Alternative Food and Socio-Cultural Experience in Lima

Immerse yourself in Lima’s alternative food and socio-cultural scene. Explore authentic markets, try traditional Peruvian dishes, and visit local initiatives in human settlements for a unique cultural and gastronomic experience.

Duration: 7 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Market - Enjoy tasting regional meals, fruits, cheeses, liquors, drinks, and sweets, all the while chatting and laughing with our enthusiastic friends in the market who are always so eager to share their favorite flavors.

For seafood lovers and those who will try anything once, our favourite ceviche vendor will show you how to prepare this Peruvian classic in the market itself.

Carefully pace your eating and always save some room in your stomach! We then continue to meander through the market, tasting a large variety of dried snacks, side dishes, fresh fruits, time-honored liquors that will surely give you a nice jolt, and succulent juices you won’t easily find on just any restaurant menu.

Whether you love to eat or just want to see what the Peruvian food hype is all about, our market tour is definitely an authentic, alternative experience that foodies can’t miss.

  • Cementerio de Nueva Esperanza - After a 40-minute drive, you’ll reach the second largest cemetery in the world. It’s a very impressive place, different than any other cemetery you have visited before. It’s located amidst the hills and human settlements. You’ll have the chance to look around and if you’re into photography, you’ll surely take a bunch of artistic photos.
  • San Juan De Miraflores - After the visit to the cemetery, you’ll head towards the human settlement where you will first visit a local lady who has started her own small business and artisan workshop in her house. She will tell you more about herself and her business.

The bilingual guide teams up with a local guide who will show you around the neighborhood and take you to meet several local families and community leaders. The first stop is the house of our local cook who has prepared a delicious drink and small snack for you.

Afterwards the local guide will show you around and tell you more about daily life with its many challenges but also its many positive initiatives. The people who live there have worked hard to build a real community and you’ll get to meet some of these community leaders. The guide will also tell you more about the local project your visit supports. On some days you’ll even be able to see their activities with the participating kids in action.

What's Included
  • Private transportation
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
  • Lunch
  • Contribution to the social project visited on the tour
  • All activities
  • Food tasting
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
Additional Information

In the morning, you’ll go on an off-the-beaten-path market tour, where you visit an authentic market where locals do their shopping or enjoy a quick lunch. You’ll try traditional Peruvian foods how and where the locals eat them. With typical Peruvian dishes, drinks, fruits and desserts surrounded by and interacting with friendly locals, this market visit is both a cultural and gastronomic experience.

In the afternoon, you’ll visit several places in a human settlement up in the hills of Lima such as a very unique and huge cemetery, a female artisan’s workshop, a social project run by locals and you’ll have one more drink and small snack at a local family’s house. You’ll not only learn about daily life in Lima’s human settlements and the historical, political and cultural background but most importantly, you’ll meet amazing locals who work hard to improve their community. This cultural immersion tour focuses on positive initiatives and hope and benefits the social project you’ll visit.

  • Operated by a bilingual guide (Spanish/English)
  • Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking (allergies or any other restrictions).
  • In winter months, some areas may be a bit muddy because of humidity (even if it doesn’t rain). Please dress appropriately.
  • We recommend wearing comfortable closed walking shoes (f.i. sneakers, no sandals)
  • Sunscreen, water and a hat are highly recommended. The sun in Lima is very strong, even if it seems cloudy.
  • From May to November it is recommended to bring a sweater and a light coat since the weather may be colder in some areas you’ll visit
Location
Market
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.6
(17 Ratings)
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1 star
Simpangratis
Dec 18, 2023
Lima from Different Angle - I want to see the inner belly of Lima, not the normal beaten path of tourists. Noted that it is not inexpensive nor entertaining, but very well planned and we travel in comfortable transportation with enlightening guide, Alfredo, and going home with a better understanding of people of Lima. First we stopped at mercado surquillos and choose the juice and the lunch of our choices. We chose ceviche and causa. Then continued to the biggest cemetery, traveling past traffic and located in dusty area. Learned a bit about growing Lima and their spiritual beliefs. Then ended up in human settlement (publo jovenes), seeing the wall of shame dividing the human settlement and the rich departmento and then meet their inhabitants, listening to the lady who made handcraft (inexpensive, no concern about price gouging nor guide benefitting from the sales), and lastly the after school program for children. I want to see Lima from different angle, and the tour delivered.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Gbtrirn
Jul 23, 2022
Food and sociocultural tour of Lima - We only had one day in Lima, at the very beginning of our trip, so I booked the food and sociocultural tour as a way to both introduce my somewhat-picky teenager to the food of Peru and also to learn about how many people live in Lima. Our guide, Alfredo, was outstanding. He picked us up from our hotel and we went to a local market, where we wandered around picking out different fruits. We sat down for lunch at one of the stalls and had the most amazing ceviche while Alfredo cut up our fruit purchases to try. We also tried a couple of different kinds of juice liqueurs. Then it was back to the van for a trip to the human settlements, where we visited one of the largest cemeteries in the world, as well as a couple of homes where we got to talk to some of the local people and learn about their culture. I think one of my favorite parts of the whole tour was sitting down with a local woman who served us tea and popcorn while we got to learn about her and her life. Our tour finished up with a visit to one of the social projects that our tour fee helps to support, an after school program for kids, where we got to play a whole-body-involved game of rock paper scissors with the kids. We highly recommend this tour and our guide, Alfredo!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Estairs70
May 18, 2022
Do yourself a favor and book a tour with Alternative Peru! - My tour with Alfredo was the highlight of my time in Peru. I told Alfredo that food was my focus and my request were meant and some. It was a busy day with lots of eating but Alfredo is such a good host and kept me engaged the entire day. I learned so much, not only about food; but history as well. Alfredo is knowledgeable in many aspects of Peruvian/World culture. Do yourself a favor and book a tour with Alfredo and Alternative Peru.
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Shleymoo
Sep 15, 2019
Amazing! - Alfredo, our tour guide, was the best. He's knowledgeable, kind, funny, and passionate. We had a great time touring Lima, visiting local art pieces/places, and eating with a local family. Highly recommend this tour or any tour with Alternative Peru. Thank you again Alfredo!
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Isa915
Sep 14, 2019
Great Value, off the beaten path - We spent a great day with our guide. The first part at the market were we could taste everything we wanted. The lunch consisted of two amazonian dishes, a fish and a dish of rice and chicken both very tasteful. The second part of the day we were taken to a huge cemetery and visited a settlement. We had the chance to meet inspiring people how are taking actions to change their lives, a very humbling experience that made us realize how much we are privileged. Would recommend without hesitation if you want to see what a typical tourist does not see.
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478genevas
Jun 29, 2019
Good value for money. See the real deal! - We had a great time at the market and our guide was totally willing to adjust to our interests and questions. The food was tasty and enjoyable. Although a pack of paper towels or hand wipes would have been useful. The other sites and stops were fantastic. The bathroom stops were well-timed. It felt like a lot of van time, but Lima is huge and traffic is terrible. The driver was safe and courteous as he transported us around. Our guide really made the day special with his great personality and kindness. It was a terrific way to learn more and see more than we ever could have expected.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lynne37
Apr 19, 2019
Fascinating and informative - This is a great way to see some parts of Peru that tourists can’t usually access. Alberto and Placido were excellent guides and gave us loads of information, not only about this visit, but also other things to do in Lima. The visit to the colourful market gave us a chance to try some delicious fruits, juices and amazing dishes including ceviche and jungle food. Visiting the settlements in the mountains, and meeting the people who live there, was a unique opportunity and gave a fascinating insight into Peru’s history. It was a privilege to be invited into the home of one of these lovely people, and humbling to hear about the everyday challenges they face at first hand. I would recommend this trip to anyone looking for more than just the tourist attractions.
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Matevz
Apr 17, 2019
Getting the real perspective - We spent the morning exploring a local market. Not a big one, but offering everything we wanted to taste - cheeses, fruits (don’t miss the lucuma milk shake), cakes. We had a very good ceviche for lunch, but the star was a booth with Amazonian cuisine, where the owner got us several unusual drinks and cooked a typical meal, explaining all the ingredients and techniques. The afternoon was dedicated to the visit of poor communities and the huge cemetery. It is amazing what a difference there is just a few kilometers from the fancy Miraflores. When booking the tour, we were afraid that we would end up on a kind of a “human safari “. Nathalie from the agency was very kind in explaining that is absolutely not the case. She was right. It was a good experience to see where and how people live, yet they are full of optimism, energy, and pride about what they do. A humbling experience which put many things and problems in our lives into a perspective. The post-tour service was equally excellent; we got a detailed explanation of the itinerary, words, dishes, etc. by mail. Thanks Alberto and the whole team!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Journey715
Dec 21, 2018
A Great Taste of Local Treats and Eye-opening visit in the Afternoon - This was a great way to start our trip in Peru. The morning local market tour gave us a glimpse of the treats Peru has to offer. We were glad we did the market tour in the beginning of our 8 days in Peru so we knew what items we wanted to eat more of the rest of our trip. The Afternoon was a visit to an off the beaten path village that is in need of a lot of help. A family of the village graciously welcomed us into their home and we had some time to interact with the family. Also, we went to see some local efforts of a NGO at the community center for children which is under construction. It was eye-opening and inspiring to see people with so little, be so happy and how much they help each other. My husband and I brought a suitcase full of toiletries donated by his colleagues and ourselves. The community was so gracious for the donations. The little things we take for granted - are a big deal to others. It was touching to see that. Last but not least- our tour guide Alberto and driver were awesome. Alberto was very knowledgeable and informative. He really seemed to have great passion for his job and for helping these communities. I highly recommended this tour to get a taste of Peru and see the other side of Lima. This will be a day we will never forget. It was great for the soul.
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Horsegirl645
Nov 24, 2018
An Amazing Experience! - This tour is a gem. They take you to a local market with no tourists and give you the freshest food imaginable and tell you history along the way. The cemetery was breathtaking and I'm so glad that was part of this trip. Then meeting a local family and learning about their experiences and what brought them to Lima was so interesting and relevant to the culture of Lima. Senorita Nanfa was a gracious host serving popped corn and drinks. If you are looking to get a feel for the real Lima this is a tour to do it with.
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