Cultural Parade in Lima

When Wilhelm and I traveled during our 10-day Peru trip, we stumbled upon a cultural parade in Lima on August 18, 2024. I’ve tried to Google things about it but haven’t come up with that much information. The parade was absolutely fantastic. Over three hours, we saw scores of dance and musical groups parade through Lima’s central square, and I just have to share the pictures.

Cultural Parade Set Up

When we arrived at the cathedral in Lima, we literally followed the sound of music. This led us to La Muralla Park where the performers were getting set up for the parade.

I also liked the view of colorful houses from the park.

The Parade

We had a fantastic view of the parade with the cathedral in the background.

There were a lot of gorilla mask costumes throughout.

The parade was quite long! We had time to visit a nearby basilica and had lunch at the Pisco Sour Museum while it was ongoing.

At one point, I finally saw a sign with some information about this parade: “Gran Entrada Folklorica International Virgen de Copacana 2024.” This is the organization that runs the parade. If you happen to be traveling to Lima, it may be worth it to check to see if a parade like this is happening.

My pictures can’t even begin to capture the intense sound of the afternoon. Bells, drums, trumpets, full bands, whistles and more played constantly. Each troupe had their own music!

One troupe even had colorful smoke sticks!

Changing of the Guard Ceremony

The cultural parade in Lima took place during the changing of the guard ceremony. This takes place daily around 11:45-12:15 p.m. As a result of the parade, our experience felt much more ceremonial than the typical changing of the guard.

I loved watching the horse guard bring his horse over for kids to pet when they reached out from the crowd. I got my chance to pet the horse, too!

Once the troupes were finished, we saw performers wander around town.