Andahuaylas Province: Lake, Archaeology and Traditions

In Andahuaylas Province, a waterside landscape, archaeological remains and festivals with fixed annual dates come together. Laguna de Pacucha offers a way to spend time by the water and take a cycling loop; museums, archaeological sites and religious traditions provide other points of interest. You can shape your trip around the themes that interest you most.

Laguna de Pacucha: Water and a Cycling Loop

Laguna de Pacucha covers 728 hectares and is approximately 30 meters deep. Visitors can rent bicycles to ride the loop around the lake. This lets you combine time by the water with a cycling activity. Its size and depth give you a sense of the lake as a landscape, while the cycling route also draws attention to its immediate surroundings. By planning for both, you can take in the lake’s scale as well as a specific way to get around there.

History, Architecture and Festivals

The Museo Chanka de Andahuaylas is located in the district and province of Andahuaylas. It offers guided tours about the history and culture of the region’s ancient peoples. A tour gives your visit a cultural focus, centering on the history and cultural traditions of earlier communities.

The Sitio Arqueológico de Curamba, also known as Cerro Inca, is located in Kishuara District, Andahuaylas Province. Its named features include a main plaza, an Ushno, or sanctuary, in the form of a two-tiered truncated pyramid, and a Kallanka. Every year on June 22, Curamba serves as the setting for Tinkuy Curamba, which reenacts the visit of the Inca Pachacútec. The architecture and the recurring reenactment offer two different cultural perspectives on the site: you can view the described structures and also plan your trip around an annual event.

Santuario de Campanayocc is another destination with religious significance. Every year on September 14, a pilgrimage is held there in honor of Señor de Huanca. The sanctuary and its surroundings also offer spaces for meditation and relaxation, as well as for taking in the landscape. The pilgrimage’s fixed date and the quieter, contemplative uses of the area represent different aspects of the same place.

The Encuentro del Carnaval Originario del Perú – Pukllay – Andahuaylas features a variety of dances and music associated with the traditional customs of Apurímac’s farming communities. This festival tradition complements the archaeological and religious themes with a form of cultural expression centered on dance and music.

In the wider destination of Apurímac

In the wider destination of Apurímac, Laguna de Pacucha provides a habitat for silverside fish and farmed trout. Its sandy, reed-lined shores are home to various wild birds. Ecological conditions and the presence of species can vary seasonally. For visitors interested in landscapes and wildlife, this natural side of the lake is also part of the broader regional picture.

Another cultural example in Apurímac is Carnaval o Pukllay in the area of the farming community of Pomacocha. On June 10, 2026, it was declared a National Cultural Heritage by Vice-Ministerial Resolution No. 167-2026-VMPCIC/MC. The tradition preserves agricultural, livestock-raising, musical and ritual practices and is considered a representative expression of Apurímac’s intangible cultural heritage. It is a living tradition; individual activities and dates vary.

The wider destination also includes Bosque de Piedras de Pampachiri, also known as Pankula Pampa de Pabellones. It covers approximately 60 hectares. Its rock formations are attributed to eruptions of the Qarwarasu and Sotaya volcanoes more than four million years ago. A roughly 108-kilometer combi ride goes from the Andahuaylas bus terminal to Pampachiri’s Plaza de Armas. The trip takes approximately three hours; the plaza is the access corridor to the Bosque, not the final destination at the stone forest itself. Travel times may vary, so treat the duration as an estimate.

Discover more destinations: Andahuaylas, Aymaraes, Chincheros.

Go to the wider travel overview: Apurímac.