The City of Orchids — 3,500 species of orchid in San Martín's cloud forest, thermal baths, and a gateway into the upper Amazon
Moyobamba is the oldest Spanish-founded city in the Peruvian Amazon, the capital of San Martín Region, and sits at 860m in the cloud forest transition zone between the Andes and the jungle — an altitude that gives it a climate far milder than the lowland Amazon. The region around the city contains over 3,500 species of orchid, one of the highest concentrations of orchid diversity anywhere in the world, and the annual Orchid Festival in October draws botanists and photographers from across South America. The Tahuishco sulfur thermal baths on the San Martín river gorge are a local institution —…
Founded in 1540 by Juan Pérez de Guevara, Moyobamba was the first Spanish settlement in the Amazon basin — predating more famous Amazon cities by decades. Its early prominence came from its position on the Spanish route between coastal Peru and the upper Amazon trade networks. The city was devastated by multiple earthquakes (1990, 1991, 2005) that destroyed much of the historic centre, and many colonial structures were lost. The Café de Moyobamba — a distinct highland arabica variety grown in the region's cloud forest — has become increasingly sought after in specialty coffee markets, contrib…