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Bucket list experience:

Exterior of the museum building

Peruphotart

Last updated: 10 November, 2022
Expert travel writer: Alex Robinson

If you want to see ancient Peruvian art and artifacts then MALI and LARCO are Lima’s two must-see museums. While LARCO is a 15-minute cab ride from anywhere, MALI is easy to visit on a walk around the colonial centre.  

There’s a lot to see – with more than 7,000 pieces dating from the time of the Paracas desert people in 800BC (ancestors of the Nazca civilisation) to the present day. There’s some fabulous indigenous-painted Cusco art and the collection is housed in a lavish art-nouveau-meets-neoclassical palace sitting in shady, lawned gardens.

Don’t miss

Among the museum’s highlights is a collection of amazingly preserved 2,800-year-old weavings from Paracas.

Price from: £2
Minimum age: Any
Age suitable: 13+
When: All year around

Getting there & doing it

The museum is located just to the southwest of the historic centre, in Exposition Park. English-speaking guides are available for a small additional fee.

There’s an arty cafe restaurant serving snack foods and decent coffee.

When to do it

Open all year round, Tuesday-Sunday. Closed Monday.

Destination guides including or relevant to this experience

Peru

Peru

Peru

A land of spectacular deserts, high mountains and rainforests that teem with wildlife, Peru is also home to an array of dramatically situated pre-Colombian ruins, including Machu Picchu.