After hotel pickup, your full-day tour of Trujillo and its surrounding attractions starts with a private city sightseeing tour. Head to the Urquiaga-Calonge House, a colonial mansion now owned by the Central Reserve Bank of Peru, and then enjoy a panoramic driving tour to see city sights like Belem Church, Baanante House and the Central Market. While you drive, listen to commentary from your private guide about the city’s history and architecture.
Next, visit the National University of Trujillo Museum of Archeology, Anthropology and History (Museo de Arqueolog?a, Antropolog?a e Historia de la Universidad Nacional de Trujillo). With your guide, tour the museum to discover its collection of jewelry, ceramics, mosaics and other artifacts from Peru’s pre-Hispanic cultures such as the Chim? and the Moche. Then return to your vehicle to continue your tour, passing by sights like San Lorenzo Church, El Carmen Church, Campana House, the Superior Court, La Merced Church and Plazuela El Recreo.
When the sightseeing tour ends, head about 15 minutes south of town to the Temple of the Sun (Huaca del Sol) and Temple of the Moon (Huaca de la Luna), collectively known as the Temples of Moche (Huacas de Moche). Built out of adobe brick by the Moche, the civilization that inhabited northern Peru from the 1st to 8th centuries, the temples served as military, religious and ceremonial centers.
Explore the site with your guide, enjoying views of both temples and learning about their history and significance. Admire the impressive frescoes that adorn the walls of the Temple of the Moon, and marvel at the size of the Temple of the Sun, which is the bigger of the two.
Next, continue your day trip to Huanchaco, a fishing village and beach town known for its caballitos de totora (little reed horses), small boats made out of reed that have been used by fishermen in Peru for 3,000 years. Learn about their history and interesting design, and then have lunch at a local seafood restaurant.
Lastly, head to your final stop of the day, Chan Chan, the ancient capital of the Chim? people, who inhabited northern Peru after the Moche. This World Heritage site is South America’s largest pre-Columbian city and was the center of Chim? life from approximately 900 to 1470, when it was conquered by the Incas. Tour the 7-square-mile (18-sq-km) archeological site with your guide, admiring its shrines, burial sites, reservoirs and plazas. Learn about its structure of adobe brick and mud, and visit the Nik-An Palace, a complex that features ceremonial courtyards and walls adorned with friezes.
Your tour ends with hotel drop-off in Trujillo.