Forty kilometres south of central Lima on the dry coastal plain, Pachacámac is a vast sanctuary that served as the central Andes' most important oracle for more than a thousand years before the arrival of the Spanish. The site stretches over 600 hectares and contains the Temple of Pachacámac (the painted pyramid), the Inca Temple of the Sun, the Acllawasi ("House of the Chosen Women"), the great plaza of pilgrims, and a string of lesser shrines.
The excellent on-site museum, opened in 2015, displays the wooden Pachacámac idol — recovered intact from a sealed chamber — and a clear chronology of the cultures that built the site (Lima, Wari, Ichma, Inca). Plan two to three hours, take a hat (no shade), and consider a half-day taxi or organised tour rather than the long public transport route.