Chachapoyas, capital of the Amazonas region, was founded in 1538, making it one of Peru’s oldest cities. It still boasts some old colonial architecture in the form of balconied mansion houses with inner courtyards and lovely old tiled roofs and it is surrounded by plantations of orchids, sugar cane and coffee. The city was once a major crossroads between the coast and the jungle but when a new road was constructed through Pedro Ruiz in the 1940s it subsequently fell into decline.

At the heart of town is the Plaza de Armas with its imposing Catedral. There is a small museum in the Insituto Nacional de Cultura, which houses a collection of ceramics and ancient tools as well as some mummies, and dotted around town are some beautiful old churches. Also in the area are several important archeological sites including Kuelap and Gran Vilaya, once inhabited by the Chachapoya peoples until they were defeated by Incas, not long before the Spanish conquistadors arrived.