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Sea lions and sand dunes

Route: Lima - Islas Ballestas - Huacachina - Arequipa

As an alternative to our costal road Nazca tour, you can also travel a part of the route by private transport instead of by bus. Travelling by private car means you’ll be able to visit the sea lion colonies at Ballestas and travel on to the palm oasis Huacachina in one day. In this Peru trip, you’ll skip the Nazca lines (though if you’d like to include them just let us know and we’ll adjust your itinerary).

On this Lima to Arequipa tour, you'll drive from Lima to the harbour of Paracas for the boat trip to Islas Ballestas. After lunch you'll head inland to the desert oasis of Huacachina near Ica where you’ll be dropped off by your driver at your lodge under the palm trees. Relax by the oasis, visit a local vineyard or have a go at sandboarding in the giant sand dunes. On your second night you’ll take the overnight bus to Arequipa. On our Islas Ballestas tour you'll travel back to Lima instead of taking the overnight bus to Arequipa.

Duration	3 days / 2 nights Departure Daily	Accommodation	1 night in an atmospheric posada with garden and swimming pool (browse our photos here). Comfort level 3, see accommodation), 1 night on a comfortable night bus
Price	£211 per person - based on 2 people sharing	Includes	All bus transport, accommodation and Ballestas Islands excursion snd entrance fee.
Transport	Lima - Ica by private car with driver, Ica - Arequipa by overnight bus	Excludes	Transfers between Ica and Huacachina, transfer to hotel in Arequipa, other meals, excursions and entrance fees.

Day 1: Lima - Islas Ballestas- Ica

Early in the morning on the first day of your Peru trip, you’ll be picked up at the hotel by your driver and you’ll set off on your Lima to Arequipa tour along the Pan American highway, driving south across a flat, arid desert-like landscape. You’ll pass through several small villages, the local villagers patiently waiting by their road-side stalls displaying all kinds of merchandise. You can stop wherever you like to take a look around, take some pictures and stretch your legs.

Around 8am – 10am you’ll arrive at the harbour of Paracas, the departure point for the boat trip to the Islas Ballestas. As you head out towards the island you’ll pass a large carving in the shape of a huge candelabra etched out in the rocks, similar to the etched figures at Nazca. As you approach the islands, huge colonies of sea lions, penguins and pelicans come into view and hundreds of birds fly overhead. Not surprisingly, the Ballestas islands are often compared to the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador.

The islands themselves are made up of dozens of rocks of various shapes and sizes. In places the sea water has eroded the rocks to form peep-holes and archways. Though you won’t actually go ashore on your Lima to Arequipa trip, you’ll sail right up to the shoreline for a close-up view of the animals. You can see mother seals teaching their young to swim and sometimes they swim right up to the boat. The thousands of birds in the area produce colossal amounts of waste (guano). The Peruvian Ministry of Agriculture has the unenviable task of scraping the islands clean every 7 years and the guano is used as fertiliser in the less fertile regions of the country; an excellent form of recycling.

The boats usually arrive back in Paracas around 10.30 am, where your driver will be waiting to take you to your oasis hotel. Huacachina is a tropical oasis 4km outside of Ica, set on a tropical lagoon fringed with palm trees and pastel-coloured houses in the middle of a desert landscape with enormous sand dunes.

Your hotel is a real little hideaway- perfect if you are after a little relaxation on your Peru trip. Spend the rest of the afternoon chilling by the pool or take a walk along the lagoon or climb to the top of the sand dunes for sweeping views of the surrounding area.

Day 2: Huacachina - Arequipa

You can spend the next day relaxing at the hotel enjoying the warm desert climate, or go wine tasting at one of the vineyards in the area. After all, this is one of the best wine regions in Peru. For a real thrill on your lima to Arequipa trip book a dune buggy ride through the sand dunes at the hotel reception. Racing down the slopes and crashing over the tops of the dunes is insanely good fun and you’d hardly think you were in Peru. The dunes are also a great place to try sand surfing.

Around 7pm, take a 'tico-taxi' to Ica bus station (around US$1) to catch the 8pm reserved Royal Class overnight bus to Arequipa.

Day 3: Arrival in Arequipa - End of tour

The bus trip from Ica to Arequipa takes around 12 hours, so expect to arrive around 8am. Arequipa lies at an altitude of 2300m and with an average temperature of 20-25C and sunshine all year round, with a very friendly and relaxed atmosphere. It’s also cleaner and more cosmopolitan than Lima, but still has a distinct Latin-American vibe. The city boasts grand colonial buildings and churches but its main attraction is the monastery of Santa Catalina, which we recommend you visit on your lima to Arequipa tour. The city is surrounded by several volcanoes (Misti 5821m, Chachani 6075m and Pichu Pichu 5425m). The best way to get around Arequipa is by taxi. They’re dirt cheap so venturing out of the city to explore the surrounding area won’t cost you much. Your Lima to Arequipa tour ends on arrival at the bus station. In Arequipa you can spend a couple of days 'adjusting' before heading to the Colca Canyon.

If you want to continue your Peru trip with an added touch of comfort, you could try cruising the canyon by 4x4 on our Colca Canyon trip, or lace up your hiking boots for a challenging hike with our Colca trek tour.

Lima to Arequipa- Accommodation (Click to enlarge)

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