Paracas National Reserve & Ballestas Islands Tour (Private)
Description
The marine wildlife of the Ballestas Islands is truly breathtaking — it’s almost hard to believe until you see it with your own eyes. Home to sea lions, seabirds, and Humboldt penguins, this natural paradise offers an unforgettable encounter with Peru’s coastal biodiversity. Your trip also features a visit to the Julio C. Tello Site Museum, where you can explore the ancient Paracas civilization through unique textiles, pottery, and archaeological discoveries from the area. The nearby Paracas National Reserve is equally stunning — a surreal landscape where golden deserts meet the deep blue Pacific Ocean, creating one of the most beautiful sceneries on the Peruvian coast. This experience is perfect for nature and wildlife lovers seeking awe-inspiring views and unforgettable memories. Book now and experience the magic of Paracas and the Ballestas Islands!
Tour Options
Itinerary
After picking you up from Lima, we’ll travel to Paracas, where you’ll board a speedboat to the Ballestas Islands Reserve, a protected area rich in marine life. Here, you’ll observe sea lions, seabirds, and even adorable Humboldt penguins in their natural habitat. On the way, marvel at the mysterious Candelabro Geoglyph, an enormous figure etched into the desert sand by the ancient Paracas civilization around 2,000 B.C. — a fascinating symbol whose meaning remains unsolved to this day.
You will discover the Julio C. Tello Site Museum, where you can learn about the fascinating Paracas culture, one of the oldest civilizations on the Peruvian coast. The museum exhibits ancient textiles, ceramics, and archaeological remains found in the Paracas area, providing a deeper understanding of the region’s rich history and heritage.
After your tour around the islands, your expert guide will explain the fascinating formation of the coastal desert and its unique ecosystem. You’ll also have the opportunity to admire the landscapes where migratory birds stop along their journey. The highlight of this visit is the breathtaking contrast between the golden desert and the deep blue ocean, creating some of the most spectacular scenery on Peru’s southern coast. After this unforgettable experience, we’ll return to Lima City and drop you off safely at your hotel.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
Pick up and drop off are only included from: Miraflores, Barranco, San Isidro or Lima Center. If you are staying outside of these areas, we will provide you a meeting point in Miraflores district to start the tour. No airport or Port (Callao area) pick up/drop off included. Last Minute Bookings or changes: Please, if you book last minute it is important to contact us after your reservation is done so we can be notified on time.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(10)
A wonderful tour from start to finish. Our guide showed knowledge of Peruvian history and sociocultural issues that made the journey very enjoyable and cordial. The driver also behaved very friendly and concerned at all times for our safety.
Estimado cliente, Muchas gracias por compartir su excelente comentario. Nos complace saber que disfrutó de un día tan especial en la Reserva Nacional de Paracas y las Islas Ballestas, y que tanto la guía Leidy como Jherson contribuyeron a que la experiencia fuera amena, informativa y segura. Valoramos especialmente sus palabras sobre el conocimiento, la cordialidad y la atención brindada durante todo el recorrido, así como el profesionalismo del conductor, siempre enfocado en la seguridad de nuestros pasajeros. Agradecemos su confianza en Lima Highlights Tours y será un gusto recibirle nuevamente en una próxima visita. Atentamente, Lima Highlights Tours
We did a day trip to Ballestas and Paracas with our guide Alvaro and driver Jherson. We were 3 girls and we did a private tour. It was well coordinated with great communication from the beginning. Alvaro made us feel very safe and patiently catered to all our needs including our vegetarian/ vegan dietary preferences. We saw wonderful sights at the Paracas reserve and penguins, birds and sea sea lions (although we would have seen more in-season). Our driver made the 3 hr drive feel like nothing. Overall fantastic and highly recommended!
Hello! Thank you very much for sharing your comment about your experience with us. It is always a pleasure to show our city to travelers from all over the world. Best wishes
Our day started very early . Our guide Lady was at our hotel to pick us up in a 4X4 drive. It was a very long drive so it was a bit uncomfortable as we wetre sitting for almost 3 hours with one stop for some refreshments and toilets. We were very dissapointed as there was not much to eat in terms of breakfast and also the toillets were very basic. Definitely if Lima expects so many tourists they need to make those better and useable. Then we drove to Ballastas Islands our first stop. We bought tickets for the ferry and joined the other tourists in the boat to see some of the islands. We saw sea lions ,penguins, mussel covered rocks and some red crabs on it. We saw many birds that popular in this region. I was desperately trying to take pictures but since i was not sitting on the side facing the island it was very difficult.So i gave up and just enjoyed the moment. On the way back we also saw some Dolphins and wish we could have spent more time there. Then we mat Lady and choose aplace to eat breakfast as we were starving. Then with Lady our guide we went towards the Reserve and saw some fossils of sea shells and also saw some birds like the oyster collector and the red neck beak bird and vultures. WE also managed to see some Flamingos but they were too far for me to take some good pictures. Then we stopped at a nice place for lunch and thankgod the bathroom was fine. Then we were back to our long drive and we did stop to take a few pictures when the driver noticed a few Flamingos close by. All in all it was a nice day well spent.Our guide lady was pleasant so that made a good trip.
Dear Guest, Thank you for taking the time to share such a detailed review of your experience. We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed visiting the Ballestas Islands and the Paracas National Reserve, and that Lady's friendly service helped make your day a memorable one. We also appreciate your comments regarding the facilities and services available during the journey. While some of these aspects are managed by third-party providers, your feedback is valuable and helps set realistic expectations for future travelers while encouraging continuous improvements throughout the destination. Thank you once again for choosing us. We hope to have the pleasure of welcoming you back for another unforgettable adventure during your next visit to Peru. Kind regards, Lima Highlights Tours
Arrived promptly at 4 am to pick us up. Impeccable SUV. Cristian was a careful driver. Alexandra was very knowledgeable. She was also flexible and considerate of our needs, interests and time schedule. Highly recommend.
Hello! Thank you very much for sharing your comment about your experience with us. It is always a pleasure to show our city to travelers from all over the world. Best wishes
Went on this tour back in May so the review is long overdue. Had an early start, which is to be expected given how far the destination is from Lima. We were able to take turns sleeping on the way to Paracas, however, so overall the day trip was pretty manageable. Driver and guide were both great, but the reserve itself was a bit underwhelming for us, and in retrospect we would personally have enjoyed spending the day in Lima or Cusco or on another day trip more.
Dear Arifa, Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us. We are delighted to hear that you found the journey well organized and that both your driver and guide contributed to making your day enjoyable. We also appreciate your honest feedback regarding Paracas National Reserve. Every traveler has unique interests, and while many visitors are captivated by its dramatic coastal scenery and abundant wildlife, we understand that each destination offers a different experience and may appeal differently to each guest. Thank you once again for your thoughtful review. We truly appreciate your feedback and hope to have the opportunity to welcome you on another tour experience during your next visit to Peru. Kind regards, Lima Highlights Tours
This was a great tour. The guide Willem was wonderful, he made sure to answer all our questions. They pic you up and drop you off at your hotel door. The car and driver were amazing. Always felt like we were being taken care of. Can’t say enough about how good the tour was.
Hello! Thank you very much for sharing your comment about your experience with us. It is always a pleasure to show our city to travelers from all over the world. Best wishes
We booked an all day tour of the Ballestas Islands and Paracas National Park through Viator and it was amazing. Booking was very simple and Lima Highlights communicated well with us ahead of the tour start. We were picked up from the hotel. William was our guide and took good care of us during our experience. The drive to Paracas and the transfer to the boat went very smoothly and we saw lots of amazing wildlife. Because we were a small group once we got to the national park we were ahead of all the bigger tour buses and got to enjoy the scenery ourselves which was very special. Finally we were taken back to our hotel in Miraflores, a very easy and enjoyable experience.
Hello! Thank you very much for sharing your comment about your experience with us. It is always a pleasure to show our city to travelers from all over the world. Best wishes.
The trip was very good the places for food were good and the boat trip was brilliant Only criticism was lack of communication from guide during long drive to Paracas it would have been good to learn more about areas we traveled through
Dear Andrew, Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us. We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed the Paracas National Reserve, the Ballestas Islands boat tour, and the dining experiences along the way. We also appreciate your valuable suggestion regarding the journey to Paracas. Your feedback is important to us, and we will certainly take it into consideration as we continue enhancing the experience we provide to our guests. Thank you once again for your thoughtful review. We hope to have the pleasure of welcoming you back on another tour experience during your next visit to Peru. Kind regards, Lima Highlights Tours
Thank you to William for an insightful day! It ended up being just the two of us with William as our guide and a driver in a very comfortable car! It was very well organised - we were picked up on time and the day followed well, starting with the boat tour, followed by some brief stops at the National Reserve and ending with sea view lunch (before returning to Lima). We appreciated the insights that William was able to provide and enjoyed the whole day!
Hello! Thank you very much for sharing your comment about your experience with us. It is always a pleasure to show our city to travelers from all over the world. Best wishes
We were staying in Miraflores and were picked up directly from our hotel. We had a wonderful day with Pamela! She was so knowledgeable and passionate about Paracas and Peru in general. Add to the fact that she was from the region, and it really made the tour meaningful for us. There was a bit of fog so we couldn't go out to Ballestas Islands, but we went to the islands just off-shore. WOW!! Penguins, boobies, Inca terns, pelicans, cormorants! It was just wonderful. And the land based areas in Paracas were also stunning. It's desert so be prepared! Amazing views of the Pacific Ocean. And a great fresh fish lunch as well. Many tour companies off this experience, but Lima Highlights Tours was the ONLY company that responded quickly to our inquiry and they had the best price. HIGHLY recommend them!!
Hello! Thank you very much for sharing your comment about your experience with us. It is always a pleasure to show our city to travelers from all over the world. Best wishes
