Lima city tour and San Francisco Catacombs: 3.5 hours

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/7

Duration3h 30m

GroupUp to 40

LanguagesEN · ES

Mobile ticketAccepted

Underground passages beneath a 17th-century convent hold the city's oldest secrets.

A 3.5-hour panoramic bus tour of Lima combines a guided ride through the city center with entry to the Catacombs of San Francisco. The tour passes Huaca Pucllana, the Magic Water Circuit, San Martín Square, and the Presidential Palace before stopping at the Church and Convent of San Francisco, where you descend into underground passages that held human remains for over 400 years. A live guide speaks English or Spanish; children from age 4 are welcome.

3h 30m

Step-by-step itinerary

Panoramic Lima city tour and catacombs

Start in Miraflores district
Panoramic stop at Huaca Pucllana
Pass by Park of the Reserve
View Palace of Justice
See San Martín Square
Walk through historic center streets
Visit Church and Convent of Saint Francis
Explore the Catacombs

The Experience

The tour starts in Miraflores and heads toward the historic center, beginning with a panoramic stop at Huaca Pucllana, an archaeological site spanning 1,500 years of history. From the bus, you'll pass the Park of the Reserve and its Magic Water Circuit — the world's largest fountain complex in a public park and a Guinness World Record holder — before moving deeper into the city's colonial heart.

Once in the historic center, the bus carries you past the Palace of Justice, inaugurated in 1939 with neoclassical architecture modeled on Brussels, and San Martín Square, built in 1921 to mark Peru's independence centenary. A walking section follows through the pedestrian streets where the Presidential Palace, Metropolitan Municipality, Archbishop's Palace, and Lima Cathedral stand. The guide points out the government buildings and architectural details that define the city's colonial and republican periods.

The final stop is the Church and Convent of San Francisco, inaugurated in 1672 and now a museum of Peruvian viceregal art. You enter the catacombs — underground passages where human remains rest in vaults accumulated by the Franciscan order over more than 400 years. The convent also holds paintings, liturgical ornaments, and silverware spanning centuries of religious and artistic heritage. Entry to the catacombs is included; the guide remains with the group throughout.

What’s included

A live guide in English or Spanish.
entry tickets to the Catacombs of San Francisco.
the panoramic bus ride through Miraflores, the historic center, and past the Magic Water Circuit.
a walking tour through the pedestrian streets of the city center.

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleStroller friendlyPets welcomePublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Mirabus

Is this one for you?This is a shared tour on a fixed schedule, so the pace and stops are set — book it if you want the main landmarks and the catacombs without building the day yourself, and if you're comfortable moving between the bus and walking sections. The live guide handles the history and architecture, so you listen rather than read plaques or use an app.