El Carmen District

South Coast


A village unlike any other in Peru, El Carmen is a place where African and Latin American cultures collide with hip-gyrating results. It's famed for its rhythm-heavy Afro-Peruvian music heard in the peñas (bars and clubs featuring live folkloric music). The best lie about 15km outside town and there are two simple affairs on the town square.

The best times to visit are during the cultural festivals.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby South Coast attractions

1. Centro Cultural Amador Ballumbrosio

0.48 MILES

The home of El Carmen’s most famous dancing family is a museum to Afro-Peruvian culture. Music breaks out here spontaneously most weekends; pop in if you…

2. Casa-Hacienda San José

1.86 MILES

Provoking many visitors to make the trip all the way down from Lima, this former slave plantation with its stately hacienda offers a window into race and…

3. Palacio Municipal

17.52 MILES

The Moorish, pastel-colored City Hall building was badly damaged in the earthquake and sits on the corner of the park awaiting repair.

4. San Clemente Cathedral

17.54 MILES

Pisco’s biggest casualty of the 2007 earthquake was the colonial San Clemente Cathedral. A new, modern, red-bricked church has gone up in its place,…

5. Plaza de Armas

17.56 MILES

Post-earthquake, Pisco’s main Plaza de Armas is a mishmash of the vanquished and the saved. The equestrian statue of José de San Martín, hand raised…

6. Statue of José de San Martín

17.56 MILES

This bronze statue of José de San Martín is the centerpiece of the the Plaza de Armas, with the independence hero on horseback with his hand raised urging…

7. Tambo Colorado

20.9 MILES

This early-Inca lowland outpost, about 45km northeast of Pisco, was named for the red paint that once completely covered its adobe walls. It’s one of the…

8. Islas Ballestas

27.83 MILES

Grandiosely nicknamed the ‘poor man’s Galápagos,’ the Islas Ballestas make for a memorable excursion. The only way to get here is on a boat tour, offered…