×

Peru🇵🇪 | festivalsFestival de la Cerveza CusqueñaCusqueña lager and malta, cumbia stages, anticuchos, local crowds | things to do and best time to go

Explore Festival de la PachamamaExplore Festival de la Chicha

Backpacking in de la Cerveza Cusqueña
By Johan Kruseman 🇳🇱 | Updated October 20, 2026

Cusco’s Plaza de Armas fills with brewery-sponsored stages, food stalls and crowds in red Cusqueña shirts when the beer festival takes over the city center, which sits in Peru’s southern Andes. Expect Peruvian pop, cumbia and rock, plus a mostly local crowd of twenty- and thirty-somethings. I stepped off the bus and heard bass thumping across the old Inca streets before I saw a single stage. It runs a few days. Buy tickets from official outlets only, and arrive early to dodge long entry lines.

Discover everything you want to know in the 📖 Peru Travel Guide.


example page 0 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 1 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 2 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 3 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 4 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 5 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 6 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 7 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
Loading the map 🌍
CLICK TO FILTER
cities
towns
villages
landmarks
national parks
hikes
beaches
attractions
festivals
regions
SHOW COUNTRY’S BESTSHOW ALL

✨ Why go?
Ranked #99 festival in PeruWhat makes it a must-see festival

Festival de la Cerveza Cusqueña gives backpackers a rare chance to party with Cusco locals instead of other travelers. Most nights in the city center orbit hostel bars, so a Cusqueña-sponsored stage packed with Peruvian bands and families feels refreshingly different. You pick up slang, swap toasts with strangers and learn which local acts get the whole crowd singing. It also costs far less than a European beer festival, with pints and street snacks priced for locals. And since Cusco is the gateway to Machu Picchu, the festival fits neatly around an acclimatization stay or a Sacred Valley loop, giving you something to do with those first slow days at altitude.

💡 HighlightsTop highlights of de la Cerveza Cusqueña

  1. Cusqueña on tap: The brewery’s golden lager, red malta and trigo wheat beer all flow here, so you can compare the whole range in one afternoon, often at prices below city bars.
  2. Live Peruvian headliners: Stages feature national cumbia, rock and pop acts, and the crowd knows every lyric, which makes joining in easy even with basic Spanish.
  3. Plaza de Armas setting: Colonial arcades and the Cathedral frame the main crowds, so you dance under Inca-built walls with the lit-up churches behind the stage.
  4. Street food stalls: Anticuchos, picarones and chicharrón sandwiches surround the festival grounds, giving you cheap fuel between sets and a taste of everyday Cusco eating.
  5. Local crowd mingling: Cusqueño families, students and workers share tables and toasts, so striking up a conversation takes about one
… read more 👉
  1. Cusqueña on tap: The brewery’s golden lager, red malta and trigo wheat beer all flow here, so you can compare the whole range in one afternoon, often at prices below city bars.
  2. Live Peruvian headliners: Stages feature national cumbia, rock and pop acts, and the crowd knows every lyric, which makes joining in easy even with basic Spanish.
  3. Plaza de Armas setting: Colonial arcades and the Cathedral frame the main crowds, so you dance under Inca-built walls with the lit-up churches behind the stage.
  4. Street food stalls: Anticuchos, picarones and chicharrón sandwiches surround the festival grounds, giving you cheap fuel between sets and a taste of everyday Cusco eating.
  5. Local crowd mingling: Cusqueño families, students and workers share tables and toasts, so striking up a conversation takes about one raised glass.
Start with the beer tasting in the afternoon, while crowds are thin and you can talk with staff before the headline acts pull everyone toward the stages.
Spotted a mistake or missing something? Contact us.

Things to do around Festival de la Cerveza Cusqueña

Anthropologist-Led Horseback: Moon Temple & Mysticism (Max 5)

Anthropologist-Led Horseback: Moon Temple & Mysticism (Max 5)

5.0(202) 4h
From €56
per personViator
Food and Culture Full day Tour in the Sacred Valley

Food and Culture Full day Tour in the Sacred Valley

5.0(182) 10h
From €250
per personViator
4-Day Inca Jungle Trek to Machu Picchu: Biking, Rafting & Zipline

4-Day Inca Jungle Trek to Machu Picchu: Biking, Rafting & Zipline

5.0(150) 96h
From €389
per personViator
The Textile Workshop Experience in Cusco Region

The Textile Workshop Experience in Cusco Region

5.0(145) 4h
From €72
per personViator
Half Day Private Tour Machu Picchu Cusco Peru

Half Day Private Tour Machu Picchu Cusco Peru

5.0(138) 14h
From €181
per personViator
4-Day Machu Picchu , Sacred Valley and Cusco-Private Guided Tour

4-Day Machu Picchu , Sacred Valley and Cusco-Private Guided Tour

5.0(137) 96h
From €1,243
per personViator
Machu Picchu Full Day Tour

Machu Picchu Full Day Tour

5.0(133)
From €354
per personViator
Machupicchu and Cusco Tour 7 days

Machupicchu and Cusco Tour 7 days

5.0(110) 168h
From €1,405
per personViator
Short Inca trail to MachuPicchu || 2days - 1nigth ||

Short Inca trail to MachuPicchu || 2days - 1nigth ||

5.0(106) 48h
From €449
per personViator
Sacred Valley Textile Workshop – Dyeing & Weaving in Cusco

Sacred Valley Textile Workshop – Dyeing & Weaving in Cusco

5.0(100) 8h
From €135
per personViator

Ratings based on Tripadvisor reviews. When you book through this link, you support our work at no extra cost to you.

🌤️ When to go?When is the celebration of Festival de la Cerveza Cusqueña?

Festival de la Cerveza Cusqueña is usually held in Cusco over a weekend in the dry season, often around mid-year, with the exact dates set by the organizers each year, and the main stage sits in the city.
  • Best day: Saturday evening, when the headline acts play and the crowd is at its liveliest.
  • Weather: Days reach 19 to 21°C (66 to 70°F), nights drop near 0°C (32°F) at 3,400 meters. Bring a down jacket, hat and sunscreen.
  • Booking: Reserve beds and tickets four to six weeks ahead. Rooms can rise 30 to 50 percent.
  • Transit: Arrive Friday, since buses and taxis clog on Saturday night.
Book your return bus for Sunday afternoon.

source: climatestotravel.comJANJanuary: not recommended for travelingFEBFebruary: not recommended for travelingMARMarch: not recommended for travelingAPRApril: not recommended for travelingMAYMay: not recommended for travelingJUNJune: not recommended for travelingJULJuly: not recommended for travelingAUGAugust: not recommended for travelingSEPSeptember: not recommended for travelingOCTOctober: excellent for travelingNOVNovember: not recommended for travelingDECDecember: not recommended for traveling

✈️ The backpacker research shortcutPeru Travel Guide

An offline-friendly backpacking guide with optimized travel routes, ranked highlights, transport advice, and the best areas to stay.
example page 0 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 1 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 2 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 3 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 4 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 5 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 6 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
example page 7 from our offline Travel Guide for Peru
The digital guide (310 pages) contains:
✅ 102 highlights, ranked by travel appeal
✅ Optimized 7, 14 & 21-day travel routes
✅ Cities, national parks, landmarks, beaches
✅ How to get around
✅ Offline-friendly for travel without Wi-Fi
👉 Click to see all 30+ guide features

📅 Plan smarter in minutes, not weeks
✅ Month by month travel advice
✅ Festivals & national holidays
✅ Budget expectations

🗺️ Go to the right places, skip the overrated ones
✅ Honest pros & cons of destinations
✅ Top hikes, parks & viewpoints
✅ Lesser-known places most travelers miss
✅ Clear “worth it vs skip it” guidance

🛏️ Travel smoothly without rookie mistakes
✅ Best areas to stay
✅ Transport systems explained simply
✅ Common scams & safety advice
✅ SIM cards, money & practical tips

🌍 Understand the country, not just visit it
✅ Culture & traditions
✅ 52 Essential phrases & customs
✅ Festivals worth planning around
✅ Traveler-friendly historical context
✅ Insights that make places more meaningful

📱 Built for real travel conditions
✅ Fully downloadable PDF
✅ Works completely offline
✅ Optimized for phone use
✅ Useful in remote areas & buses
✅ Everything in one place
Stop searching, start planning
Get instant access to your full guide. 30‑day money-back guarantee.
+ Add another guide for just

By proceeding you agree to our terms.
Sent to your inbox immediately after payment • 100% Secure Checkout
Best Backpacking Travel Advisor 2025 tourism awardBest Backpacking
Travel Advisor
2025
What others say about Take Your Backpack Guides:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Fantastic, amazing amount of information!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My goodness this is amazing, it's what I've been looking for hats off too you!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I think this is absolutely BRILLIANT
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Very complete and informative. It's still missing places, but I gotta to commend you
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This is truly amazing, thank you, can't wait to explore it with my kids!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Awesome resource, thank you!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This is amazing! Can't wait to explore the ones I haven't seen
⭐⭐⭐⭐
I love this! Well done, great idea.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thanks for taking the time to make this gem!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This might be the best website I've ever seen.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Congratulations, and thank you so much for your work; it's incredibly valuable.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
In all seriousness I think you did a great job pointing out the important spots
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
10/10 very good
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
As someone who's only just starting to visit regularly this is awesome, thank you.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thank you very much! I'm going to visit my dad, it's going to be very useful!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This is really cool! We'll be travelling for the first time and this definitely come in handy.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
You are now our minister of culture, congratulations 👨‍💼
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Just wanted to tell you that this is a pearl! Going to follow your recommendations.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This is so cool. I'll definitely be using the resource for my travels soon.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This is very impressive! Good work.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This is an amazing and informative site. Very well done!

🛏️ Where to stay?Where staying makes the most sense

The historic center around Plaza de Armas and San Blas gives you the easiest festival base, with social hostels, rooftop bars and short taxi rides to the grounds.
San Blas is the better pick if you want a hillside, artsy feel, quiet cobbled lanes and travelers who cook and swap stories in shared kitchens. The streets are steep, so pace yourself on arrival at altitude.
Around Plaza de Armas and Calle Procuradores, dorms are the most social and the nightlife starts on your doorstep, though noise runs late. Expect a lively mix of solo travelers and groups.
San Pedro market area is cheaper and walkable … read more 👉
The historic center around Plaza de Armas and San Blas gives you the easiest festival base, with social hostels, rooftop bars and short taxi rides to the grounds.
San Blas is the better pick if you want a hillside, artsy feel, quiet cobbled lanes and travelers who cook and swap stories in shared kitchens. The streets are steep, so pace yourself on arrival at altitude.
Around Plaza de Armas and Calle Procuradores, dorms are the most social and the nightlife starts on your doorstep, though noise runs late. Expect a lively mix of solo travelers and groups.
San Pedro market area is cheaper and walkable to the center, but take taxis after dark. Stay central, and use only licensed taxis home from the festival.
Best hostels in Peru


Best quality hotels in Peru

👛 Costs (as of 20 October 2026)How expensive it really is

A weekend day at Festival de la Cerveza Cusqueña costs roughly US$75 to 110 per person, with US$92 as a typical total for one day in high season.
CategoryBudget RangeLocal Reality
Festival ticketsUS$15 to 35General entry is cheapest if bought early; VIP areas cost more.
AccommodationUS$12 to 25High season dorm bed in the center; prices jump on festival weekends.
Local transportUS$2 to 6Short taxis cost US$1.50 to 3; walking covers most of the center.
Food & drinksUS$15 to 30Set lunches run US$3 to 5; festival beers cost US$2.50 to 4.
MiscellaneousUS$5 to 10Locker or coat storage, water, warm layers and tips.
Total Daily BudgetUS$92Mid-range of the figures above, high season.


source: peru.travel
⚠️ Prices can change and everyone travels differently, so take this as a rough guide. Hope it helps you plan your adventure!

🍲 FoodLocal Flavors for Backpackers

Expect a field of food stalls built around what Cusco does best, and the Cusqueña beer flows from every corner, mostly in Dorada, Trigo and Negra styles.
Try anticuchos and choripán from grill stands, papa rellena hot from the fryer, and cuy chactado if you want the real Andean experience. Pair them with chicha de jora, a tangy corn brew, or ask for a pisco sour for a stronger kick.
Bring cash in soles, since many stalls skip cards. Lines for beer are shortest early in the afternoon. Portions are generous and good for sharing, so split a plate with new friends and sample more. Drink water between rounds, because altitude amplifies the alcohol.

FAQTraveler FAQ

Festival de la Cerveza Cusqueña is typically held in Cusco during the dry season, often around mid-year, over a weekend of one to two days. The organizers announce exact dates each year, usually a couple of months ahead. Most of the action happens in the evening, so plan to arrive Friday and stay through Sunday.
Festival de la Cerveza Cusqueña tickets generally cost about US$15 to 35 for general entry, with VIP options higher. Budget another US$15 to 30 per day for food and beer, and US$12 to 25 for a dorm bed in the center. A realistic total is around US$75 to 110 per day.
Yes, buy tickets for Festival de la Cerveza Cusqueña in advance, since the best-priced general entry often sells out before the weekend. Purchase online through the organizers or authorized ticket outlets in Cusco about four to six weeks ahead. Book beds at the same time, because center dorms fill and prices rise 30 to 50 percent.
⚠️ Things can change over time, so always validate details locally before you go.

Other Peruvian festivals near de la Cerveza Cusqueña

Explore more nearby:

  • Santurantikuy—Christmas Eve market, Niño Manuelito, hand-painted ceramics, nativity stalls| 0 km away
  • Festival de la Chicha—fermented corn drink, rural gatherings, traditional brewing| 0 km away
  • Corpus Christi de Cusco—Fifteen saints, silver litters, chiriuchu platter, Cathedral octave| 0 km away

💡 Not sure where to go next?
Create a personalized itinerary for Peru including de la Cerveza Cusqueña and the places that fit your trip.

Generate my itinerary

👉 Discover all festivals

Or checkout all Peru has to offer (think cities, towns, villages, national parks, hikes, beaches, festivals)
Explore Peru
Country photo of Peru
© Google Images

We 💚 feedbackIs it worth it?

Festival de la Cerveza Cusqueña is easy to treat as just a party, yet the afternoon sessions are where families and older locals actually gather. I would go early, pace the beer at altitude, and save the late stage for night two.

✈️ When did I visit Peru?
Peru I visited during my half year trip through South and Central America back in 2003

✍️ Help improve this page!
The information on this page is based on my own backpacking experience in Peru, supplemented with up-to-date research and feedback from other travelers. Travel details can change, so if you notice anything outdated or incomplete, feel free to let me know.



🙋‍♂️ Give feedback

👋 Meet the founderWho’s Behind Take Your Backpack?

Johan, backpacker and founder of TakeYourBackpackHi, I’m Johan (Netherlands 🇳🇱), the creator of TakeYourBackpack. Over the past 3 decades, I’ve backpacked through 90+ countries across six continents, gaining extensive experience with independent travel, long-term trips, and overland routes.

This site is built on a combination of firsthand travel experience and carefully curated insights from other backpackers. Many guides are based on places I’ve personally visited, while others bring together tips, observations, and practical advice shared by trusted travelers I’ve met along the way.

The goal is to provide realistic, experience-driven guidance — not generic itineraries — so you can explore destinations with better context, clearer expectations, and more confidence.

Read the full story