ICA, huacachina oasis,The nazca lines and the paracas reserve

Mystery Peru offers you the best of the Peruvian southern coast. On this excursion you will visit the Ica Valley with its huge sand dunes and also the gorgeous lagoon known as Huacachina, a great spot where you will get amazing views of Ica desert and also will be able to practise sandboarding. Our tour also includes a nice journey throughout the desert towards the Valley of Nazca, where you will board a small plane to fly over the world famous Nazca Lines, mysterious figures etched on the desert surface about 2000 years ago. We will visit the National Reserve of Paracas, where we will take a nice boat ride towards the Ballestas Islands to see a great array of marine life and also will explore by land the Paracas National Park, driving along its beaches and stopping along the way to admire its beautiful rock formations.

Program: 3 Days / 2 Nights

Day 1º: Bus from Lima to Ica - City tour of Ica - Vineyards of Pisco & Regional Museum and Dune Buggy Excursion around Huacachina's desert

06:15 h. Our customers are picked up from their hotel in Lima, and then transferred to the bus station to take a tourist bus to the city of Ica (4 hours aprox.). The bus leaves at 07:00 h. Upon your arrival in the city of Ica, you will be met by a representative from our travel agency and then transferred to the hotel Hosteria Suiza or similar. Later on we will do a city tour around Ica, visiting the vineyards of Pisco & wine and the Regional Museum of Ica. At the bodegas of Pisco, as they are locally known, we will do a nice walking tour exploring with our guide the places where this delicious Peruvian drink is made. According to history this Brandy-like liquor was made since 1540 in Peru, and at this time it was known simply as a spirit drink, it was not till the XVII century that the grape brandy was baptized as Pisco. It is said that when the Incas arrived in this area around 1450th, they saw millions of sea birds at shore of the Pacific Ocean, near the bay of Paracas and they were so amazed, that they baptized the area with the name of Pisco, a Quechua word that means “bird”.  Here we will learn more details about this popular drink, visiting the whole vineyard, its main tasting room and chatting with the Pisco makers. Later on, we will visit the Regional Museum of Ica, an interesting building that houses the remains of the ancient cultures that developed on the southern coast. We will start our visit, walking through the pre-Inca rooms, which display fine textiles from the Paracas people, wonderful pieces from the Nazca culture, featuring amazing musical instruments and great pictures of the Nazca Lines. Here we will also see some spectacular weapons and would carvings from the Wari Empire, Ica Chincha and Inca culture. On the other side of the Museum, we will visit the anthropological room, which exhibits human remains from the same cultures mentioned above, featuring deformed skulls, cranial surgery practiced on ancient Peruvians, beautiful head-dresses, well preserve mummies, including babies and trophy heads. In the afternoon, by sunset we will do a tour out in the desert aboard a dune buggy. On this fantastic excursion we will eplore the dune around Huacachina ans will practice one of the most popular sports in the area " Sandboarding". Overnight at the hotel Hosteria Suiza or similar in Huacachina.

Day 2: Travel through the Nazca desert - Flight over the Nazca Lines

08:00 h. Our customers are picked up from their hotel in Ica and then transferred by private car to the city of Nazca. The trip to Nazca lasts 52 hours. On the way we will stop at the zone of Llipata, where there are various geoglyphs or Palpa Lines drawings. In this aerea you will see a group of human figures etched on a hillside from the top of a metallic tower. Later on we will continue and will arrive at the Ingenio Valley, where it is located the Maria Reiche Museum, an interesting place where we will learn about the life of Maria Reiche, a German lady who dedicated over 50 years of her life to protect and study the Nazca Lines. The museum was originally the house of Maria when she used to live in the area in the 1970’s, and some years later in 1994 it was turned into a museum. The life of Maria Reiche is shown throughout old pictures taken when she was working on the Nazca desert long ago, showing a tireless Maria mapping, measuring and even cleaning the Nazca Lines. Her original cottage that housed her for over 20 years still can be seen here, showing all her personal belongings, including typing machine, old camera, tools of measurements and many others tools. On the right side of the Museum is situated her grave, where she was buried in 1998. Later on, we will continue our tour at the Mirador or Tower, from where it is possible to observe clearly two of the Nazca Lines, The Hand and the Tree. The hands figure or geoglyph, as they are also called by archaeologists is located on the left side of the tower. For some people this figure it would be representing also a frog, a divinity of water, an element of vital importance in such environment. Upon your arrival in Nazca you will be taken to the Maria Reiche airport where you will take your flight over the Nazca Lines. This aerial tours is done with a small Cessna airplane, which hs a capacity for 5 people, each person with a window seat. We will fly over an enigmatic zone, where hundreds of years ago ancient Peruvians drew huge designs, which can be seen only from the air. Among the figures we will see an enormous representation of a monkey, a hummingbird, a condor, and a strange creature known as the Spaceman.Overnight at the hotel Hosteria Suiza or similar in Huacachina.

 

 

Day 3: The Ballestas Islands and the Paracas Reserve - Return to Lima

06:30 h. You will be picked up from your hotel in Ica and then transferred to the Paracas harbor, where we will board a speedboat to do our tour to the Ballestas Islands. During our tour to the Islands passengers will see many attractions. Among them, stands out a huge design etched on the slope of hill, known by the local people as The Candelabra. This is an enormous figure that can be seen clearly from the sea. Our local guide will explain the most important theories concerning this drawing. Afterwards, we will continue our excursion around the Ballestas Islands, where you will see hundreds of birds flying (Peruvian Bobbies, Inca terms, Pelicans, Cormorants and others) above the Islands, as well as dozens of sea lions on the shore of the beaches, and if you are lucky you also can see the famous Humboldt Penguins and dolphins swimming nearby. It is not allowed to land on the Island, which means you will spend all the tour on the boat. Later on we will take a land excurison towards the Paracas National Park, where we will visit the enormous rock formation known as the Cathedral, the Interpretation Center of Paracas, the Museum Julio. C. Tello and the beautiful beach of Lagunillas, where we will finally have lunch, in a nice restaurant overlooking the Pacific Ocean. 4:30 PM: You will be transferred to the bus station to take the bus to Lima. (3 hours aprox.). Upon your arrival in Lima you will be picked up by a representative from Mystery Peru at the bus station and then you will be transferred to your hotel in Lima.

 

End of the tour.

Included

On day 1°

 

• Pick up from your hotel in Lima and transfer to the bus station.
• Bus tickets from Lima to Ica (Cruzero Bus Standard Service).
• Pick up from the station upon your arrival in Ica and transfer to the selected hotel.
• City Tour of Ica.
• Dune Buggy Excursion around Huacachina.
• 01 night accommodation in Ica or Huacachina.

On day 2 °

 

• Private transportation to the airport of Nazca.
• Visi to the Palpa & Nazca Lines by land.
• Guided visit to the Maria Reiche Museum.
• Flight over the Nazca Lines.
• Airport taxes.
• 01 night accommodation in Ica or Huacachina.

On day 3 °

 

• Private transportation to the Paracas Bay.
• Boat excursion to the Ballestas Islands.
• Guided visit to the Paracas Reserve.
• Transfer to the bus station in Paracas.
• Bus tickets from Paracas to Lima (Cruzero Bus Standard Service).
• Pick up from the bus station upon your arrival in Lima and transfer to your hotel.

Not Includ

 

• Extras
• Gratuities.

Daily departures:

06:15 h.

Price:

Available upon request. Send us an e-mail to info@mysteryperu.com and we will reply as soon as possible or within 24 hours at the most.

Recommendations:

• On this tour you must bring light clothing, as the weather in Ica used to be very hot, especially in summer time (from December to March) when temperatures can reach 40º C / 104 ºF sometimes.
• We suggest to bring sun block to avoid sun burning, a hat, a bottle of water and sun glasses.

Additional Information::

• All your personal information is required at the moment of your booking.
• Confirmation of the excursion will be received at time of booking.
• All tours are operated in English unless otherwise stated.

Travel voucher:

• You will receive an electronic voucher via e-mail once your booking if confirmed.
• for every confirmed booking you will be required to print your electronic voucher for presentation at the moment we start the excursion. The electronic voucher acts as a confirmacion for all the services you have requested.

Local Operator Information:

• We will send you complete operator information, including phone numbers at your destination.
• Our Managers select only the most experienced and reliable operator in each destination, removing the guesswork for you, and ensuring your peace of mind.

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