Optional Excursions

Here's a list of optional excursions you can enjoy during your vacation. Whether it's a special dinner, a local show or a special behind-the-scenes glimpse into an historical site, optional excursions are a wonderful way to enrich your vacation even further. Plus, they give you flexibility. We include the must-see sites and experiences, and we also understand that people take interest in different activities and may want to craft a more personal vacation by hand-picking optional excursions that appeal to them.

Availability is subject to sufficient participation, weather conditions, seasonal suitability, days of operation, group interests, and general feasibility for your vacation. The approximate value listed gives you a good, general idea of what you can expect to pay but may vary once you are on your vacation. Some information provided might be in a foreign currency; you can use our online currency converter for exchange rate information.

CITY: Lima

Larco Museum and Pueblo Libre District
Visit the Larco Museum, founded in 1926 by Peruvian archaeologist Rafael Larco Hoyle, the museum showcases remarkable chronological galleries providing an excellent overview on 3000 years of development of Peruvian pre-Columbian history. Located in a unique 18th century vice-royal mansion built over a 7th century pre-Columbian pyramid, the museum is also surrounded by beautiful gardens. The museum features the finest gold and silver collection from Ancient Peru and the famous erotic archaeological collection, one of the most visited Peruvian tourist attractions. For an unforgettable experience, Larco is one of the few museums in the world where visitors can also choose to enter the storage area with its 45,000 classified archaeological objects. Its masterpieces are considered worldwide icons of Pre-Columbian art, after being exhibited in the world's leading museums. Next, a brief tour to Pueblo Libre, a small, quiet residential district located not far from the Historic Center of Lima. You will visit the "Antigua Taberna Queirolo," modeled on what a 16th-century European tavern would have looked like. Also, the Santiago Queirolo Winery next door, offers a naturally great selection of beverages.
Approximate value: USD $44 per person


Enjoy an overview of Peru's pre-Columbian history while visiting the Museum of Anthropology and Archaeology. The museum's collection documents the development of every major culture and civilization of Peru from the first hunter-gatherers to modern times. Then proceed to the Larco Herrera Museum, housed in an 18th century colonial mansion that holds the most extensive collection of pre-Columbian art in Peru. It contains fine examples of textile work, one of which has a world record-breaking 398 threads per inch, as well as the tools ancient Peruvians used to produce textiles, metals, huaco ceramics and gold and silver pieces with semiprecious stones. This excursion is not operated as a private charter which means you may join others on the same tour which may require picking up and dropping off at several hotels.
Approximate value: Please check back later per person

Pachacamac Pilgrimage Center
Drive 30 minutes southeast of Lima to visit the Pachacamac Pilgrimage Center. Built around 700 A.D. as a temple for the worship of the sun god, Pachacamac, it housed an oracle that is believed to be one of the main pilgrimage centres in pre-Columbian Peru, and on a par with Cusco. Pilgrims flocked here from far away to worship Pachacamac, who was believed to be the creator of the world and its creatures. The site includes palaces, plazas and temples that have been painstakingly restored. The on-site museum has a collection of local relics.
Approximate value: USD $37 per person