From the beginning, the Consorcio Via has been one of my favorites and it is a definite Ruta Recomendable. It was the first bus line that I encountered that does not have a cobrador, only a driver. In the buses they publish a chart with authorized stops all along the route. This is now copied by the NO101 “Nueva America”. The core of the route of the EO39 is Universitaria – La Marina – Javier Prado. This is one of the main corridors for public transport and on this route, you cannot find a better alternative.

Avenida Javier Prado is possibly the most infamous road in Lima. It is more than 80 blocks long, crosses 5 districts and the traffic jams on Javier Prado are legendary. It is also probably the most important east-west connection in the city. Four of the Rutas Recomendables pass through (a part of) Javier Prado and the Metropolitano has an Estacion Javier Prado. Everybody in Lima knows Avenida Javier Prado.

Who then is Javier Prado?

According to the Spanish Wikipedia Javier Prado is a historian, philosopher and lawyer. He served as the principal of the San Marcos University from 1915 to 1920 and he held various political offices, among others as a senator and an ambassador to Argentina. He may have owed his political career to the fact that he was the son of an ex-President (Mariano Ignacio Prado). His brother Manuel Prado y Ugarteche would later go on to become president of Peru as well. At that time, Javier Prado already passed away. He died in 1921 under mysterious circumstances (according to Wikipedia) when he was only 49 years old.

The purple Ruta Recomendable is the one passing Jorge Chavez airport. This Orion combi has a futuristic appearance and is generally riding without cobrador. This means that you will have to pay with the driver upon getting on the bus. Orion is a big player in the Lima combi world. They have many lines, but the quality of the buses varies a lot. Their best line is the IO06, especially because it is passing the airport. All the combis on this line are either the futuristic model or even newer big buses.

From the airport you can take this line to Miraflores, but you will have to change at some point. I suggest to change at Salaverry with Sanchez Carrion (old name: Pershing) and take the NO02 “La Sesosa” from there. Other options include changing at Brasil with La Marina, Javier Prado with Arequipa or Javier Prado with the Via Expresa (but in all cases you will have to walk a bit more between the stops). The total journey might last between 40 minutes and 2 hours, depending on the traffic.

The light blue Ruta Recomendable is La Sesosa. Its code is NO02 and it is running between Ancon and Surco, following the Panamericana Norte until Avenida Ugarte, after that following the avenidas Salaverry, Ejercito and Angamos. The last stop is UPC in Monterrico. I once took La Sesosa from UPC to Ancon on a Sunday morning and it took 2,5 hours.

La Sesosa is great for traveling north from Miraflores. But it is also good for traveling to the airport from Miraflores. One would have to transfer at Av Sanchez Carrion (Pershing) to take the IO06 towards the airport. The transfer at this point involves less walking then the transfer at Av Brasil with Javier Prado or the transfers at Av Arequipa (blue line OM23) with Javier Prado and the Via Expresa (Metropolitano) with Javier Prado. So I usually prefer to take La Sesosa, even though it might seem to be a bit of a detour.

The dark blue line, the OM23, is an important Ruta Recomendable, because it connects Miraflores to Centro de Lima through avenidas Larco, Arequipa, Wilson and Tacna. Together with the Metropolitano this is the most direct route to Centro the Lima as explained here. If I would have to guess which is the most likely combi route among the Rutas Recomendables that tourists will use, it is this one.

The OM23 line can be recognized by its light-blue buses, with bright stripes in orange, yellow and dark blue. This line should not be confused with the IO20 route, which also has light blue buses. OM23 is a Ruta Recomendable, IO20 not. The difference is in the approach to fleet renovation. The owners of OM23 are pursuing a commendable progamme of accelerated fleet renovation.