Nazca - city and a system of valleys on the southern coast of Peru

Nazca or Nasca is a town in Peru's Southern Coast region. It is most famous for the Nazca Lines, a collection of long lines, geometrical figures, and giant drawings in the desert sand that have been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list.

Understand

Nasca is a Quechua word meaning "pain" or "suffering". The area was so-named because of the lack of water. The name became "Nazca" under the Spanish, but has now reverted to "Nasca" in official and common use. (The z-spelling is still most commonly used in English.)

Today's Nazca town is on the site of where the ancient Nazca civilization was based after the fall of its first capital, Cahuachi, around AD 400. It has an exotic, dusty, desert setting but holds little enchantment. It can provide between a few hours' and a few days' entertainment depending on one's interest in the ancient Nazca people.

The ancient Nazca people

For much of their history, the Nazca people were based in the Ceremonial City of Cahuachi, an ancient pilgrimage center 28 km southwest of modern Nazca. The society emerged around 100 BC and was active until around AD 750. Its influence stretched from Cañete in the north to Acari in the south. The lower section of the Nazca Valley was likely chosen to situate Cahuachi due to its abundant underground water, which allowed extensive irrigation for improved agriculture.

This civilization was responsible for the famous Nazca lines, giant representations of animals and other designs that are also seen on Nazca pottery and textiles found at Cahuachi. Discovered pottery fragments also suggest that the Nazca people gathered in the desert to perform religious ceremonies, with objects being smashed as offerings to the gods in the sky. The fragments found in the desert among the Nazca Lines are mainly pieces of panpipes and whistles, suggesting the importance of music in the religious rites.

A series of natural disasters, climatic and tectonic, began to undermine the civilization around AD 350. An earthquake destroyed the capital, Cahuachi, in around AD 400, leaving the society to limp into oblivion for next few centuries from its new base in what would become modern Nazca.

Discovery of Nazca culture

Nazca culture first aroused academic interest through its pottery. In the 1890s, archaeologist Max Uhle was studying ceramic samples at the Anthropologisch-Ethnografische Museum in Dresden. The consignment contained many works from South America, including some striking and colourful work from the Nazca people. In 1901 he travelled to Peru to examine their origins. After months of searching he arrived at the Valley of Ica at a place called Ocucaje, where he met farmers who told him about the ancient cemeteries where these colourful ceramics were frequently found. Uhle excavated the sites and found Nazca ceramics at many of them. His work introduced Nazca culture to the wider world.

Discovery of the Nazca lines

The Nazca Lines were first spotted when Faucette, an early Peruvian airline, began flying from Lima to Arequipa in the 1920s. The pilots noticed lines criss-crossing the desert between the valleys of Palpa and Nazca.

The pilots' discoveries led Toribio Mejia Xesspe, an archaeologist, to come to Nazca in 1926. His research arrived at the conclusion that the lines were part of ancient sacred roads. Xesspe never flew over the area and so only saw straight lines; he missed the figures.

A more worthy discovery of the lines was made in 1939 by Paul Kosok of Long Island University. Kosok came to Nazca to study the ancient irrigation systems, the puquios (see below). He surveyed the channels and noted that over 50 of the underground aqueducts were still being used. He was told of other, even older, ancient channels and so set out to the Nazca desert but found only long, shallow furrows. He thought that perhaps these other ancient channels were very far away and so hired a small crop-dusting aircraft to go and find them. On the flight he saw hundreds of lines and geometrical forms in the desert. He later recalled asking the pilot to follow one particular line and being somewhat surprised at it leading to a bird! Kosok later met Maria Reiche, who then devoted her life to studying and preserving the lines.

Nazca channels or puquios

After the fall of Cahuachi, the Nazca people still achieved some notable, though oft overlooked feats. An extensive series of underground channels, the puquios (a Quechua word to describe a natural spring), are one of the greatest legacies of the Nazca culture. This underground system is unique in South America, and perhaps the world, because of its very intricate construction. Over 50 underground channels were built over one hundred years starring in AD 400; many of them are still in use. Some of the best preserved channels are at Cantalloc, also known as Cantayo, where visitors can see a series of spiral blow holes, which were probably used to allow cleaning of the channels' interiors and also to restore them after earthquakes.

Nazca ceramics

The cemeteries along the Nazca River contained the colourful ceramic works that first drew attention to the Nazca people. The high-quality work on vessels shows realistic and complex depictions of the ancient Nazca world: everyday life, animals, plants, fruits, birds, insects and gods are all represented. Vessels showing stylized creatures, including zoomorphic and anthropomorphic designs, sometimes contain over ten colours. Bridge-handle bottles with two landfills are the most common find, but spherical pots were also produced, as well as cups and glasses. The best examples of Nazca ceramics are in museums, such as the Museo Arqueologico Antonini in Nazca, the Anthropological and Archaeological Museum in Lima, the Regional Museum of Ica, and many others in Peru and around the world.

Nazca textiles

The Nazca people's belief in life after death led to mummification of their corpses. The shrouds wrapping the dead were fine textiles, which still retain their quality and colours. The Nazca people, like many other pre-Inca peoples, believed textiles to be spiritually important, leading their textiles to be skillfully produced and depicting sophisticated artistic scenes on fabrics of cotton and the fibre of Andean camels.

Samples from the ancient capital of Cahcuachi can be seen at the Museo Arqueologico Antonini in Nazca.

Get in

There are frequent collectivos (small buses) to and from Ica. They leave when full, it takes 2-3 hr and cost S/12 (soles).

There are several direct overnight buses from Cusco (14 hours) and Arequipa (9 hr). Delays can occur in the wet season. Prices vary between S/60 and 170.

There are also buses from Lima (Cruz del Sur and Oltursa buses go via Ica and Paracas) throughout the day and overnight, the journey takes about 6-8 hr.

Peru Hop buses offer comfortable and safe trips to Nazca, with free pickups and drop-offs. There are also free additional stops and tours on the way to Nazca which will make your trip more worthwhile.

Nazca is a small city that does not have a proper bus station. Most of the bus companies are situated on the northwest part of the city.

Get around

Often heard lies at the bus stop

• "That's a very good hotel, but it is full because there is a convention in town. I know because it's our family's hotel. But don't worry, we have another hotel and we can give you a room there!"
• "The hotel is full. I know because I work there."
• "The hotel changed owners and is now very, very bad."
• "They've upgraded and the price has doubled/tripled/$850 a night."
• "The owner is a Polish women who is very unfriendly and she'll attack you." (One wonders what the Polish ever did wrong in Nazca. Sometimes another former Eastern bloc nationality is used.)
• "My father has a hotel, my brother is a pilot and I have a travel agency."

Getting around in Nazca is easy. You can walk almost anywhere and a taxi inside of town really costs around S/3 although every taxi driver might try to charge you more.

The big hassle in Nazca are the touts that hang out at the bus stations and on the streets. They represent shady or nonexistent hotels and travel agents, claim to work for your hotel or to offer cheap flights for viewing the Nazca lines. Ignore them and have your hotel pick you up from the bus station.

See

• Museo Arqueologico Antonini, Av de la Cultura 606 (follow Jr Bolognese about 1 km east). Informative museum about the surrounding archeological sites. It also has a collection of pottery and textiles. In the garden there is a working aqueduct and a scale model of the lines. Entrance US$6.
• Nazca channels or puquios at Cantalloc The pre-Inca Nazca people developed a system of underground aqueducts to irrigate the dry lands that lacked surface water. Therefore despite the harsh desert climate, the Nazca region hosts fields of cotton, corn, beans, potatoes and fruit still watered by over 30 of these underground channels. Nearby are various geometric lines etched on the desert. There are also the Inca ruins of Paredones.
• Cemetery of Chauchilla For many years the Chauchilla Cemetery was looted by treasure hunters, who destroyed the place completely, taking away all the treasures the mummies kept in their tombs for centuries. Grave robbers just left behind the corpses, which can be seen today all over the ground. In addition to skulls and bones, visitors also can see several tombs centuries old, as well as long human hairs, ceramic fragments and others remains scattered on the desert surface. It is the only archeological site in Peru, in which ancient mummies are seen in their original graves, along with ancient artifacts, dating back to 1000 AD. This archaeological excursion is combined with the visit to a Nazca Ceramic workshop, where visitors will learn about the old technique of making Nazca pots and also a visit to the gold extraction centre to see an old way of extracting gold using huge mortars.
• Chicchitara Carving Rocks, in the Palpa Valley
• The Palpa Lines

Nazca Lines

A step-by-step guide to surviving an early morning arrival from Lima

The early arrival will leave you tired and cranky, not ideal for facing the vicious touts that confuse and bewilder travellers. They offer combined hotel and flight packages that are invariably overpriced. Laminated menus offering different aircraft smash against bleary eyes that just want to crawl into a bed, no matter how overpriced. However, Do not fall for their lies. A cheap room should cost up to S/50 and a seat in a plane with only six passengers starts at about US$70 (August 2018). Therefore, one room and a private flight for two shouldn't cost much more than US$120 in total. Travel agents in the town are not much help and are best avoided. The lines are clearly visible at any time between dawn and dusk (touts will say otherwise). Flights are available 07:00-16:00.

• Get off the bus (even if sleeping through to Arequipa is tempting)
• Brush off the touts (politely if possible)
• Find some coffee (optional but recommended)
• Take a taxi to the airport (S/5)
• Each flight operator has a sales desk at the airport, so shopping around is easy. Play them off against each other for the best price. (Your chosen operator will hold your luggage behind their desk without stealing from it)
• Pay the departure tax (S/30)
• Forget the stress and fatigue and enjoy the flight!
• Your flight operator will take you for free back into town
• You'll be all done by 10:00 or 11:00, leaving plenty of time to find more coffee, a hotel or the first bus out

The Nazca Lines are the star attraction. Scattered over 500 km² of an arid plateau between the Nazca River and Ingenio River, they are huge representations of geometric patterns, animals, humans figures and thousands of perfectly straight lines that go on for kilometers. They were created by removing surface stones, revealing the lighter-colored soil below. They're unquestionably ancient (dating back 1400-2200 years), and remarkably precise (with straight lines and clean curves). The images are so huge that they are only appreciable from the air, a fact which has led to speculation that the ancient Nazca people either had access to hot air balloons or alien helpers. Most academics attribute the lines' precision to low-tech surveying techniques, but nobody actually knows who made them or why.

From the air

Nazca town is full of hotels and tour agents peddling flights over the lines in Cessnas, few, if any, will offer a decent price. A seat in a six-passenger plane costs US$80 (Nov 2022) -- you may pay less in low season, and 5% more with a credit card. Haggling is necessary. An airport tax of S/30 is usually not included in the price. Buying tickets in advance through an agent online will cost US$100 or more (Nov 2022), so don't do this. Longer flights which include the nearby Palpa lines are also available.

Only consider booking in advance in the high season (December to March) as planes are going up and down all day and flights are generally only 30 min, meaning that hundreds of people can be dealt with daily. Booking with flight operators directly at their airport sales desks allows for easy price comparison and ensures your money isn't needlessly passed through brokers. Never deal with the touts at the bus stops: they will leave you very badly off. The cautious may choose to pay only after taking a flight but buying at the airport is safe enough. Flights run as required from 07:00-16:00, so don't feel pressured, you'll fly when you want to.

The pilots love banking their small planes hard (for good views of the ground for passengers from both sides) and motion sickness can occur. Take a motion sickness pill if in doubt and get a morning flight as there are less turbulence.

From the ground

There is a observation tower (S/2) along the Panamerican highway with a view of three of the figures and a lookout on a mountain. If you get airsick, this is the way to go. You can go there by tour, public transportation, hitchhiking, or taxi (around S/50 per car for a roundtrip). Buses from Nazca to Flores, Cueva or Soyuz pass the tower. Flag a bus down for the trip back to town.

Do

Eat

• For fast and cheap street food try one of the stands at the south-east corner of the Plaza de Armas.
• Pacante's fastfood café, Jr Bolognese 464. Simple and cheap burgers, with a friendly owner who likes to talk to gringos.
• The restaurants you find all over town that are used by natives offer a full menu (soup, a choice of 3-5 main dishes, and a drink) for S/5-10.

Drink

There are several bars along Jr. Bolognesi.

Sleep

• Nazca Lines Hotel. 3-star hotel with A/C rooms. For some reason the only English channel on TV is FoxNews. US$80 for a single
• Casa Hacienda Nasca Oasis, Panamericana Sur Km 449, El Carmen de Pangaravi. Hacienda-style accommodation in individual bungalows with common swimming-pool and a view out to the biggest sand dune in the world.
• Hotel Alegria, Calle Lima - 166, +51 56 522702. Swimming pool. US$35 a person
• Brabant Hostel, Calle Juan Matta 878, +51 56 524127, brabanthostalnasca@hotmail.com. A cheap, quiet, safe and clean small hostel, one block from the main square. The Dutch-Peruvian owners provide a family atmosphere, great service, good breakfast, roof terrace, games, internet, and laundry. They also organize flights over the Nazca Lines and other tours. Bus terminal pick-up day or night, just call or mail them before. Multiple languages spoken. People hanging around the buses when you arrive do not work for this hostel, they are attempting to mislead for their own personal gain. The dormitory is used as luggage storage too, so it can be very busy. Dorm bed S/16 (as of May 2013), single room S/25, double room S/35, triple S/45, quadruple S/60. Double room with private bathroom and cable TV: S/50
• Hostal Camiluz, Av Maria Reiche 304, +51 56 523871. A quite and safe place to stay in Nazca, located just 3 blocks away from downtown.
• Hotel Don Agucho, Av. Los Paredones con Av. San Carlos Nº 100, -14.83170°, -74.93702°, +51 56 522048. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 12:00. Swimming pool surrounded by a garden with comfortable hammocks and furniture to chill out on, free tea and coffee, English spoken and lots of information about Nazca. On the south side of the river and therefore in a very dangerous part of town. 2022-11-20
• Pirwa Hostel Nazca (Pirwa backpackers hostel Nazca), Maria Reiche Ave. #304, -14.82425°, -74.937115°, +51 84 244315, info@pirwahostelsperu.com. Services: free pick up, free internet access, free continental breakfast. From US$9/person
• The WalkOn Inn, José María Mejía 108 (2nd street behind the church), +51 56 522566, nazca@walkoninn.com. Swimming pool, free internet and free wifi and friendly service in several languages (en-fr-de-nl-es), enquire about laundry service and burning CDs or DVDs of your pictures. Quiet neighbourhood. Travel agent at reception. The rooftop terrace has a great view of the town and surroundings. Maximum S/25 per person, S/15 for a dorm bed, S/8 for breakfast buffet
• Hospedaje Inti Wuasi, Jose Maria Mejia B-10. Cheap beds to sleep, however Micky the tour guy will bug you for his tours. Often they are overpricing cost 5 times the normal value on the main street. S/15
• Hospedaje Yemayá, Callao 578, +51 56 52-3146, nascahospedajeyemaya@yahoo.es. This hostel is located exactly between the bus station and the main plaza: two and half blocks from each. It has clean rooms with private bathroom, good wi-fi (AcessPoint on each floor) and not so good TVs. The best thing is its owner - super friendly Luis: he will give you advice about fair prices agencies should ask for or tips how to visit all three miradors and Maria Reiche museum independently. S/50 for double with private bathroom

Stay safe

There are various travel agents in town though having an office in Nazca does not guarantee trustworthiness. Be very careful and never buy from people that address you on the street or wait at the bus stop.

If you think that the Peruvian government is worthy of your money, only work with taxpaying businesses that will give you a legal tax invoice (called either a "boleto" or a "factura"). This document will have the name of the business and their VAT number printed on it, and a unique number.

Go next

Cruz del Sur run daily buses to Lima at 11:30 and at 14:30. The trip takes 7 hr approximately. Arequipa is 8 hr away by bus. Cruz del Sur offers buses at 15:00 and also later in the evening. Most of the other companies' buses leave in the evening from 22:00-00:00.

Ica is 2½-3 hr away. Various companies run buses throughout the day. Prices start from S/7. Soyuz was S/12 as of May 2013.

The long trip to Cusco from Nazca can be broken up into three legs if you don´t mind being called "gringo" (if you are one) when hanging out in the intermediary towns. Hourly colectivos ply the paved, but curvy, road to Puquio where you will find 3 simple hostels near the main plaza (S/18 a night for doubles with private bathroom). From there, buses head another 6 hr (S/40) to Abancay. In Abancay, you will find that the Hotel Paraiso next to the bus terminal is your best bet. From there, Cusco is a 5-hr bus (S/20) ride on an equally winding, but paved, road.

Or you can go with one of the bigger bus companies direct: Cruz Del Sur (only Luxury VIP class available for about S/185), Oltrusa (S/99), CIAL (S/80 semi-cama).