If you have extra time, extend your trip & visit Paracas!
Getting to Paracas
Paracas is just over a 3 hour drive from Lima and is one of the top bird watching destinations in the world. You have the option of taking a bus or hiring a driver(like we did) to make the trip. Check here for your visa requirements.
Where to stay in Paracas
We opted to stay at a more expensive resort in Paracas, the DoubleTree by Hilton as we thought this would be a nice, relaxing end to our very hectic journey. However, we were very disappointed when we arrived. The beach was dark, smelt like dead fish (no chance of swimming or water sports activities) and the resort was quite empty and dismal. Coming from the vibrancy of Lima and Machu Picchu this really just felt off. We ended up changing our reservation to one night instead of two and headed back to Lima a day early. Luckily we hired Jose to take us to Paracas, so changing our plans was quite easy.
Things to do in Paracas
Sand boarding in the desert
Before visiting Peru, I had no idea that Lima was in the desert and experiences no rain, ever! Paracas is no different with the addition of beautiful sand dunes where you have the opportunity to ride dune buggies and even do a bit of sand boarding at the Adrenarena Adventure park. Unfortunately, you are not able to drive the dune buggies yourself, and do need a professional driver to take you on the course. Your driver will ask you how adventurous you’d like the ride to be, we went for the medium setting but if you’re into thrill rides you can let him know to push that gas pedal!
The tour lasted about an hour starting with a 20 minute ride through the dunes then stopping for some sand boarding! Now I had minimal success surfing in Nicaragua even after taking surfing lessons and have never been snowboarding but this turned out to be much easier than it looks! We both were able to easily slide down the dunes on the first try, of course wiping out at the bottom of the hill, this thing has no breaks! Climbing back up the dunes for round two was definitely tiring and tested my cardio ability, even harder than balancing on the sand board!
After a few trips down the dunes we hopped back into our dune buggy and had another short ride back to the start. This is a great tour for anyone who wants a bit of adventure in the desert!
Ballestas Islands Tour
There are two departing times for this tour 8am and 10am from the Marina Turistica de Paracas. We opted for the early morning departure as we were leaving Paracas mid-day. I recommend that you get there at least 15 minutes early to check-in. We did not purchase tickets for this tour as this was included in our package with Jose.
The tour starts with a 30 minute boat ride out into the Pacific Ocean, be sure to bring a wind breaker as the winds can be quite chilly! The boat itself is a large speed boat holding about 40 people, we were lucky to have a comfortable ride without any waves the entire way. You’ll take a moment to stop at the Candelabra, over 500 feet tall and can be seen as much as 12 miles out to sea! The only way to see this well-known prehistoric geoglyph is by boat, it is forbidden to drive on the site.
After time for a few photos you will head straight to the Ballestas Islands, a sanctuary for the Guano bird. Fun fact, the Guano bird’s poop is collected every few years and shipped overseas as prime fertilizer for growing organic produce! Beware of this precious bird poop landing on your head, there are so many birds flying around it’s easy for this to happen, but it’s only good luck right?
On the island you will also see many sea lions lazing on the rocks and hanging out on the beach. There are over a hundred of them roaring and swimming around these islands, quite a fun sight to see, particularly the cute baby ones!
The entire tour lasts about 2 hours, just enough time to enjoy the beautiful scenery and then head back to Lima. A great addition to your time in Peru but only 2 days are needed for this.
