"Incredible experience!! Beautiful landscape and beautiful people. We were lucky to be guided by Vladimir, who with his lovely personality and amazing knowledge made this trip a great learning experience."
Photos: Pitxiquin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); BrunoLocatelli, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); YusmarBlanco, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); Quado678, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source)
Lima City Tour Half Day: Old Center and Miraflores
The trip in one paragraph
Book this tour for your arrival afternoon or your last morning in Lima. The city sits at sea level, so you do not need a rest day first, and four hours is enough to understand how the old viceroyalty capital and the modern seaside districts fit together. If you would rather see something older than the Spanish city, the Pachacamac half-day tour goes to the pre-Inca temple city south of Lima instead.
Two Limas in one afternoon
The tour starts on the cliffs of Miraflores, where the Parque del Amor and the Larcomar terraces look straight down on the Pacific surf. On the way north you pass Huaca Pucllana, a stepped adobe platform built by the Lima culture in the middle of a residential block. You see it from the street, without going in. Then the van drops into the historic center, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1988, for the Plaza San Martín, the Plaza Mayor with the cathedral and the Government Palace, and the San Francisco convent.
The part people remember
The catacombs under San Francisco are the stop everyone talks about at dinner. The passages are low and the bones are arranged in patterns in the old burial pits. If tight spaces bother you, tell the guide and wait upstairs in the cloister, which has the better tiles anyway.
Morning or afternoon
Departures at 8:50 a.m. or 2:00 p.m. We prefer the morning. Center traffic gets heavier as the afternoon goes on, and the coastal haze over Miraflores tends to lift by late morning.
Price
One price, US$97 per person, shared service, with transport, a licensed guide and the San Francisco visit. There is no hotel tier because you stay in your own Lima hotel. Groups who want their own departure get a quote through the free quote form.
Pick your tour date
Departures every day, at 8:50 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Pick your date and slot and send the free quote form. We confirm the seats within the day.
A few days ahead is usually enough. Tell us your flight times if you want the tour on your arrival or departure day.
Day by day
Open a day to see the hours, the altitude and where you sleep. Times are the ones our guides actually keep.
Day1
Miraflores, Huaca Pucllana, Historic Center of Lima
Half day, back at your hotel the same day, sea level, about 505 ft (154 m) at the highest
Pickup at 8:50 a.m. for the morning departure, or 2:00 p.m. for the afternoon one. Times below follow the morning departure.
A short walk along the Miraflores clifftop, with the Costa Verde road and the beach below. Good light for photos once the haze lifts.
The guide explains the huaca, built between about 200 and 700 AD, from the street. Entry to the site is not part of this tour.
The republican-era square with its white facades, on the walk into the old center.
The cathedral, the Government Palace, the Archbishop's Palace and the city hall around the founding square of Lima.
A guided visit through the cloister, the library and the catacombs under the church. Bags stay with the guide or in the van.
Back at your hotel around four hours after pickup, depending on traffic.
Where you go
The tour starts on the Miraflores clifftop and drives north to the colonial center of Lima.
Route: Parque del Amor · Huaca Pucllana · Plaza San Martín · Plaza Mayor · San Francisco convent.
What is included
Included
- Hotel pickup and drop-off in LimaTourist transport for the whole route, Miraflores to the historic center and back.
- Licensed guide in EnglishWith you from pickup to drop-off.
- Guided visit to the San Francisco conventCloister, library and catacombs.
- First aid kit in the vehicleAnd support from our office during the tour.
Not included
- MealsEat before the afternoon departure or plan lunch in Miraflores after the morning one.
- Entry inside Huaca PucllanaThe tour stops outside. The site runs its own guided visits if you want to go in.
- Tips for the guide and driverOptional. Small bills in soles are easiest.
- Travel insuranceRecommended for any trip in Peru.
Good to know
Travelers on this itinerary
Sacred Lake Titikaka is new; these are public Tripadvisor reviews of Viajes Cusco Perú, the family agency that operates every package on this site.
Reviews shown: Viajes Cusco Perú travelers (sample of public Tripadvisor reviews, read Sep 30, 2026).
"All the tours I did (Machu, Humantay Lake, Rainbow Mountain, Sacred Valley) were spectacular!!! From picking me up at the hotel (always punctual and attentive, notifying about everything!) to the guides I had who were also excellent."
"I came to this agency by recommendation and, after traveling with them on two occasions, I can say that it was an excellent decision. I must highlight the professionalism of the guides, who made every tour very interesting and safe."
Still have questions?
Everything we get asked about this package before people book.
What does the Lima city tour include?
Hotel pickup and drop-off, transport between Miraflores and the historic center, a licensed English-speaking guide and the guided visit to the San Francisco convent and catacombs. Huaca Pucllana is a stop outside the site. Meals and tips are not included. The price is US$97 per person, shared service.
How long is the Lima city tour?
About four hours from pickup to drop-off. Morning departures leave at 8:50 a.m. and afternoon ones at 2:00 p.m. Traffic in the center decides the last half hour, so leave a margin before any dinner booking or flight.
Morning or afternoon tour?
Morning. The center traffic is lighter, the plazas are calmer and you have the afternoon free for lunch in Miraflores or Barranco. Take the afternoon only if you land in Lima that morning and need a few hours at the hotel first.
Are the catacombs scary or claustrophobic?
They are low and narrow in places, and you see real bones in the ossuary pits. Most people find it more interesting than unsettling. Claustrophobic travelers can skip the descent and wait in the cloister.
Is the city tour enough to see Lima?
For the colonial center and the clifftop, yes. Add an evening in Barranco on your own and a meal at a cevichería, and you have seen the city most travelers come for. Pachacamac is the half day to add if you want pre-Inca Lima.














