Chivay is not the most photographed destination in the Colca Valley. That place belongs to the Cruz del Cóndor Viewpoint, 45 kilometers to the northwest. Chivay is something else: it is the town where you spend the night before seeing the condors, where you have dinner after a day on the road from Arequipa, where you soak in the hot springs at sunset, and where you first understand how people in the valley live. This role as a base of operations is what gives Chivay its own character, something the viewpoints do not have: it is a living town that does not depend on tourists to exist.
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Where it is and what it is like
Chivay is the capital of the province of Caylloma and the largest town in the Colca Valley. It is located at 3,635 meters above sea level, 151 kilometers from Arequipa by road, and about three and a half hours away. Its name has two explanations. The most widely accepted one derives it from the Quechua words chuway or chuwa, meaning clay plate, in reference to the shape of the land where the town is located. Another, less documented interpretation associates it with a Quechua term meaning the place where birds mate.
The town was founded by the Spanish during the colonial period, although the territory had previously been inhabited by the Collagua and Cabana ethnic groups, the two cultures that gave the valley its name: Colca is the union of the first syllables of both groups. This double cultural heritage is still visible in the clothing of the valley’s women, where the embroidery and hats of the traditional dress vary between the two ethnic groups in a way that locals identify immediately, although visitors usually need an explanation to notice the difference.
The town center is small and can be explored on foot in just a few minutes. The Main Square with its colonial church, the food market just a few meters away, the travel agencies, and the restaurants that open early for groups heading to the canyon at dawn create an atmosphere that is very active in the morning and quieter in the afternoon, when it becomes the peaceful Andean town it is when there is no organized tour in the parking lot.
The Main Square and the Parish Church
Chivay’s Main Square is the central gathering space of the town. It has the scale of an Andean village square, without the monumental dimensions of the colonial squares of Arequipa or Cusco, with gardens, a central fountain, and commercial arcades on two of its sides. The cold mornings of the valley, when the air at 3,635 meters has a density different from both the high plateau and Arequipa, find their main meeting point in the square: coca leaf and hot drink vendors, guides waiting for their groups, and travelers leaving early for the canyon create a very specific kind of Andean dawn movement.
The Nuestra Señora de la Concepción Parish Church, also known as the Cathedral of Chivay, occupies the eastern side of the square. It is a colonial church built of sillar stone, with frescoes on the interior walls and sculptures of saints dressed with natural hair, which, for those unfamiliar with the tradition of Andean religious statues, creates an impression of an intensity that churches with wooden or plaster images do not have. The style of the interior ornamentation combines elements of colonial Baroque with Andean influence, following the same logic as the churches of Arequipa and the Sacred Valley of Cusco, although with less formal elaboration than those in the main cities.
La Calera Hot Springs: the afternoon plan
La Calera Hot Springs are located three kilometers from the center of Chivay, accessible by taxi in five minutes or on foot in about 40 minutes along the road that follows the Colca River. It is the most visited attraction in Chivay and the one that best fits into the rhythm of the two-day tour: the afternoon of the first day, after lunch in Chivay and before dinner, is the time most travelers dedicate to the hot springs before going to bed early for the next day’s departure to the canyon.
The complex has several pools at different temperatures, fed by thermal waters of volcanic origin. The temperature of the pools ranges between 35 and 38 degrees Celsius. The waters have a mineral composition with calcium, zinc, and iron, which are attributed therapeutic properties for muscle and joint pain, something especially welcome after a day of road travel and high altitude. The contrast between the hot water and the cold valley air at that elevation creates a sensation that lower-altitude hot springs do not offer with the same intensity.
Opening hours are from 4:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Admission costs 15 soles. It is best to bring a swimsuit, sandals, and a towel because the complex has changing rooms and showers but does not rent equipment.
The market and local cuisine
Chivay’s market is just a few meters from the square and is the most authentic place in town to understand everyday life in the valley. Locally produced cheeses, different varieties of Andean potatoes that are not found in the markets of Lima or Arequipa, chuño, charqui, coca leaves, medicinal herbs, and alpaca textiles are sold at the stalls inside. Morning is the busiest time at the market.
Chivay’s cuisine has two dishes worth trying. Rocoto relleno, prepared with the same Arequipa recipe that the province shares with the regional capital, and caldo de cabeza, a thick offal soup that in the Andean highlands works as a restorative breakfast on very cold days. The restaurants around the square also serve trout from the valley’s rivers, which in Chivay has a freshness that restaurants in Arequipa cannot match because the product arrives the same day.
The Colca Sour is the local cocktail: a version of the pisco sour prepared with products from the valley, usually with corn or Andean fruits such as elderberry incorporated into the pisco base. Some restaurants and bars in Chivay serve it as part of the local menu.
The Astronomical Observatory
Chivay has a planetarium and astronomical observatory that operates at night from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. The planetarium dome features projections about the universe, the moon, the planets, and the galaxies with state-of-the-art technology, which is especially relevant in the context of the trip: the night sky of the Colca Valley at 3,635 meters, without the light pollution of the cities, has a density of visible stars that, during the clear-sky months between May and September, is difficult to see from anywhere on the Peruvian coast.
The Patapampa Viewpoint: on the way there
Technically, Patapampa is not in Chivay but on the road between Arequipa and the town, at about 4,800 or 4,900 meters above sea level at the highest point of the route. It is the first place where the high Andean mountain landscape fully dominates every other visual reference: the volcanic horizon with Ampato, Sabancaya, Hualca Hualca, and the Chila Mountain Range appearing from different angles, the stone apachetas that travelers pile up as offerings to the Apus along the roadside, and the sparse highland vegetation with ichu grass and yareta among the rocks. Tours make a short stop at Patapampa, which on clear days during the dry season is one of the most impressive moments of the journey.
Accommodation in Chivay
Chivay has the largest accommodation offer in the Colca Valley, ranging from budget guesthouses around the square to mid-range hotels and a few luxury properties on the outskirts of town with views of the river or the canyon. Prices in the budget category range from 50 to 100 soles per night in a double room. Mid-range hotels cost between 150 and 300 soles. High-end hotels such as Colca Lodge, located on the banks of the Colca River several kilometers from town, have rates that exceed 500 soles per night and include their own private hot springs.
There is only one ATM in Chivay, and it may be out of service or out of cash at certain times. Bringing enough cash from Arequipa for your days in the valley is the most important precaution before leaving.
From Chivay to the rest of the valley
Chivay is the starting point for traveling through the Colca Valley in any direction. The Cruz del Cóndor Viewpoint is 45 to 50 minutes away by vehicle to the northwest. The towns of Yanque, Coporaque, Maca, Pinchollo, and Cabanaconde are distributed along the road that borders the canyon from Chivay. Cabanaconde, the farthest town at about 60 kilometers away, is the starting point for trekking inside the canyon toward the Sangalle Oasis.
Peru Sites Travel Agency
We offer personalized tours so you can visit Chivay, one of the most charming destinations in the Colca Valley.
From Chivay, there is also an alternative bus route to Puno and Lake Titicaca, ideal for travelers who want to continue their itinerary through southern Peru without returning to Arequipa.