Santa Catalina Monastery, Arequipa

Santa Catalina Monastery remains one of the most original architectural pieces of the Peruvian viceroyal period. Founded in 1579, it belongs to the Dominica order and currently houses cloistered nuns in a reserved area. Considered a large-scale monument, it has three cloisters, multiple streets and passages, around eighty houses that were occupied by nuns, one main square, and an art gallery that displays a valuable collection of paintings, most of them from the colonial Cusco school of art. Completely built of a white volcanic material called "sillar," it is one of the most important tourist attractions in the city of Arequipa and attracts visitors from all over the world. A visit to Santa Catalina Monastery represents just the start of the adventure when you use our Arequipa holiday maker website to plot your vacation.