Santa Catalina Monastery covers 20,000 square metres in the centre of Arequipa, in southern Peru. It’s a walled ‘city within a city’ of narrow streets, cloisters and small houses, built from the city’s pale volcanic stone and painted in bright blues and ochre orange. It was founded in 1579 as a convent for Dominican nuns and stayed closed to the outside world until 1970. A small community of nuns still lives in a separate part of it today.
We visited on our small group tour of Peru and spent about two hours inside: an hour with a guide, then another hour exploring on our own. You definitely need a few hours to do a tour and explore on your own, and go during the day, when the colours really pop.
At a Glance
Where
Santa Catalina 301, two blocks from Arequipa’s Plaza de Armas
Open
Daily from 9.00 am, with late opening on Tuesdays and Wednesdays
Entry
S/ 50 for foreign adults (Peruvian soles)
Guides
Optional, hired at the entrance
Take a guide first, then explore on your own
Independent guides wait at the entrance, and you hire one there once you’ve bought your ticket. Guides are optional and aren’t included in the ticket price, and they work in seven languages, including English. Each one sets their own price depending on the language, how long you want and how many are in your group, and our guided tour took about an hour.
There were only five of us on our tour of Peru, so we all went around together with the one guide. It was reasonably priced, and it’s a great way to see and learn about the convent and the historical items it houses.
When the tour finished, everyone went their own way, and Darren and I spent about another hour exploring. We went back to the places we’d walked through with the guide and wanted more time in, wandered the streets and went up to the rooftop lookout. You can keep exploring on your own until closing time, so there’s no need to rush.
If you’d rather go without a guide, the monastery suggests allowing 1.5 to 2 hours, and it has an official audio guide you can download.
Two of the monastery’s streets, Santa Catalina Monastery
What you’ll see inside
The monastery is laid out like a small colonial town, with streets named after Spanish cities such as Toledo, Sevilla, Córdoba and Granada. These are the parts we’d make sure you don’t miss.
The colours
One of the first things you’ll notice once inside is the colour of the buildings and gardens. The walls are painted bright blue and a deep ochre orange, and in daylight they really pop.
The paintings
As you walk around the covered walkways that border the courtyards, look up to see the paintings on the walls. The artwork was one of the highlights of our visit, and you need daylight to see it well.
The monastery also has an art gallery, the Pinacoteca, with 92 colonial paintings, most of them from the Cusco school.
Lisa’s Tip
Go during the day. The bright blue and ochre walls really pop in daylight, and you need good light to see the paintings along the walkways properly. The monastery does stay open into the evening on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, but for the colours, daytime was the right time for us.
The cells and kitchens
You’re able to see some of the old living and cooking quarters. Many of the nuns came from wealthy families who paid for their own cells, so a lot of the cells had their own small kitchen, sitting room and bedroom.
The garden
There’s one big garden you’ve absolutely got to go and see. It’s beautifully kept, with a huge clay pot lying on its side on the lawn, and it’s gorgeous. Make sure you spend some time in it.
The rooftop lookout
Find the steps that lead up to the rooftop lookout. Because you’re reasonably high, you get uninterrupted 360-degree views across Arequipa.
Opening hours and tickets
The monastery is open every day from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm, and until 8.00 pm on Tuesdays and Wednesdays (last entry 7.00 pm on those nights). It’s closed on Good Friday, 25 December and 1 January. Hours can change, so check the monastery’s official website before you go.
Tickets for foreign adults cost S/ 50 (Peruvian soles), or S/ 30 for young people aged 7 to 18, and children under 7 go in free. You can buy them at the entrance or online.
Good to Know
Photography is allowed, but not with flash indoors. There’s a café, lockers near the entrance for bags and backpacks, and free Wi-Fi.
More from our Peru trip
Santa Catalina was one stop on our small group tour of Peru. If you’re starting to plan your own trip, here’s how we planned our Peru trip, and our post on the Chauchilla Cemetery near Nasca covers another of southern Peru’s historic sites.
Last updated: 28 October 2026. Opening hours and ticket prices checked with the monastery’s official website.
Love this guide? Save it for later
Pin it to your Pinterest board so it’s there when you plan your trip.
