Nazca
A desert town home to the World Heritage–listed Nazca Lines: take a small plane over the hummingbird and monkey geoglyphs, then visit the nearby Chauchilla mummy cemetery and underground aqueducts.
Nazca lies on the edge of a desert plateau in Peru's southern Ica Region, at about 520 m above sea level and some 450 km from Lima. It is famous for the World Heritage Site “Lines and Geoglyphs of Nasca and Palpa.” Between 500 BC and AD 500, the Nazca people removed the dark surface stones of the arid pampa to expose the lighter ground beneath, creating giant figures such as a hummingbird, monkey, spider and condor, along with straight lines stretching for kilometers. They have survived to this day thanks to the near-total absence of rain and wind.
The main attraction is a small-plane flight from Nazca airport over the geoglyphs, which takes about 30–35 minutes and covers more than ten figures. If you'd rather not fly, head to the observation tower and natural lookout hill beside the Pan-American Highway to view a few figures such as the “Hands” and the “Tree” from above ground level, then visit the house museum of German mathematician Maria Reiche. South of town are the Chauchilla Cemetery (with mummies in open tombs), the spiral underground aqueducts of Cantalloc and the Inca ruins of Paredones; west of town is Cahuachi, the Nazca culture's ceremonial center; and east of town rises the Cerro Blanco dune, over 2,000 m high, which you can hike to the top of and sandboard down. About 45 km north, the Palpa geoglyphs are mostly etched into hillsides, and from a viewing platform you can see the human figures known as “The Family.”
Nazca is dry with little rain year-round, hot during the day and cool in the mornings and evenings. May–Oct brings lighter winds and better visibility, and early-morning flights are recommended. The small planes are noticeably bumpy, so if you are prone to motion sickness, take medication beforehand and fly on an empty stomach. Long-distance buses between Lima and Ica or Arequipa (Cruz del Sur and others) all stop in Nazca, and day tours including the flight are available from Lima, Ica or Paracas. Plan on 1–2 days: one for the flight and observation tower, and another for the cemetery and aqueducts or the dune climb.
Top sights
- Nazca Lines Overflight – A 30-plus-minute flight in a small plane over the UNESCO-listed Nazca Lines, with the hummingbird, monkey, spider and astronaut figures spr…
- Chauchilla Cemetery – A desert necropolis of the Nazca culture, where the looted tombs hold seated mummies with long hair that has not decayed.
- Nazca Lines Observation Tower – A tower about 13 metres tall beside the Pan-American Highway, where you can see the “hands” and “tree” geoglyphs from the ground without ta…
- Maria Reiche House Museum – The former home of the German scholar who devoted her life to studying and protecting the Nazca Lines, now displaying surveying tools, manu…
- Cantalloc Aqueducts – Underground aqueducts built by the Nazca people about 1,500 years ago, whose spiral ventilation shafts still supply water for irrigation to…
- Los Paredones – The adobe administrative and trade centre ruins of the Inca period, a roadside station along the ancient route linking the coast and the hi…
- Cahuachi – The religious pilgrimage centre of Nazca culture, with more than 40 adobe stepped pyramids scattered across the desert river valley.
- Antonini Archaeological Museum – An archaeological museum showcasing finds from the Cahuachi excavations, including Nazca polychrome pottery, textiles and an ancient water…
- Maria Reiche Planetarium – A small planetarium attached to a city hotel, where evening talks explain how the geoglyphs relate to astronomy and calendars, with telesco…
- Cerro Blanco – A giant sand dune about 2,070 metres above sea level with a relative height difference of over 1,000 metres, billed as one of the world's t…
- Palpa Lines – A UNESCO World Heritage site alongside the Nazca Lines, with hillside geoglyphs by the Paracas culture, including the human figures known a…
Where to eat
- Mamashana Café Restaurant – The most popular restaurant in central Nazca, serving both Peruvian and Mediterranean dishes, with plenty of vegetarian…
- La Encantada Restaurant – A long-running, popular restaurant on Bolognesi Street serving Peruvian, Asian and international dishes. It's a good pl…
- Rico Pollo – A budget charcoal-chicken shop on Lima Street, loved by locals and backpackers for its half chicken with fries.
Itineraries
- Peru Desert Coast to Colca Canyon – Head south along the Pan-American Highway to see the Ballestas Islands, sand dunes, and Nazca Lines, then continue to t…