Cirqa

Arequipa is built of sillar — the white volcanic stone of the mountains that ring the city — and Cirqa is perhaps its most refined hotel expression. The property occupies the oldest building in town, dating from 1540, preserving its vaults, cloisters and half-metre-thick original walls. Relais & Châteaux. Only eleven suites. Two blocks from the Plaza de Armas, yet wrapped in the absolute silence of a mansion that once served as convent, then residence, now refuge.

The Sillar Suite is the most sought-after for its high vaults and courtyard views; the Superior Suite, with its private terrace facing Chachani, works well for couples. The restaurant treats Arequipeño ingredients through contemporary technique — a refined rocoto relleno, ocopa, chupe of Majes-river prawns — and the wine cellar, held in the convent's old vaults, is among the most complete in the southern sierra. Private dinners in the cloister are reserved for special occasions.