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Peru  /  October 21, 2018

Lima with a toddler

Lima with a toddler

Our main destination in Peru was, of course, Machu Picchu. But we couldn’t visit Peru without a stop in the capital. Actually, a short vacation in Lima with a toddler was a great idea; it has reasonable prices, great parks and delicious food.

Where to stay in Lima

Book your hotel in Lima here.

The most recommended area in Lima for tourists is Miraflores, on the southern side of the city, on the coast. It combines old buildings with modern skyscrapers in a very unusual setup. You can see tiny houses next to 20+ floors luxurious office buildings or condo towers. Miraflores urban planning is not at all smart or beautiful. But it is compensated by the great infrastructure and lots of parks. The highway crosses the whole city, bordering Miraflores right on the coast. The traffic is quite crowded, but reasonable for a city with almost 10 million citizens.

Miraflores

 Miraflores Lima

Other areas recommended to us in Lima as safe and tourist-friendly are Barranco and San Isidro; unfortunately we did not have enough time to explore them this time.

Safety

We enjoyed our stay in Miraflores and never felt unsafe or uncomfortable. But Lima requires you to be a bit more careful than other cities. We were recommended many times by the locals not to visit downtown Lima alone, as it is not really safe. Also, we were told not to go alone in harbour area neither, in case we plan a boat ride.

Miraflores

Expect the taxi drivers in the airport to be very pushy! I think it is the most aggressive approach I have ever seen in my whole travels (much more annoying than in Colombia or Turkey, if you know what I mean). I hate this type of things so we preferred Uber, where we had no issues. We even found English speaking Uber drivers, which is a big plus in South America.

Miraflores with kids

If you visit Lima with kids, Miraflores is the perfect destination. It has lots of parks, all very well maintained, with perfectly cut green grass and lots of flowers. In each larger park there is a kids playground, smartly organised and very well maintained. So you can imagine we spent a lot of time in the parks while walking around Miraflores with a toddler. We loved the most Parque Kennedy, in the middle of the city, and Parque del Amore, on Malecon de Miraflores.

Parque del Amore, Miraflores

Parque Kennedy, Miraflores

Other activities to spend your time in Lima with a toddler include:

City tour

We found two different companies, Turibus and Mirabus, organising tours on various routes, through the historical city, through Miraflores or night tours to admire the lights of the city. We opted just for a short Mirabus ride through Miraflores. The others were too long or at inconvenient times for our little one.

Miraflores

Miraflores street art

For one hour we passed across beautiful parks and drove through the Malecon. We could observe elegant 5 star hotels, but also small old buildings, in a very contrasting setup. The buss also passed by Huaca Pucllana, pre-incan clay pyramid, built between 400-700 AD.

Huaca Puclana

Cost: 10 sol/3 USD
Time: 1 hour

Chocolate Museum

This is more of a specialised chocolate shop, where you can try various flavours and combinations. They also organise all kind of chocolate workshops which sound wonderful for older kids, but Eric was not that interested in that (yet).

Chocolate Museo Lima

We tried at the Chocolate Museum organic Peruvian chocolate, caramelised cocoa nibs and chocolate glazed coffee beans. Cocoa tea was great too, perfect as a warm up on a windy spring morning.

Cost: free
Time: 15 minutes

Bike ride on Miraflores Malecon

Miraflores coast is one of the most impressive sights in Lima. The city is located at almost 100 m above sea level, with the highway right beneath it. The area is very nicely arranged, with green parks, pedestrian trails and bike lanes. During the weekend, we could see lots of people jogging or walking there dogs around.

Miraflores Bicycle tour

If you want to admire the whole coast line but do not fancy a long walk, renting a bike is the perfect idea. I’m not at all a bike lover, but Andrei took a ride together with Eric and they enjoyed a lot their time together. You can find bikes for rent at Mirabici, close to Larcomar Shopping Mall.

Cost: 10 sol/3 USD
Time: 1 hour

The Magic Water Circuit

The best surprise we had in Lima was the Circuito Magico del Agua. We thought these are just some illuminated fountains, but we thought to give it a try anyway. What we found was a huge domain, the world’s largest water fountain complex in a public park at the time it was built, back in 2007. In the evening, one of the largest fountains hosts a water, laster and music show which is quite impressive. Eric was mesmerised by the lights, patiently watching almost the whole show. He even mentioned the magic fountains a few days after our visit. 

Magic Water Circuit Lima

Magic Water Circuit Lima

Cost: 4 sol/1.2 USD
Time: 1-2 hours

El Malecon de Miraflores

To sum up, Lima did not impressed us with extraordinary sights or activities. But it was a pleasant stay to relax before heading to the Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu. If you plan a visit to these famous landmarks, it is worth to spend at least 2-3 days in Lima, to get used to the country, time zone and recharge your batteries with delicious Peruvian food.

For more ideas on what to do in Peru, check also what to visit in Peru besides Machu Picchu.

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Lima with a toddler

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The Sacred Valley with a toddler
Machu Picchu with a toddler

9 comments

  • Pat
    April 15, 2020

    Thanks for the article! Very informative! How old was Eric when you visited? We are considering a trip to Peru and Brazil in December when our little boy Cameron is 18 months old. In your experience would it be manageable? Thanks in advance. Pat

    Reply
    • Alina
      April 16, 2020

      Eric was a bit over 2.5 years old. Sure it is manageable with a younger kid, if you plan accordingly (at least one day of free time after a busy day of travel or visits, appropriate naps, avoid over-stimulation and so on) and you have realistic expectations from him. Have fun!

      Reply
  • Joseline Rodriguez
    May 26, 2019

    How you did with the car seat? I’m traveling with my 3.5 year old and sunce I’m going to move most of the time by taxi, I have no idea what to do with the car seat. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Alina
      May 31, 2019

      We were traveling for almost one year, so taking a car seat with us was not possible. We rented a car seat when traveling long distances in rented cars, but just hold him in our arms in taxis. There are places where you can ask for an Uber with car seat, but it isn’t widely spread.

      Reply
  • The Sacred Valley of the Incas with a toddler - The Happy Kid - Family Travel
    May 10, 2019

    […] can’t visit Peru without exploring at least some parts from the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Not as famous as Machu […]

    Reply
  • Machu Picchu with a toddler - The Happy Kid - Family Travel
    April 1, 2019

    […] of the people arrive in the region to Cusco, by air or bus from Lima. The flight tickets are really reasonably priced and there are several options in terms of air […]

    Reply
  • Waranqu
    February 14, 2019

    Great article! Next time you are in Peru, make sure to visit us in Ica. We are a small family business just 5 hours south of Lima, offering accommodation and desert tours – sunset in the desert, family hospitality, visit of Canyon de Los Perdidos or many local wineries. We make sure your stay with us is unforgettable.

    Reply
    • Alina
      February 15, 2019

      Thank you! We skipped Ica this time, but we’ll make sure to contact you next time we are in Peru.

      Reply
  • 2 days in the Atacama Desert - The Happy Kid - Family Travel
    November 12, 2018

    […] we only found internal flights to this location. We would have preferred to fly straight from Lima, but it seems you must pass through Santiago to get […]

    Reply

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Căldură mare în ultimele zile, soluția a fost Căldură mare în ultimele zile, soluția a fost să evadăm din oraș ☀️🌳🥰, spre munte, natură și relaxare
Weekend de vis în care am sărbătorit prieteni d Weekend de vis în care am sărbătorit prieteni dragi 🥰
Liniștea serilor de vară afară, în natură 🥰
Voi pe unde evadați pe canicula asta?
Sunt așa frumoase serile de vară în oraș încât profităm de fiecare moment afară 🥰
Unde a zburat deja luna Iunie?!? 🫣 Chiar nu mai Unde a zburat deja luna Iunie?!? 🫣 Chiar nu mai pot ține pasul la cât de repede trece timpul… probabil ar trebui să îmi încetinesc eu ritmul și să nu mai plănuieac să fac atât de multe 🤷‍♀️.
A mai trecut un an școlar 🥹🥹🥹 Și cu fi A mai trecut un an școlar 🥹🥹🥹

Și cu fiecare an care trece sunt tot mai fericită și mai recunoascătoare pentru mediul în care se dezvoltă Eric:
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❤️ O școală ce nu standardizează elevii și nu are ca scop încadrarea lor în niște parametri rigizi
❤️ Un grup de adulți empatici și implicați activ în a cultiva unicitatea fiecărui mic suflet pe care îl modelează 
❤️ O petrecere de final de an școlar relaxată, cu veselie și conectare, fără diplome și clasamente.

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