Cities and regions in Peru

Lima, Peru

Travel climate in Peru

According to the three types of landscape in Peru, the climate also differs. On the coast in front of the Andes Mountains it is very dry due to the air masses cooled by the Humboldt Current, in the south there is even a desert climate, while in the far north it becomes a little more humid and therefore limited agriculture is possible. At night it can get very cold with -15 C °, while the daytime temperatures climb to 30 degrees.

In the cool mountain regions of the Andes there is a moderate to alpine high mountain climate. At around 3300 meters above sea level, for example, the mean annual temperature is only 11 degrees. The highest peaks are covered in snow all year round.

The rainforest areas beyond the Andes in eastern Peru, on the other hand, are characterized by a hot, humid tropical climate without seasons, with mean annual temperatures of around 26 degrees, which hardly fluctuate over the year.

Cities and regions in Peru

According to eningbo, Peru is divided into 25 departments of different sizes. The largest department is the Loreto region in the Amazon lowlands in northeastern Peru, with almost 370,000 km² and Iquitos as the administrative capital. The smallest department is the Callao region around the port city of the same name on the Pacific coast, with an area of only 147 km². The departments are divided into a total of 196 provinces and associated districts, whereby the boundaries between the individual units are in many cases blurred. A merger and simplification of the departments failed in a referendum in 2005. The largest city in Peru is the capital Lima with almost 7.4 million residents. This is followed in the ranking by the cities of Trujillo, Arequipa and Callao with over 800,000 residents and Chiclayo with over 630.

Lima

The capital Lima is an important traffic junction and starting point for a trip through Peru, as well as the most important economic and cultural center of the country with numerous universities, colleges, museums and monuments. The old town of Lima with its checkered streets and magnificent buildings from the colonial era was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1991. Lima is located on the dry Pacific coast of Peru, on the Río Rímac, which irrigates the coastal desert around the capital.

The cathedral built between 1535 and 1625, the rosary basilica and numerous mansions such as B. the houses Aliaga, Goyoneche or Rada from the colonial times as well as the sanctuaries of Pachacámac and Pucllana in Miraflores from the pre-colonial period of Peru. A trip to Lima also includes a visit to the central Plaza Mayor with the nearby town hall, the presidential palace from 1938 and some sacred buildings from the 16th and 17th centuries. Lima is also known for its numerous beautiful parks and green spaces, in particular the Miraflores district with its flower-filled Parque Central and Parque Kennedy. In the south of Lima is the Zona Reservada de los Pantanos de Villa, an interesting bird sanctuary for bird lovers.

The culture and history of Peru can be discovered in the numerous museums of Lima.

Lima, Peru

Arequipa

Arequipa is the capital of the region of the same name. Arequipa is the political, economic and cultural center of southern Peru. Arequipa is also the seat of an archbishopric. The region around the city is dominated by the volcanoes in the vicinity, the 5822 m high conical Misti, the 6057 m high Chachani and the smaller and more distant Picchu Picchu. The coast of the Pacific is only 75 km away as the crow flies and gives the city a mild and sunny climate all year round. Worth seeing are the unique Arequipa Cathedral from 1629, the Santa Catalina Monastery as one of the most important religious buildings from the colonial era, and the Iglesia de la Compañía as a good example of the mixture of baroque and mestizo architectural styles.

Iquitos

With around 400,000 residents, Iquitos is the largest city in the tropical rainforest region of Peru and the capital of the large Loreto region. The city lies between the mouths of the Río Itaya and Río Nanay rivers in the Amazon and can only be reached by travelers by plane or boat. Iquitos can also be reached from abroad via an international airport.

The imposing church of Iquitos is also the tallest building in the city. At the eastern corner of the Plaza de Armas, the Casa de Hierro, the Iron House, was built, a building made entirely of metal designed by the designer of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Gustave Eiffel. The Belén district on the Amazon bank is built on stilts, where the city’s impoverished Indians live.