I feel that while growing up, whenever I turned on the History channel, almost every other of their shows talked about the most enigmatic ancient drawings in the world - the Nazca lines. (Ancient Alien’s every episode virtually had at least one reference of these). It feels like I have known these lines since forever. Watching them for years on TV, I felt a deep longing to see them in person. And 2019 turned out to be quite an year of Geoglyphs. We were able to see the Nazca Lines in Peru, Blythe Intaglios in California, and numerous geoglyphs in Chile’s Atacama desert.

Here is a small video that we created of the lines. Trying our best not to move the camera too much.

What are Nazca Lines?

The Nazca Lines, located in the southern part of Peru, are a group of geoglyphs drawn into desert sands. They are over 2000 years old and have intrigued archaeologists and historians for hundreds of years. Even today, there is no unanimous consensus as to how or why they were created. There are about 300 different figures, including animals and plants, covering an area of nearly 1,000 sq. kilometers. These figures can be best seen from the air or nearby hilltops.

Nazca Lines undoubtedly are the most well-known geoglyphs in the world.

How to get there

There are two ways to see the Lines - from the Observation Tower or an aerial tour. Unfortunately, you only get to see a few figures from the tower, so the best way to see them is from the air.
There are several flight options over the Nazca Lines depending on your time and budget.

1. From Nazca Airport (35 mins Fight time)

Nazca is 7 hrs of drive from Lima and 14hrs from Cusco. So either you can drive or take a bus or taxi to reach Nazca. The tour companies also have arrangements for transport from Lima, so you can take one of them or plan it on your own. The flights from Nazca Airport are shorter and cheaper but a very long drive.

2. From Pisco (90 mins Fight time)

Pisco is 3.5 hrs of drive from Lima. The tour companies handle the transport to and from Lima/Pisco. They provide a pickup/dropoff from Hotel or the Bus Station. Alternately you can just book the flight and reach the Pisco airport without taking the full package. It is best for the people who want to visit the Paracas National Park as well.

3. From Ica (70 mins Fight time)

Ica is 4 hrs away from Lima by road. Again everything is managed by the tour companies if you choose to take this option. So there is absolutely no need to go to Nazca to see the lines.

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Tour

We did not have much time to spare, and since it’s a long 7 hr drive from Lima to Nazca, we chose the other option of flying. It was a huge saving of time and energy. Everything was organized by our tour company. They sent a car to our hotel in Lima to drop us off at the bus depot, and from there, we boarded a Cruz del Sur bus to Paracas. We were met by their staff at the Paracas bus stop and transported to the Pisco Regional Airport for the flight. There is an airport tax of USD 20 per person.

You will get into a Cessna Grand, which seats 12 passengers; everyone is guaranteed a window seat on the tour. At Picso airport, our guide kept on telling us that the flight is a bit acrobatic (occasionally whispering, not for the faint-hearted). Oh boy! I did not get it until we got there. The pilots did their best job to make us see all the figures from both sides, left and right (so that people sitting on either side could see). But the circles and turns were so short that I had an experience of my life. The only thing to calm your nerves were some lemon candies available on board (and it helped). Usually, I am okay with winding roads and curvy paths, but this was unquestionably nauseating.

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Travel Tips

• Do not eat before the flight, because you are definitely going to through up. Plan your breakfast/lunch/other meals post-flight. They provide candies on board but you are usually nauseous by the have something with you.
  
• Sometimes weather delays flights, so plan accordingly.
  
• Also, visit the Palpa Lines if you are in the area.