I am travelling to peru.... how long do you think I need to stay in lima to see what it has to offer?

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MSDC

A couple of days in Lima will allow you to see downtown (Colonial Lima) and a visit to Pachacamac ( a pre-Inca temple in the vicinity of Lima which is often overlooked, but which was the holiest place during pre-Inca and Inca times after the Coricancha in Cuzco). Maybe have lunch at "Huaca Pucllana" a restaurant overlooking the restoration work at an archaeological site in Lima. It will also give you some time to adapt to the local food before you move to Cuzco and have to adapt also to the altitude (3,500 meters above sea level or 11,500 feet).
While in Lima try the "cebiche" and the "anticuchos". A good restaurant for this is the "Jose Antonio" (one in the district of San Isidro and one in Chacarilla) were they have a lunch buffet with all the local food you could dream.
At night you might want to hang out at "Larco Mar" for a few drinks and maybe some dancing.
Word of advice. when you get to Cuzco, go straight to your hotel and sleep for a while. It will give your body time to adapt to the lack of oxygen due to the altitude. Also, have some hard candy with you, I find the sugar in the candy lets me cope better with the altitude.

Wake Forest 94

Lima is a wonderful and immense city with a lot of things to offer (great food and restaurants, especially seafood, ect.), but Cuzco is great also, especially because it is very different and more mystical with Machu Picchu and everything. I would suggest maybe staying in lima for a couple days and then going to Cuzco. Another great place is Mancora which is Peru's greatest beach town farther north (wonderful beaches, even though it's winter STILL HOT!). Another great experience would be in arequipa and the amazon.

I know of a great tour agency called Marili Tours that could help you out.
I think their web page is:

www.marilitours.com

creativetravelers

Lima has nice museums like the that one of weapons, Larco and the archeologycal museum and if you are looking for shopping untraditional things Miraflores at Lima is the right place, so you will need a couple of days, but if you are interested in beautiful lanscapes,inka ruins and traditional customs go straight to Cusco.

For a traveler budget calculator like tours to machupicchu go to http:www.southamericamyjourney.com

Rosy Finch

Personally, I would only spend a day in Lima. On to Cuzco and the Sacred Valley, etc. Take the train from Cuzco to Lake Titicaca, great trip. Arequipa and hiking in Colca canyon is great. Nice country and good people.

Allison

I lived in Peru for three months. I lived in Iquitos, a jungle city in the northwest Amazon, and I was not a fan of Lima. Of course, it always depends on what you are looking for. Lima is quite cosmopolitan in the tourist areas (and I really would not recommend straying from the tourist areas...it is VERY unsafe in other areas) and will not give you a good feel for Peru. I like Cusco, but it was very cold and the altitude was very difficult. I love the jungle (the city is in the middle of the jungle, but it is one of the largest cities in Peru, so it really is a city, not like just a tribe). I HIGHLY recommend visiting Iquitos if you want some really cool adventures. If you do, go to Noa Noa (a night club), visit the butterfly farm (they have a bunch of jungle animals, not just butterflys), visit the marketplace in Belen, and go to the outside concerts in San Juan. Its amazing.

Cleora

I was kinda bored in Lima after a day, but depends what you're into I guess, Lima is a big city with all the usual stuff to do, but nothing really stands out. I reckon you'd be better off checking out Arequipa instead before heading to Cuzco, it's a pretty cool city and you can check out the colca canyon too which is heaps of fun.

M.D. Hotaling

peruvian seafood is easily among the best in the world dude you definitely have to try it out

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