"Ayacucho - Birth place of the Shining Path" Ayacucho by adelinemmc

Ayacucho Travel Guide: 16 reviews and 33 photos

The town

Seldom visited, Ayacucho is worth the effort. It's a big Andean town in the middle of what used to be the Huari empire.

It has a pleasant Plaza de Armas with regular parades, a huge market, cheap hotels, good craft markets and Huari ruins outside town.

Dr Abimael Guzman, the founder of the Shining Path or Sendero Luminoso lived in Ayacucho. The Shining Path murdered thousands of people in the region and was only stopped recently. Nobody wanted to live in Guzman's house at the edge of town so it's now a animal hospital.

The ruins

The Huari tomb

Huari was the capital of the Huari empire. Most of the ruins are still covered in dust and soil due to lack of funding but there is a fantastic tomb where intact momies were found.

The market

Fresh vegs ate the market

Full of life and offering all the vegetables and fruit and might want.
It also has a big section of non-food stuff where you can buy good quality blankets, sandals made of recycled tyres, wooden spoons etc...

Pros and Cons

Pros:Big town with lots to do, if you are a bit adventurous
Cons:Difficult to get to

Last visit to Ayacucho: Jun 2005
Intro Updated Aug 19, 2012
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Reviews (8)

The road to Ayacucho: no tarmac! - Ayacucho

To/From Ayacucho: take the bus Transportation (1)

Ayacucho to/from Andahuaylas = 10 hours and 25 soles no paved roads at all. Bus company is Los Chankas. Take warm... more travel advice

Clay church on a roof in Quinua - Ayacucho

Visit the Huari (Wari) ruins Things to Do (1)

You'll need to book a day trip with an agency We used Warpa Picchu Eco-Aventura (Portal Independencia 66). The tour was... more travel advice

The Guinea pig/cuy frito: note the teeth! - Ayacucho

Good local food Restaurants (2)

Arranged around a courtyard, this restaurant is quite popular with the few tourists who made it to Ayacucho. It serves... more travel advice

Mondongo soup Favorites (1)

Try this local Ayacucho dish. It is mostly served on Sundays but you may find it another day. It's a hearty soup of... more travel advice

Hotels (1)
Decent modern hotel
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Comments (3)

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nhoolb Jun 10, 2007 at 1:27 PM

In all my travels to Peru never been there-yet. Thanks for the nice tips on Ayacucho. Noel
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BluBluBlu Aug 10, 2006 at 2:46 AM

Mmm...the Mondongo sounds like its worth a try! Blu
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Ekahau Jul 24, 2006 at 5:34 PM

wow Ayacucho is really the Birth place of the Shining Path