Sacred sites in Puno

Amantani, Pachatata & Pachamama

Part of Lake Titicaca

Santa Rosa, Puno, Peru

Amantani rises from Lake Titicaca with two peaks — Pachatata (Father Earth) and Pachamama (Mother Earth) — each crowned with pre-Inca temples that are opened only once a...

Aramu Muru

Ilave, Puno, Peru

On a volcanic hillside near Lake Titicaca, a T-shaped doorway 7 meters square is carved into solid rock—leading nowhere visible....

Chullpa Lagarto

Part of Sillustani

Sillustani, Puno, Peru

The Chullpa del Lagarto rises above the other funerary towers at Sillustani with the authority its builders intended....

Chullpas Sillustani

Part of Sillustani

Sillustani, Puno, Peru

On a peninsula jutting into Lake Umayo near Puno, ninety-one stone towers stand in various states of preservation — from intact cylinders to tumbled foundations....

Pukara, Templo Santa Isabel

Pukara, Puno, Peru

Long before the Inca, Pukara dominated the northern Lake Titicaca basin. Beginning around 1,800 BCE, this was the region's first large urban center, with a ceremonial...

Shrine of Our Lady of Candelaria

Puno, Puno, Peru

Each February, the shores of Lake Titicaca transform. The Fiesta de la Virgen de la Candelaria draws 50,000 dancers and 15,000 musicians to Puno in a celebration UNESCO...

Sillustani

Atuncolla, Puno, Peru

On a peninsula jutting into Lake Umayo, funeral towers rise against the altiplano sky....