More than any other Peruvian leader before him, Mr. Belaunde traveled the length and breadth of Peru's desert coastline, Andean highlands and Amazon jungles, saying he did so "not to be rendered homage, but to search for inspiration and ideas."
His travels into the remote corners of Peru, Mr. Belaunde said in a 1999 interview in his memorabilia-filled apartment, "taught me much about the country. Naturally I traveled by modern means but also by ancient means. We crossed the Andes by horseback nine times and once the jungle by foot."
As a professor of architecture at Lima's National University of Engineering, Mr. Belaunde would often invite his students to accompany him on explorations of the remnants of the Andean highway system built by the Inca civilization.
During his two administrations, Mr. Belaunde built important highways and major hydroelectric dams and brought electricity to thousands of towns. He also constructed numerous housing projects in Lima and other cities.
Mr. Belaunde wrote several books, among them "The Conquest of Peru by Peruvians," which laid out his vision of the country and how it should be developed.
He supported the failed 1990 presidential campaign of his close friend, famed novelist Mario Vargas Llosa, who was beaten by Alberto Fujimori.
Mr. Belaunde condemned Fujimori's 1992 "self-coup," in which he suspended the constitution and dissolved Congress and the Supreme Court with military backing.
Months later, Mr. Belaunde refused to participate in the elections of a constituent assembly designed to restore democracy, saying they merely consolidated Fujimori's dictatorial rule.
He remained one of Fujimori's harshest critics in following years. In November 2000, Fujimori was forced from power in a corruption scandal and lives in exile in Japan.
Mr. Belaunde leaves three children from his first marriage.