.

Colca Canyon, the second deepest canyon in Peru and the world

I was thirty years old when I went to Colca Canyon for the first time. This was a great trip because it was the first time my wife visited Peru and my hometown. Once in Arequipa, we rented a truck and we drove to Colca Canyon where we booked a room at the Colca Lodge. On the way to Colca Canyon we got to observe Vicuñas, Alpacas, Llamas, and several species of birds. Once at the hotel we enjoyed its relaxing natural hot springs located right next to the Colca River. The next day we visited a few Andean towns and then we spent a few hours at a popular spot where several Andean Condors circle around the walls of this deep canyon. The Colca Canyon is one of those places I try to go every time I have a chance and anyone visiting Peru should make sure that includes this beautiful destination in his/her itinerary.

Salinas and Aguada Blanca National Reserve

This reserve has an extension of 366,966 has., and it has many attractions to offer. In this land, travelers can find the volcanoes of Misti, Chachani, Ubinas and Pichu Pichu, as well as the Salinas Lagoon where the South American flamingo spends long periods of time before migrating to the coast. This land has been populated for thousands of years and proof of that are the Sumbay caves where ancient Peruvians left wall paintings with the hunting activities. This land has extensive stone forests such as the ones located in the Andean town of Imata. During the course of my life, I have visited all these places but at different times because of its massive extension and the great amount of attractions that can be found in the reserve.

Toro Muerto Pethroglyphs

This ancient archaeological site is located at three hours from downtown Arequipa by car nearby the community of Corire at the Majes valley. Even though this is a popular destination among locals, I didn’t have a chance to visit it site until I was in my late thirties, and after that visit I came back twice. Out of those three visits, the last one was the best one because I rented a truck and I left Arequipa town early in the morning. Once at Toro Muerto, I had a couple hours to walk around the site and observe the work of the ancient Peruvian who carved the hundreds of stones located in the area. After this visit, I drove to the town of El Pedregal and from there I took a dirty road that connected the valley with Colca Canyon. This was my first time covering that little traveled route and I had a blast since the landscape was amazing. Anyone who is looking for a true adventure to visit Colca Canyon should look into this route.