"The white city" Top 5 Page for this destination Arequipa by christian99

Arequipa Travel Guide: 349 reviews and 721 photos

Arequipa is well known for its glistening white buildings made from sillar, a white volcanic rock, which gives the city its nickname 'La Ciudad Blanca' or 'The White City'.
Arequipa is Peru's second largest city and was founded in 1540. The site was chosen for its proximity to the coast, enabling settlers to trade the products of Cusco and the mines of Potosi (Bolivia) with Lima. The local cultivation of wheat, corn and grapes all contributed to the regions economic growth.
The city is surrounded by 3 volcanoes; El Misti, still active at 5822m, the higher and extinct Chachani 6075m and Pichu Pichu 5571m. The Incas highly respected these volcanoes since the melt water from their snow-capped peaks form the headwaters of the mighty Amazon River, thousands of kilometers away.

Intro Updated Dec 8, 2004
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Reviews (12)

Hiking Sports & Outdoors (4)

I suggest 3 hikes of 1 day around Arequipa, with different landscapes and difficulty levels. Tiabaya-El Huayco. Hike... more travel advice

Clasical "tour campiña" Sports & Outdoors (4)

By car, you wander through the surroundings of Arequipa, making stops at the main spots of interest such as the square... more travel advice

biking Sports & Outdoors (4)

Enjoy the feeling of biking freely through the fields, a few hours or the whole day. You can rent a bike more travel advice

Horse-riding Sports & Outdoors (4)

Ride a horse for 2 or 3 hours through the agricultural terraces of Yumina, built under the reign of the Inca Mayta Capac... more travel advice

Off The Beaten Path (5)
See All Majes Valley

Things to Do (3)
See All One of the deepest canyon on earth...

Comments (3)

VZ-Pam Dec 13, 2009 at 7:47 PM Report Abuse

“camarones” (crayfish) sounds good to me & wonderful pages of Arequipa
manuelcp Sep 30, 2007 at 9:01 AM Report Abuse

great pictures
Rabbityama Dec 10, 2005 at 8:06 PM Report Abuse

Nice pictures of Arequipa! It looks like a beautiful place!