Free Walking Tour Iquitos: Rubber Boom to Belén

Your Iquitos Walking Tour, Seven Stops from Rubber Wealth to River Life

1. 1

   Plaza de Armas

   

   Iquitos grew outward from this square. The Plaza de Armas has been the city's main public space since it was laid out in 1764, and it still fills exactly one city block. Official ceremonies happen here, the national anthem is sung here, and the flags of Peru and of the Loreto region are raised here; on any ordinary day it is simply the place where locals and visitors cross paths.

   In the middle stands a squat, four-sided obelisk that narrows towards its tip, set on a stone platform next to three flagpoles. Walk all the way around it. Its four faces carry long lists of names: the men from Loreto who died in the War of the Pacific. The base is decorated with inlaid metal images of the war's heroes. Keep that war in mind, because it returns at the riverfront.

   On the east side, a round fountain runs shows of coordinated water jets that climb to about ten metres, lit in colours with lilac dominating. Benches are scattered at the corners and inside the square, close to the obelisk.

   Look around the edges and the first chapters of the walk are already in view: the Casa de Fierro on the east side, the Catedral de Iquitos, which locals also call the Iglesia Matriz, at the southwest corner, and nearby the former houses of the Pinasco and Fitzcarrald families. The iron house is only 80 m away, a one-minute walk.

   Hours

   Open 24/7

   Price

   Free

   Location

   Plaza de Armas on Google Maps ↗

2. 2

   Casa de Fierro

   

   Iron instead of wood or stone: the Casa de Fierro is a prefabricated house made of metal, put up in 1890 while the rubber boom was making Iquitos rich. People in town often call it the Eiffel House, and it has become one of the city's cultural icons. It stands between Próspero and Putumayo.

   Read it as a statement of wealth. In a tropical river city, someone chose to build with prefabricated iron, and that tells you how much money rubber brought here at the end of the nineteenth century. The house sets the tone for the next two stops, which show the same boom from other angles.

   Looking at it from the street is free and takes a few minutes. The only way inside is the restaurant on the second floor, which expects you to order. Worth it if you want a meal or a drink with a view over the plaza, otherwise the exterior is the point.

   The next rubber-era showpiece is 160 m on, about two minutes' walk.

   Hours

   Mon–Sat 11:00–22:00, Sun closed

   Price

   Free (exterior visit; restaurant on 2nd floor requires consumption)

   Location

   Casa de Fierro on Google Maps ↗

3. 3

   Ex-Hotel Palace

   

   Stop on the corner and take in the whole building: three floors topped by a corner tower, art nouveau with clear influences of Catalan modernism and the school of Antoni Gaudí, plus Gothic and neoclassical touches. Look closely at the balconies, where the wrought iron grows into plant shapes, at the metalwork and the tall doorways, and at the tiles, which were brought from Málaga.

   The house was commissioned by Otoniel Vela, which is why it is also known as Casa Vela. Peruvian civil engineer Samuel Young Mass and Spanish architect José Altamira y Motta built it between 1908 and 1912. Every element crossed the Atlantic, and the design had to be adapted to the tropical climate of Iquitos. It opened as a luxury hotel for rubber barons and European traders and is regarded as Peru's first luxury hotel, twelve years older than the Gran Hotel Bolívar in Lima. Many see it as the finest expression of Iquitos architecture.

   Since 1961 the building has housed offices of the Región Militar del Oriente. A restoration is planned, funded by British international cooperation and supervised by Peru's Ministry of Culture. The hotel also made it onto money: a one-sol coin shows it with the words “Antiguo Hotel Palace, 1912”, with 12 million coins planned for circulation.

   Admission is charged, and you pay at the entrance. If you are short on time, the façade is what you came for. The Museo Amazónico is 180 m further, two minutes' walk; on the way you pass the Museo de Culturas Indígenas Amazónicas.

   Location

   Ex-Hotel Palace on Google Maps ↗

4. 4

   Museo Amazónico

   

   Before you go in, look at the building itself. It went up in 1863 in neoclassical style, with large round-arched windows guarded by bars of round iron. It first housed the army's general command and was later donated to the Prefecture of Loreto. It was restored in 1893, gained its second floor in 1903 and was restored again in 1996, when it became a museum. The carved wooden wall decoration is the work of craftsman Demetrio Días Souzaen, and the building is protected as national cultural heritage.

   The museum opened on 15 March 1996 and is devoted mainly to the native communities of the Amazon. Its centrepiece is a collection of 30 statues, each representing a different community. A photo gallery from the rubber era and an exhibition of portraits complete it. After the iron house and the Palace hotel, this is the other side of the boom: the people who lived along these rivers long before rubber money arrived.

   Entry is free, so give it around 45 minutes if you have any interest in Amazonian cultures; skim it in 15 if you mainly came for architecture.

   Now comes the longest leg of the walk: 1320 m, about 18 minutes, to Belén.

   Hours

   Mon–Fri and 1st Sun of month 09:00–12:30, 14:30–16:45; Sat and other Sun closed

   Price

   Free

   Website

   museos.cultura.pe ↗

   Location

   Museo Amazónico on Google Maps ↗

5. 5

   Belén (Mercado y barrio flotante)

   

   Belén is called the Amazonian Venice, and you will see why: much of the neighbourhood is made of houses on stilts and homes built on rafts, out beyond the bank of the Itaya river. Life here changes rhythm with the seasons as the Itaya rises and falls. The quarter is split into Alto Belén, on higher ground, and Bajo Belén, down by the water, and locals describe its character as picturesque, crowded, magical and rebellious.

   Historically, this is where the whole district began. The first houses stood on the shore of Belén Cocha, a small arm of the Itaya that has since disappeared and is today a street called Itaya. From there the neighbourhood spread up a hill known as the Loma de Vizcarra, later renamed Pijuayo Loma after the pijuayo palms that grew there in abundance.

   In Alto Belén, look for the old market hall known as the Casona del Mercado de Belén, the Pasaje Paquito, the two viewpoints Mirador Turístico de Belén and Mirador Turístico de Cornejo Portugal, and the Embarcadero Puerto Santa Rosa landing. Bajo Belén has the Glorieta de Belén, the stretch called the Venecia Loretana and the river ports. The Mercado de Belén is one of the commercial hearts of Iquitos, busy with products from the region.

   Timing matters here: the traditional market is at its liveliest in the morning, and visits in daylight are recommended, which is why the route brings you here mid-morning. Plan on about an hour. Then walk 1190 m, roughly 16 minutes, back to the riverfront at the Malecón Tarapacá.

   Hours

   Open 24/7 (traditional market active daily approx. 05:00–13:00; daylight visits recommended)

   Price

   Free

   Location

   Belén (Mercado y barrio flotante) on Google Maps ↗

6. 6

   Malecón Tarapacá

   

   The Malecón Tarapacá runs along the bank of the Itaya at the eastern edge of the city and is the biggest meeting point in Iquitos, for locals and visitors alike. Its southern section is popularly called the boulevard, though strictly speaking the whole thing is an avenue by the river.

   The name links back to the obelisk on the plaza. It honours those who fell in the war with Chile and recalls Tarapacá, the former Peruvian department that was lost, together with the province of Arica, after the War of the Pacific. The promenade was built in the late nineteenth century during the rubber era; back then, the first explorers gathered here to watch foreign boats heading for the Amazon.

   The leisure area stretches over five blocks: concrete paving faced with tiles, a fountain, a row of trees beside narrow gardens, and around it restaurants, ice cream shops and bars. A small open-air coliseum serves as a stage for singers, clowns, comedians and other performers trying to earn a living. From the benches you can see several grand buildings from the rubber era, and many people come here to watch the sunset.

   Give it about 20 minutes, or longer with an ice cream. The Catedral de Iquitos is 460 m away, a six-minute walk.

   Hours

   Open 24/7

   Price

   Free

   Location

   Malecón Tarapacá on Google Maps ↗

7. 7

   Catedral de Iquitos

   

   Officially this is the Cathedral of San Juan Bautista, the city's main Catholic church, standing where Arica and Putumayo meet. Its neo-Gothic silhouette is considered the urban icon of Iquitos, and it is the tallest church in the city. Look up at the 20-metre tower: the public clock, bought in Switzerland, was installed in 1925 by the local Junta de Progreso, next to the belfry and the metal cross on top. For many years the church was looked after by Manuel Pinedo. Since 2013 coloured lighting shows off its architecture after dark.

   Building started in 1911, after the old church on the site was demolished. The cathedral was inaugurated on 16 March 1919, and the tower was finished in 1924. Between 1944 and 1949 Father Avencio Villarejo extended it into its final form. It was declared national cultural heritage in 1996 and is among the best-preserved heritage buildings in the city. It also has a crypt.

   Entry is free, and twenty minutes inside is enough for most visitors.

   This is the end of the walk, back on the Plaza de Armas where you started. If you began elsewhere, the GPS navigation in your browser will take you on to your first stop.

   Hours

   Mon: Closed | Tue–Fri: 08:00–17:00 | Sat–Sun: Closed

   Price

   Free

   Location

   Catedral de Iquitos on Google Maps ↗

Two Shorter Ways to Walk Iquitos

Short on time or arriving late in the morning? The route splits neatly into a compact rubber-era core around the plaza and a river half that runs from Belén back to the cathedral.

Rubber-era core around the plaza

Stops: 1, 2, 3, 4

For anyone who wants the architecture and the museum without the longer legs. The four sights lie within 420 m, about 5 minutes of walking in total. Allow roughly an hour and a half with a proper look at the Museo Amazónico. Everything is free apart from the admission at the Ex-Hotel Palace.

Belén, the Malecón and the cathedral

Stops: 5, 6, 7

For travellers who care more about everyday life on the river than about façades. Belén to Malecón Tarapacá is 1190 m (16 minutes), then 460 m (6 minutes) to the cathedral: 22 minutes of walking. All three are free. Start in the morning while the market is busy, and go Tuesday through Friday if you want to see inside the cathedral.

How Long Does This Iquitos Tour Take with Museum and Market?

The 46 minutes of walking are unevenly spread. The first four sights sit within 420 m of each other, then comes the long 18-minute leg out to Belén and a 16-minute walk back to the riverfront, with a short 6 minutes to finish.

A realistic morning: leave the Plaza de Armas at 9:15, reach the Museo Amazónico at 9:40 after short looks at the Casa de Fierro and the Ex-Hotel Palace, spend 45 minutes inside and arrive in Belén at 10:43 while the market is in full swing. After an hour there, you reach the Malecón at 11:59 and, after 20 minutes on the waterfront, the cathedral at 12:25. Twenty minutes inside and you are done around 12:45, roughly three and three-quarter hours after starting.

The plaza-and-museum core takes about an hour and a half; the Belén-to-cathedral half takes about two hours with an hour in the market.

Before You Set Off in Iquitos

• Start and finish: Start at the Plaza de Armas for the recommended order, though you can join at any stop. The walk ends at the Catedral de Iquitos; the GPS navigation in your browser will lead you back to the plaza if you want.
• Best day and time: Start in the morning, so you have time for the Museo Amazónico and the cathedral and still reach Belén while the market is busy. Pick a day when the museum and the cathedral are open, or you will see both from outside only.
• Costs: The squares, the Malecón, Belén, the museum and the cathedral are free. Only the Ex-Hotel Palace charges admission, which you pay at the entrance. The restaurant in the Casa de Fierro expects you to order.

Common Questions about Walking Iquitos