Unique Things To Do In Nazca Peru

An Overview of Nazca

Located in one of the driest regions of the world, the Nazca (or Nasca) culture once thrived. The unusual desert-dwelling native nation is famous for creating a massive series of preserved geoglyphs – huge motifs etched into the ground. Thanks to the dry stability of the region, the Nazca culture’s creations are preserved to this day, along with their painted pottery, unique cultural designs, specialized burial systems and still-functioning underground aquifer system. Modern Nazca is home to a hardy desert community, thriving on cacti farms, tourism and archeological heritage. Thanks to the Nazca people and their fascinating culture, there are many unique things to do in Nazca Peru.

Advice While Visiting Nazca

Flight-based tours for the Nazca lines are roughly $80 USD, but cheaper ones can be found if you ask your host or hotel.   Flights leave from the Nazca airport, though if you’re not in a group of exactly six, you may be asked to wait until you can be placed on a full flight. 

Flights over Nazca require a lot of tilts and turns so everyone on both sides of the plane can see the lines.  If you get motion sick easily, bring medicine or avoid eating breakfast until afterwards.

Be cautious of the time spent on tours around Nazca, since most of the time is spent just driving from one place to another.  Nazca’s attractions are spaced apart.

The heat and sun of Nazca is nothing to scoff at and there’s virtually no shade at the vast majority of the tourist sites.  Even local drivers use a special sleeve to keep the sun off their arms while driving. Plan accordingly. 

Due to the similar hues of the plateau and the lines, taking pictures of the Nazca Lines is challenging. Expect initial photos to not show up well.  You may need to use photoshop or another photo editing program to ensure they stand out better.

Busses leave east from Nazca only in the evening.  They are all overnight busses.  Therefore, if someone wanted to arrive during the morning, fly over the Nazca lines and explore for the rest of the day without booking a hotel, this is extremely doable. 

Look specifically for a Nazca guide or car rental to show you the area.  Don’t bother with taxi drivers, as they’re not very informative and require extra money to wait at sites.  The roads into the desert aren’t well-marked enough for random exploration by an amateur, so a guide is highly advisable. 

If flying to see the lines seems too expensive, there is also a viewing tower accessible by bus (3 soles) near the Panamerican Highway.  Keep in mind this only shows the tiniest fraction of the lines. 

The entrance fee for Museo Arqueológico Antonini is 20 soles and it’s worth a visit.  Keep in mind, all of the written plaques and explanations are in Spanish, requiring  a guide or fluency to understand. 

Unique Things To Do In Nazca Peru

Nazca Lines 

Needing no introduction, these are the enormous geoglyphs and biomorphs that have covered the desert for millennia. They’re one of the great mysteries of the world and their meanings and purposes are yet undetermined.

Chauchilla Cemetery

This is a large Necropolis of the Nasca civilization.  It is unique as it’s the holy burying ground for upper class people.  Mummies can be seen seated upright in the fetal position held together with rope, patterned canvas and cord. Due to the extremely arid climate, Nazca mummies are extraordinarily well-preserved, with even the hair intact. They only begin to decay once unearthed, with solar radiation breaking apart the ancient bodies.

The Burial Craters of Nazca

This is an unofficial name for the area around the Cahuachi Pyramid.  Numerous tomb robbers plunder the desert seeking out tombs to gather relics to sell to tourists.  These grave robbers wander into the desert, using T-shaped poles to spike the ground, hoping to find a wood-protected pocket. If a grave is discovered and the grave robber isn’t arrested or harmed by the fumes within, they may find a small amount of pottery to be sold. Unfortunately, this action unseals the tomb, eventually destroying the preserved body within. Such craters follow all roads in lower Nazca and stretch into the distance as far as the eye can see.

Cahuachi Pyramid

This is an astonishingly unique and large complex which doubled as a Nasca city and religious center.  The grounds around the “pyramid” are currently open to the public, but cannot be walked inside at this time.  The structure isn’t a pyramid, exactly, appearing as a low-walled labyrinth that gradually rises above the desert. Visiting the pyramid and the surrounding desert is one of the most unique things to do in Nazca. The majority of the ceremonial center is still underground. Excavation stopped some years earlier due to a lack of funding.

Mamashana Café 

This is a tiny, quaint café found on Avenue Bolognesi which serves great coffee and food.

Avenue Bolognesi 

This is a popular tourism-oriented street which extends through central Nazca. The street is lined with restaurants, gift shops and cafés. The street is most active in the evening, when the powerful sun no longer keeps people inside.

Museo Arqueológico Antonini 

This is a great museum absolutely stuffed with Nasca culture relics and artifacts.  Includes a mummy, well replicas, pottery, burial ropes, burial shawls, cord-threaded skulls and a functioning subterranean aquifer in the back.

Acueductos de Cantalloc

This is the most famous aqueduct in Nazca, unique for it’s downward spiraling shape. There are several underground aqueducts built by the ancient Nazca people scattered through the region, all which still function thousands of years later. The water they bring forth is actively used for farming in the area.

Plaza de Armas de Nazca

This is the central plaza of the city.  It’s a small, busy green-space with lots of shopping areas.

Cerro Blanco

Cerro Blanco is one of the tallest sand dunes on Earth. From a distance, the dune is difficult to register, appearing as a slightly murky patch of pale sky. The dune has an inclination average of 38 degrees for 1400 meters of decent. While it’s possible to ski or snowboard down the dune, only intermediate to advanced sportsmen should attempt it. The dune’s immense elevation and the region’s intense sun prohibits people with respiratory problems from climbing.

Maria Reiche Neuman Musuem

This musuem is dedicated to the genius mind of Maria Reiche, a German-born mathematician and archaeologist who dedicated her life to uncovering the secrets around the Nazca lines.

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