Chanchamayo Coffee Valley

Chanchamayo is the valley where the central Andes drop into the high jungle, around eight hundred metres at La Merced, and it has been a coffee and fruit region since the nineteenth century when European settlers and Andean migrants opened it up - land that had long been Asháninka territory, which is the part of the history that is usually skipped. Coffee, cacao, citrus, pineapple and coca all grow here; farms and cooperatives run tours covering the coffee process, and there are chocolate producers, honey, liqueurs and jam industries built on the fruit. The valley is also the closest true jungle to Lima, roughly eight hours by road via Tarma, so Limeños come at weekends for the waterfalls, rafting and warmth. San Ramón and La Merced are the two towns, with lodges and farms spread up the side valleys towards Pichanaki and Satipo.

What you actually see

• The coffee farms - cooperatives and estates running tours through the process.
• The cacao and fruit - chocolate, citrus and pineapple production in the same valley.
• The waterfalls - El Tirol, Bayoz and Velo de la Novia in the side valleys.
• The Asháninka territory - the indigenous history behind the settlement of the valley.

When to go

April to November is drier; the coffee harvest runs roughly April to August. Two to four days. Weekends bring heavy Lima traffic.

Honest expectations

Eight hours from Lima on mountain roads. Hot, humid and wet even in the dry season. Farm tours need arranging ahead. Weekend crowds at the waterfalls. The colonial settlement history is presented far more prominently than the Asháninka one.

Nearby

Villa Rica and Oxapampa are north-east; Tarma and the highlands are west.