Some 770 km north of Lima, and rapidly becoming one of Peru's larger cities, Chiclayo is an active commercial centre thanks more to its strategic position than to any industrial development. Originally it was just a small annex to the old colonial town of Lambayeque, 12km north, but things have swung the other way over the last century.
Lambayeque is now much smaller settlement but, unlike the city of Chiclayo, boasts two excellent museums. It's likely that before long Lambayeque will be subsumed as a suburb of Chiclayo, a city which itself has little of architectural or historical interest, but nevertheless makes a good base for visiting Lambayeque and the nearby archeological sites. Apart from the historical interest, there are also a few attractive beach resorts and coastal towns to relax in an catch some sun, such as Pimentel and Santa Rosa. Most places can be reached independently by taking a colectivo from the market area of Chiclayo, but you'll find it much easier to see all the archeological sites if you've got your own transport. Despite being the northern base of several successive ancient cultures, the Chiclayo region's most interesting period was during the first millennium AD in Lambayeque Valley. First came the Mochica - dominated settlements, which produced such magnificent treasures as were recently encountered at the Temple of Sipan. Then followed the Sican culture, equally rich in iconographic imagery and fine ritual objects and garments, and responsible for the enormous desert temple complex of Batan Grande and the city of pyramids at Tucume, which compare in importance with the Moche and Chimu complexes around Trujillo. More recent and far less inscrutable ruins are to be found in the colonial ghost town of Zaña.
Lambayeque is now much smaller settlement but, unlike the city of Chiclayo, boasts two excellent museums. It's likely that before long Lambayeque will be subsumed as a suburb of Chiclayo, a city which itself has little of architectural or historical interest, but nevertheless makes a good base for visiting Lambayeque and the nearby archeological sites. Apart from the historical interest, there are also a few attractive beach resorts and coastal towns to relax in an catch some sun, such as Pimentel and Santa Rosa. Most places can be reached independently by taking a colectivo from the market area of Chiclayo, but you'll find it much easier to see all the archeological sites if you've got your own transport. Despite being the northern base of several successive ancient cultures, the Chiclayo region's most interesting period was during the first millennium AD in Lambayeque Valley. First came the Mochica - dominated settlements, which produced such magnificent treasures as were recently encountered at the Temple of Sipan. Then followed the Sican culture, equally rich in iconographic imagery and fine ritual objects and garments, and responsible for the enormous desert temple complex of Batan Grande and the city of pyramids at Tucume, which compare in importance with the Moche and Chimu complexes around Trujillo. More recent and far less inscrutable ruins are to be found in the colonial ghost town of Zaña.
The Chiclayo area and Lambayeque valley contains such a wealth of intriguing and appealing archeological sites that it's hard to know where to begin. Probably your best bet is to start off by learning a bit more about the history and culture of the region by taking in the four main museums. Two of these, tha Museo Brunning and the Lord of Sipan Tombs museum are located in Lambayeque itself, just 12km from Chiclayo city. The other principal museums, Museo de sitio Túcume and Museo Sicán, are further out, one in the Valley of the Pyramids itself, the other en route to Batán Grande in the town of Ferreñafe.
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