Huacachina Road Trip: 24 Hours of Adventure
Just south of Lima rests a tiny Peruvian village in the middle of the vast Ica desert built around a naturally forming mineral lake. The Huacachina oasis is remote, yet surprisingly accommodating with plenty of hotels, hostels, bars, and restaurants for every taste and budget. The massive sloping sand dunes are great to climb and explore in a Sand Buggy or board.
Huacachina is located in the Ica city, a 4-hour drive from Lima. While bus tours are available, we were eager to adventure through the countryside of Peru on our own terms and rented a car. Having regularly navigated some of the worst congested streets in the U.S. (Washington D.C., Atlanta and Los Angeles), we were no strangers to the chaotic frenzy of rush hour traffic. However, driving in Peru is worlds apart from driving in the US.
| 1. | Driving |
| 2. | Route 1S and Pisco |
| 3. | Huacachina Oasis |
| 4. | Sanboarding |
| 5. | Is it Worth the Trip? |
Just south of Lima rests a tiny Peruvian village in the middle of the vast Ica desert built around a naturally forming mineral lake. The Huacachina oasis is remote, yet surprisingly accommodating with plenty of hotels, hostels, bars, and restaurants for every taste and budget. The massive sloping sand dunes are great to climb and explore in a Sand Buggy or board.
| 1. | Driving |
| 2. | Route 1S and Pisco |
| 3. | Huacachina Oasis |
| 4. | Sanboarding |
| 5. | Is it Worth the Trip? |
Huacachina is located in the Ica city, a 4-hour drive from Lima. While bus tours are available, we were eager to adventure through the countryside of Peru on our own terms and rented a car. Having regularly navigated some of the worst congested streets in the U.S. (Washington D.C., Atlanta and Los Angeles), we were no strangers to the chaotic frenzy of rush hour traffic. However, driving in Peru is worlds apart from driving in the US.
Drivers in Peru are aggressive, yet coordinated. During Lima’s morning rush hour (when we decided to leave for Huacachina), traffic was stop-and-go, and every lane was clogged with massive trucks, overcrowded busses and noisy motorcycles weaving in and out of traffic. Courteous driving is discouraged, but we never saw an accident. Cutting off other drivers was usually more effective than using a turn signal.
If you’re planning to stay in Lima, stick to Uber. Gasoline in Peru is expensive and the experience is not for the faint of heart. But if you’ve got at least two days to explore outside the capital, the drive is well worth the trip (although the countryside comes with its own unique set of challenges).
Route 1S and Pisco
Leaving Lima is difficult, but once you get outside you can appreciate the scenic Route S1. The road winds along the coast of the South Pacific Ocean, past beaches, farms, and vast swaths of arid land. On our way we even saw dozens of farm workers arriving and leaving for their work shifts at many of the vineyards dedicated to making Pisco.
Near the end of our journey we got a flat tire. Luckily we stopped in a small town, and not in the middle of the desert. We were traveling with friends, so the boys changed the tire in 80-degree weather, while the girls grabbed some beers at the convenience store across the street. It was a convenient spot for a celebratory toast after the challenge.
We were nervous the spare wouldn’t make the 4-hour trip back to Lima the next day, so we decided to hang around the small coastal city. Sharing names with the Peruvian national drink, Pisco is a small coastal city renowned for its wildlife. Had we abandoned our journey we could have toured the Paracas National Reserve (also known as the Peruvian Galápagos), which is home to seals, penguins and Peruvian boobies. But we decided to press our luck and continue to Huacachina after buying some delicious Peruvian chocolates.
Huacachina Oasis
With around a hundred permanent residents, the tiny oasis village is pretty small, yet it’s adapted over the years to suit the tens of thousands of annual tourists who frequent the site. After we parked at our budget-friendly ($35 a night) hostel, we walked around the village and stumbled upon luxury hotels all equipped with their own pools. Before our buggy tour, we relaxed at one of the many bar restaurants surrounding the oasis and sipped maracuya pisco sours while looking over the second-story balcony.
Having never set foot into a desert prior, we figured an oasis would be a postcard gorgeous scene of natural splendor, and for the most part we were right. The village is dotted with palm trees and dwarfed by a massive breathtaking sand dune. However the murky dark-brown oasis lake water was less than appealing.
Originally created by natural seepage from the underground aquifers, the oasis became a popular beauty spa for wealthy Peruvians in the 1940’s. The waters were thought to have healing powers and host mermaids. However, an increase in well-drilling forced local business groups to pump water into the lake in 2015 to preserve the oasis as a destination for tourists. Ica had 13 lakes over the last years, but Huacachina is the only one surviving.
Sandboarding and Star Gazing
Our hostel organized a deal we couldn’t pass up, a private Sandboarding trip out on the dunes for only $20 per person. The driver took our 6-person group on an exhilarating, roller coaster of a buggy ride over the dunes. As we traveled deeper into the desert, we saw groups as large as 12-24 crowded around the base of the dunes, but our driver kept going. Eventually we were alone, the oasis was nowhere in sight, and all we could see was a never ending ocean of sand. It was surreal.
After stopping in a few spots for photos, we finally climbed out of the buggy ready to board. The dunes in Huacachina are some of the largest in South America, and there’s no better way to experience them than by standing at their peak with weathered white sandboards in hand. Although the boards had flimsy velcro ties for our feet, everyone treated them like sleds, making the trip belly-down and face-first, in a short but exhilarating ride. Wiping out was never a danger, because the sand was as soft as snow. We regrouped at the bottom, then as instructed by the guide, made the surprisingly taxing hike up the closest dune to do it all over again.
After going down a few dunes, our guide drove us to a scenic spot to relax. Even though it wasn’t an especially hot day in the desert, the guide stashed a cooler of Pilsen Callao under his seat in the buggy. We bought a few cold beers, laid on the warm sand, and watched the sun set. When the stars finally came out, we saw the constellations in perfect clarity. To say the experience was magical, is an understatement.
Is It Worth the Trip?
Hell yeah. Riding in a dune buggy, or board, down a massive sand dune is a once in a lifetime experience we’re happy to cross off our bucket list. However, we’ll understand if the driving portion of our trip doesn’t appeal to the masses.
On our way back from Huacachina we were stopped by cops at a checkpoint. Before flying to the country we knew that the Peruvian Police have a history of illegally soliciting bribes, but we never expected it would happen to us. The situation grew tense as several more officers swarmed around the car arguing with each other. However we remained calm, presenting our passports, driving permit, and rental car contract without much fuss (while also making it clear that we understood Spanish). After deducing that the car was a rental, the officers suddenly decided to let us go without further explanation. If their intention was to shake us down, we’ll never know, but we’ve since found a similar first-hand account along the same route.
That said, no place is perfect and nothing actually happened to us. This isn’t even the first time we’ve witnessed a potential extortion while traveling abroad, and we doubt it will be our last. If you’re fearful, stay home. If you want to visit Huacachina without much fuss, sign up for one of the many tours that leave every day from Lima. But if you’ve got two days to spare and want to have a road trip adventure, rent a car.
