One day in Lima, Peru

Huaca Pucllana in the morning

Huaca Pucllana was a ceremonial centre of the Lima culture, built between 450 and 650 AD. Its museum, the Museo de Sitio Pucllana, is at Calle General Borgoño cuadra 8, in Miraflores, and the Municipalidad de Miraflores runs it under an agreement with the Ministerio de Cultura.

The visit takes in a room of original objects found in the excavations, a walk through the site with life-size recreations of what people did at the ceremonial centre, the view from the top of the pyramid and the plants and animals of Lima as they were 1,600 years ago.

The day visit needs no reservation and runs every day except Tuesday, 9 am to 5 pm. There is also a night visit from Wednesday to Sunday, with a reservation, which leaves out the Great Pyramid and the Native Flora and Fauna Park, and the museum's own website and the Municipalidad de Miraflores give different hours for it, so confirm them before you go. The museum is closed on 1 January, Good Friday, 1 May, 28 July, 25 December and on national election days.

The Museum of Art at midday

The Museo de Arte de Lima is at Av. 9 de diciembre 125, in the Parque de la Exposición, in the centre of Lima. It opens from Tuesday to Sunday, 10 am to 6 pm, except on Saturdays, when it closes at 5 pm, and the last entry is fifteen minutes before closing.

It offers family experiences, and it is closed on 1 January, 1 May, 21 August and 24, 25 and 31 December.

The water circuit of the Reserva park in the evening

The Circuito Mágico del Agua is in the Parque de la Reserva, at Jr. Madre de Dios S/N, in Cercado de Lima. It opened on 26 July 2007 and has thirteen cybernetic fountains that combine music, water, sound and laser lights.

The circuit is open from Monday to Sunday, 3 pm to 10 pm, with a multimedia show at 7:15 pm, 8:15 pm and 9:10 pm.

The Parque de la Reserva itself opened in 1929 in honour of the reservists who fought in defence of the city during the War of the Pacific. It holds the status of historic park, monumental urban space and national historical heritage, and it gives the city a large green area with Art Deco and Indigenist-style architecture.

Plan your one day in Lima

Each place has its own opening days: Huaca Pucllana is closed on Tuesdays, the Museum of Art is closed on Mondays, and the water circuit opens every day from 3 pm. Both museums are also closed on 1 January, 1 May and 25 December, and each has other closing days, listed above.

Sources

• Home page of the Museo de Sitio Pucllana's own website, which says the Lima culture built Pucllana as a ceremonial centre between 450 and 650 AD. — mspucllana.wixsite.com (checked 21 October 2026)
• Visiting page of the Museo de Sitio Pucllana's own website: it is at Calle General Borgoño cuadra 8 s/n, Miraflores. It offers an exhibition room with original objects recovered during the excavations, a route through the site with life-size recreations of the activities of the ceremonial centre, a view from the top of the pyramid and an encounter with the flora and fauna of the Lima of 1,600 years ago. The day visit, with no reservation, runs from Monday to Sunday, closed on Tuesdays, 9 am to 5 pm, and the night visit, with a reservation, from Wednesday to Sunday, 6:30 pm to 9:15 pm, without the Great Pyramid or the Native Flora and Fauna Park. Its closing holidays are 1 January, Good Friday, 1 May, 28 July, 25 December and national election days. — mspucllana.wixsite.com (checked 21 October 2026)
• News page of the Municipalidad de Miraflores on an award for the Museo de Sitio Pucllana: under an agreement with the Ministerio de Cultura, the municipality administers the resources of the archaeological site and the ministry supervises the project. It gives the night schedule as Wednesday to Sunday, 6:45 pm to 9 pm. — miraflores.gob.pe (checked 21 October 2026)
• Official page of the Museo de Arte de Lima on visiting: the museum is in the Parque de la Exposición, in the centre of Lima. Its hours are Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm, or to 5 pm on Saturdays, with access until fifteen minutes before closing. It lists 1 January, 1 May, 21 August and 24, 25 and 31 December as closed days, and it offers family and group experiences. — mali.pe (checked 21 October 2026)
• Official page of the Museo de Arte de Lima: it is at Av. 9 de diciembre 125, Parque de la Exposición, Lima. — mali.pe (checked 21 October 2026)
• Official site of the Circuito Mágico del Agua, in the Parque de la Reserva at Jr. Madre de Dios S/N, Cercado de Lima: inaugurated on 26 July 2007, it has thirteen cybernetic fountains in which music, water, sound and laser lights mix. The site lists its opening hours, 3 pm to 10 pm from Monday to Sunday, and three multimedia show times: 7:15 pm, 8:15 pm and 9:10 pm. — circuitomagicodelagua.pe (checked 21 October 2026)
• Official page of the Circuito Mágico del Agua on its history: it says the Parque de la Reserva was inaugurated in 1929 as a tribute to the reservists who defended the city in the War of the Pacific, and that it is a historic park, a monumental urban space and national historical heritage, with an extensive green area and Art Deco and Indigenist-style architecture. — circuitomagicodelagua.pe (checked 21 October 2026)