Not one for the claustrophobic or faint of heart, a walk through the narrow, eerie catacombs deep in the belly of the San Francisco Monastery is hard to forget. They were once used as a cemetery for the city, and subterranean pits still contain the skulls and bones of about 200,000 people. If being underground in low tunnels in a city known for seismic activity with enough bones to make a reasonable-sized dinosaur is not your thing, there’s plenty to see at street level too.

The yellow Moorish-influenced church photographs well, and the mosaic-lined courtyards and an old library Dan Brown would feel at home in make a guided tour worthwhile. But it’s the oppressive nature of the catacombs that sticks in your mind after you leave. Be warned.

Address: Plaza de San Francisco (between Lampa and Ancash), a short walk from the Plaza Mayor; tel: 51 1 427 1381; guides in English and Spanish

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