Lima and Machu Picchu in 6 Days
Six days from Lima: the city and the Ballestas coast, then Cusco, the Sacred Valley and a guided Machu Picchu visit by train. From US$880 per person.
From, per personUS$880
Lima and the coast
Peru's capital at sea level, where every trip lands, plus the desert coast to the south: Pachacamac, Paracas, Huacachina and the Nazca Lines.
Photo: Diego Delso, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (source)
510 ft154 m above sea level
13 packagesinclude this destination
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Lima is the capital of Peru, a city of about 10 million people on the Pacific coast at 154 m (505 ft) above sea level, and the airport where every international flight lands. The coast south of it is desert all the way to Chile: Pachacamac 40 km (25 mi) out, Paracas and the Ballestas Islands at 260 km (160 mi), the Huacachina oasis near Ica at 300 km (186 mi) and the Nazca Lines at 450 km (280 mi). The city deserves a day, the coast one or two, and both are at sea level, which makes them the right start before Cusco.
Lima at a glance
Three districts matter to a visitor. The historic center, with the Plaza Mayor, the cathedral and the San Francisco church over its catacombs, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Miraflores, on the cliffs above the ocean, where most of our hotels are and where the Malecón park runs along the edge. Barranco, the next district south, with the old houses, the bars and the bridge over the ravine. The table gives the distances and the climate. The food is the reason to stay a second night, and no package of ours includes dinner, so you choose the restaurant.
| Fact | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Altitude | 154 m (505 ft) | |
| Population | about 10 million in the metropolitan area | |
| Historic center | UNESCO World Heritage (Historic Centre of Lima), inscribed 1988 | whc.unesco.org |
| Pachacamac | 40 km (25 mi) south, half day | |
| Paracas | 260 km (160 mi), about 3.5 hours | |
| Huacachina oasis near Ica | 300 km (186 mi), about 4.5 hours | |
| Nazca | 450 km (280 mi), about 7 hours. The flight over the lines takes about 30 minutes | |
| Flight to Cusco | about 1 hour 20 minutes | |
| Seasons | summer December to April, coastal fog May to November |
Down the coast
Pachacamac is the adobe sanctuary of a pre-Inca oracle, a half day south of the city with a museum that holds the carved wooden idol. Paracas is a fishing town on a bay with the Ballestas Islands two hours out by boat, loud with sea lions and Humboldt penguins, and the Paracas National Reserve on the desert peninsula behind it. Ica is pisco country, with distilleries that pour tastings at 11 a.m. Huacachina is a lagoon ringed by palms and dunes 100 m (330 ft) high, where the buggies and sandboards run at sunset. Nazca is the airstrip for the 30-minute flight over the lines. Our Paracas guide and the Nazca flight guide say what each is like and who should skip the plane.
When to come, and the mistake
The coast is the reverse of the Andes. December to April is summer: sun in Lima, 80 F (27 C), beaches open. May to November is the garúa season, when a gray coastal fog sits over Lima for weeks at 60 F (16 C) without rain. Ica and Nazca are sunny all year. The mistake is flying straight through to Cusco. Land in Lima, sleep at sea level, see the center the next day, then fly up. It costs one night and it is the cheapest acclimatization you will ever buy. For what to do with the day, our Lima guide is ordered by neighborhood.
Packages that include Lima and the coast
The five tours from Lima, from US$97, and every Peru itinerary that starts in the capital, from 6 to 15 days, are listed below, including the Paracas and Huacachina day and the 2-day Nazca versions.
Lima and the coast in photos
Photos: Alec Gamoff, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); Ibrehaut (Ivan Brehaut L.), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); Pitxiquin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); masT3rOD, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); PsamatheM, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (source); Diego Delso, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (source)
Where it is
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Packages that include Lima and the coast
Grouped by type of trip. Prices per person in a double room.
Peru vacation packages
Peru in 7 Days: Lima, Nazca, Cusco and Machu Picchu
A 7-day Peru tour from Lima: the Ballestas Islands, a flight over the Nazca Lines, Cusco, the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu by train. From US$900 per person.
From, per personUS$900
Peru in 8 Days: Nazca, Machu Picchu and Rainbow Mountain
An 8-day Peru tour from Lima: Ballestas, the Nazca Lines, Cusco, Machu Picchu by train and a guided Rainbow Mountain hike. From US$1,190 per person.
From, per personUS$1,190
Peru in 9 Days: Nazca, Machu Picchu and Two Andes Hikes
A 9-day Peru tour from Lima: the coast and the Nazca Lines, Machu Picchu by train, then Rainbow Mountain and Humantay Lake from Cusco. From US$1,660 per person.
From, per personUS$1,660
Peru in 10 Days: Lima, Nazca, Machu Picchu and the Andes
A 10-day Peru tour from Lima at an easier pace: Nazca, Machu Picchu by train, Rainbow Mountain, the South Valley and Humantay Lake. From US$1,720 per person.
From, per personUS$1,720
Complete Peru in 15 Days, from the Coast to Machu Picchu
A 2-week Peru tour that climbs slowly from the coast: Nazca, Arequipa, the Colca Canyon, Lake Titicaca, Cusco and Machu Picchu by train. From US$2,084 per person.
From, per personUS$2,084
Day trips from Lima
Lima City Tour Half Day: Old Center and Miraflores
Four hours with a guide in Lima: the Miraflores clifftop, a look at Huaca Pucllana, then the colonial center and the San Francisco catacombs. US$97.
From, per personUS$97
Pachacamac Half-Day Tour from Lima
A half day south of Lima at Pachacamac, the adobe temple city of a coastal oracle, with the Inca Temple of the Sun and the wooden idol in the site museum. US$97.
From, per personUS$97
Paracas, Ica and Huacachina Full Day Tour from Lima
One long day from Lima: a boat around the Ballestas Islands, a pisco winery in Ica and dune buggies with sandboarding at Huacachina. About 17 hours door to door. US$207.
From, per personUS$207
Nazca Lines, Paracas and Huacachina: 2-Day Tour from Lima
Two days from Lima: the Ballestas Islands and Huacachina dunes on day one, a night in Nazca, then the Nazca Lines overflight and the bus back. From US$307.
From, per personUS$307
Nazca Lines Flight from Pisco, with Paracas and Huacachina, 2 Days
Ballestas Islands and Huacachina on day one, a night in Paracas, then a flight of about 1 hour 40 minutes from Pisco over the Nazca and Palpa lines. US$607.
From, per personUS$607
Andean ceremonies
Aymara Ceremony Tour: Lima, Cusco and Lake Titicaca in 8 Days
Eight days from Lima: the city and the Paracas coast, Cusco, the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu, then Lake Titicaca with a water ceremony and a night on Amantaní.
From, per personUS$1,097
Aymara Ceremony Tour: Lima, Cusco and Lake Titicaca in 10 Days
Ten days from Lima to Lake Titicaca: the coast, Cusco and Machu Picchu, a farming day with a Sacred Valley community, the daytime Sun Route to Puno and a lake ceremony.
From, per personUS$1,347
Questions about Lima and the coast
How many days do you need in Lima?
One full day for the historic center, the catacombs and the Miraflores cliffs, which is what the half-day city tour plus a long lunch covers. Two days if you add Pachacamac or a second dinner. The coast is separate: one very long day for Paracas and Huacachina, or two days to add the Nazca flight. Most of our itineraries give Lima one to three days before Cusco.
Is Lima worth visiting or just a stopover?
Worth a day, in our opinion, and the food alone justifies a night. The historic center is a real colonial capital, the Larco museum holds the best pre-Columbian collection in the country, and Miraflores at sunset over the Pacific is a different Peru from the Andes. It is also the only sensible place to sleep at sea level before flying to 3,400 m (11,150 ft).
What is the weather in Lima?
Mild and strange. Summer, December to April, is sunny and about 80 F (27 C). Winter, May to November, is a gray fog called garúa at about 60 F (16 C) that rarely turns into rain. It almost never rains properly in Lima at any time. Pack a light jacket in winter and sunscreen in summer. Ica and Nazca, inland, are sunny and hot all year.
Can I see the Nazca Lines from the ground?
Only two or three figures, from a metal viewing tower beside the Panamericana highway, which shows the hands and the tree. The flight is the only way to see the hummingbird, the monkey, the spider and the condor, and it takes about 30 minutes from the Nazca airstrip on the morning of day two of our 2-day coast tours.