The 7 Best Things to Do in Trujillo, Peru
by Rebecca Hollman
updated Dec 18, 2018
Trujillo, Peru
Trujillo is Peru’s third largest city and capital of La Libertad Region. Located along the coast in the northeast of Peru, Trujillo is known as the Capital of Marinera (a traditional dance in Peru), capital of the Peruvian Paso horse, and the birthplace of Peru’s judiciary. Trujillo is considered the birthplace for Peru’s liberty since it had a major role in gaining independence from Spain and it was Peru’s capital twice before the current day capital - Lima. It is located in the Moche Valley and so most of the area was home to the formidable cultures of the Moche and the Chimu peoples.
Table of Contents
1. Huaca Del Sol y La Luna
Huaca del Sol y la Luna is a temple complex built by the Moche peoples somewhere between 100 to 800 CE. The Huaca del Sol temple was built of over 130 million adobe bricks and is the biggest adobe structure in the Americas. The bricks were added continuously one on top of each other over 8 generations and because of the unique makers mark on each brick, it suggested that over 100 different communities contributed bricks to the construction of this temple. The Huaca del Sol temple was located at the center of the capital city of the Moche, Cerro Blanco, and was used as royal residences and burial grounds. The temple was mostly destroyed due to looting from Spanish during the colonial conquest and from erosion over the years. The Huaca de la Luna temple is much smaller but because it was left unlooted, it has given historians much more information about the Moche people. This temple was used for ceremonial/religious purposes and as a human sacrifice site. You can visit both of these temples and also visit the Museum of the Huacas de Moche, located on site. The museum is open everyday from 9 AM to 4 PM. Entrance to the museum is S/ 5 per person.
2. Cao Museum and El Brujo Ruins
El Brujo is a huge archaeological complex located in the district of the Magdalena de Cao, about 60 kilometers north of Trujillo. It is made up of three temples, Huaca Prieta, Huaca Cao Viejo, and Huaca Cortada. This complex became famous because of the discovery of the mummified body of the Lady of Cao, a Moche civilization ruler. The Cao Museum is on the site of the El Brujo ruins and has 7 rooms with different artifacts that describe Moche history and El Brujo. The discovery of the Lady of Cao changed the notion that only men could be rulers in ancient Peru. The Lady of Cao was between 20 to 25 years old and apparently died from complications of labor. She was found buried with necklaces of gold, silver, lapis lazuli, quartz and turquoise, with nose rings of gold and crowns of copper, gold and silver. The ruins and museum are open from 9 AM to 5 PM and cost S/ 10 per person to enter (S/ 5 for university students).
3. Huaca Del Dragon
Another Moche era temple, the Huaca del Dragon is located just outside of Trujillo. It has one temple in the complex and this huaca is covered in murals of rainbows and carvings of dragons, hence the name Huaca del Dragon. The temple was used for ceremonial/religious purposes but also as a center for gathering food and goods to supply the people that lived in the area. There is also a museum on the complex. The price for this museum is included in your S/ 10 ticket for Chan Chan so try to plan your visit where you go to both archaeological sites in the same day.
4. Chan Chan Ruins
Chan Chan is the largest adobe city in the Americas, built by the Chimu peoples around 850 AD. Chan Chan was the capital city of the empire of Chimor. In the Chimu tongue, Chan Chan means Sun Sun in reference to the constant sunny climate that Chan Chan receives. The city had an estimated population of 40,000-60,000 people. After the Inca conquered the Chimu people in 1470 AD, Chan Chan fell into disrepair. The city continued to get looted by the Spanish after the Spanish conquest. At its apex, Chan Chan was one of the richest cities of ancient Peru. The treasure found in one tomb alone was equivalent to $5,000,000 US dollars in gold. The entrance fee for Chan Chan is S/ 11 but also gives you access to the Huaca del Sol y la Luna. You can get a guide for another S/ 30 to show you around the complex and explain the significance of each the rooms and buildings.
Interested in visiting Chan Chan? Learn more about the Chan Chan ruins on my Chan Chan blog post.
5. Traditional Peruvian Paso Show
Trujillo is consider the birthplace of the Peruvian Paso horse. This beautiful breed of horse is known for being very refined and petite and for its famous gated movement that it was specially bred for. It’s unique gated movement is called “paso llano” and makes the horse’s trot extremely smooth and comfortable to ride. Since Trujillo is credited with creating the breed, there are many beautiful Peruvian Paso farms around the area. Different farms offer shows to the public, sometimes integrated with shows of traditional folk dance. The most popular farm for shows is Fundo Palo Marino. Fundo Palo Marino offers shows three times per day, everyday of the week. The entrance cost is S/ 30 per person and they also offer the option to buy lunch, since you are seated at a restaurant table to watch the show.
6. Spend a Few Beach Days in Huanchaco
Only 20 minutes from Trujillo lays an awesome chilled out beach town called Huanchaco. Most people skip Trujillo entirely and head straight to the beach to stay in Huanchaco a few days. I suggest spending two days in Trujillo to visit all the archaeological sties and then the rest of your time in Huanchaco. The only thing to do in Huanchaco really is chill on the beach. You can explore the restaurants and vendor booths along the beach strip of town, and maybe even play in a game of soccer, but most of your time will be relaxing on the beach.
Interested in visiting Huanchaco? Read my article about the best places to eat and stay in Huanchaco.
7. Learn to Surf in Huanchaco
As I mentioned before, Huanchaco is a super chill beach town. It is a famous backpacker spot because of its beginner waves that are perfect for learning to surf on. A lot of tourists stay here for a week or two just to learn how to surf. There are tons of surf hostels and also surf shops that will rent you boards and wetsuits (because the water is pretty cold here). I would suggest taking surf lessons the first couple of times you go out because the spot where you surf breaks almost on the retainer wall at high tide and it can be very dangerous getting in and out of the water if you don’t know what you’re doing.
