huaraz trekking tour

Santa Cruz Trek

The Santa Cruz Trek is one of the most popular trekking routes in the Cordillera Blanca. The trek takes you through fertile valleys, has views of magnificent, spiraling high glaciated peaks, flower-filled meadows and glacier-fed turquoise lakes. This world-famous circuit crosses from one side of the Cordillera Blanca range to the other through ascending the Punta Union Pass reaching an elevation of 4750m.

Trip Duration    4 Days

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• The most beautiful mountains in the Cordillera Blanca
• Panorama trekking on the famous Santa Cruz route
• Campsites next to crystal clear blue lagoons
• Unforgettable views from Punta Union Pass 4’750m

Character The Santa Cruz Trek is a very impressive short trek in the Cordillera Blanca, which will reward you with spectacular views of the surrounding mountains and lagoons. During the tour we cross the 4’750m high pass Punta Union.

Requirements Good physical condition, team spirit and willingness to leave your comfort zone. You should have hiked in the mountains already. In preparation for this trip, we recommend extensive walks. The hiking times per day are between 4 to 7 hours and can vary depending on the condition of the group and weather.

Best Season The best trekking season in the Andes is from April to October, with rainy season in between. It is usually sunny and warm during this time. Due to the altitude, the nights can be quite cold (to minus 5 ° C).

Extra Time Individual connection programs with Machu Picchu, Colca Canyon and much more are possible. Contact us!

• Transports according to itinerary
• Qualified and experienced guide (Spanish/English)
• Cook and assistant
• Donkeys and donkey driver
• Emergency horse
• All meals during the trek
• Good quality high mountain tent (2 or 3 person)
• Sleeping Mattress
• Dining tent, table and chairs
• Cooking utensils
• First aid kit and oxygen
• Bus tickets Lima – Huaraz – Lima
• Accommodation in Lima and Huaraz
• Meals in Lima and Huaraz
• Entrance fees to Huascaran National Park
• Alcoholic drinks
• Personal equipment
• Medical care or insurance
• Emergency rescue or evacuation
• Additional expenses as a result of leaving the trek early
• Travel insurance
• Tips (optional)

The first day of the trek you are picked up in your hotel and we drive through Carhuaz, Yungay and Caraz, into Llanganuco valley and then ascend the amazing 32 switch-back mountain pass road to Vaqueria. We start our trek descending to the village of Huaripampa, where we have the opportunity to meet friendly Quechua people, take memorable photos of their traditional houses their farmland and colorful garments. Then we descend to our first campsite in Paria (3800m).

Driving time: 5 hours Hiking time: 5 hours Meals included: Lunch, tea time, dinner Accommodation: Tent

Fahrzeit: 5 Stunden Gehzeit: 5 Stunden

On our second day will walk about five hours before reaching the highest point of this trek. The trail starts ascending towards Punta Union (4750m). This old trail was heavily used in pre-Columbian and colonial times as a route for transporting goods from the eastern side of the Andes to the main valley. As we approach the pass, you will enjoy amazing panoramic views down the Santa Cruz Valley to the west, and views of the Huaripampa Valley to the east. The peaks of Santa Cruz surrounded by Andean vegetation of Quenual, the snow-capped peaks of Paria and Taulliraju, Artesonraju and Huaripampa will all come into view. We will see Taulliraju mountain looming above us and on the other side its glacial lake. From this high point, it is possible to see Alpamayo, Artesonraju, Taulliraju, Rinrihircas, Chacraraju, Chopicalqui and Pucahircas. After a break we descend to our next campsite Taullipampa (4250m).

Hiking time: 7 hours Meals included: Breakfast, lunch, tea time, dinner Accommodation: Tent

Today we walk around 5 hours before reaching our last camp Llamacorral (3750m). During this pleasant hike we can appreciate the following mountains: Santa Cruz, Quitaraju, Artesonraju, Alpamayo, Taulliraju and Rinrijircas. We will also pass the lakes Ischicocha, Hatuncocha and Arhuaycocha. The lake Arhuaycocha boasts one of the most spectacular views within the entire Cordillera Blanca.

Hiking time: 5 hours Meals included: Breakfast, lunch, tea time, dinner Accommodation: Tent

We complete our 4 day trek by hiking down to the village of Cashapampa, which takes approximately 3 hours. As we descend, you will be able to notice a steady change in vegetation as we follow the river. Our transport will be waiting to bring us back to Huaraz.

Hiking time: 3 hours Driving time: 3 hours Meals included: Breakfast, lunch

First day on the Santa Cruz trek

Punta Union Pass 4750m

Camping During the trek, you spend the nights in two or three person tents. The selection of camp sites depends on the reachable water points and takes into account – as far as possible – scenic spots. In the Cordillera Blanca there are countless dream camps on highland lakes at the feet of snow-capped peaks.

Meals During the trek we pay attention to a healthy and high-calorie diet. Breakfast and dinner are cooked warm. For lunch, a box lunch is served. We can prepare vegetarian dishes on request.

Luggage Donkeys carry our equipment on the Santa Cruz trek. You will only carry your small backpack during the day.

Transport We use minivans or comfortable 4×4 off-road vehicles, depending on the group size. 

• Bag to load on the donkeys
• Head torch (with spare batteries)
• Well-worn in hiking boots
• Down jacket
• Rain jacket or poncho
• Fleece or warm pullover
• Comfortable clothes (quick dry, merino)
• Trekking trousers
• Long thermal underwear (merino)
• Cap, gloves
• Sunhat, sunglasses, sunscreen (min factor 40)
• Hiking poles
• Sleeping bag -10° comfort
• Toilet paper and wet wipes
• Personal medication travel kit
• Water bottle and water purification pills
• Extra Snacks (your favorite chocolate)
• Extra money
• How do I prevent altitude sickness during the Santa Cruz Trek?
• How many days before should I travel to Huaraz?

Some basic rules: 

• Do not climb too fast, allow several days for a gradual acclimatization
• It can be very useful to take a break at around 3,000 m for a few days
• Drink more than enough water
• Do not drink any alcohol
• Cure infections and other diseases beforehand
• Do not take sleeping pills
• Carbohydrate-containing foods, as they consume less oxygen than fats and proteins
• Drink coca tea or chew coca leaves

We recommend that you arrive at least 3 days in advance to Huaraz and take day trips for acclimatization. Let us know if you want us to include some acclimatization trips in our offer.

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Huaraz is a city located in the Ancash region of Peru. Known as the “Capital of Mountaineering,” this picturesque town is surrounded by imposing mountains and glaciers of the Cordillera Blanca, making it an ideal destination for nature lovers and outdoor sports enthusiasts.

Useful information

• Location: Huaraz is located in the Ancash region in northern Peru. Situated in the Santa River valley, about 400 kilometers north of Lima.
• Climate: The Weather in Huaraz is temperate and dry for most of the year. The months from April to October are considered the dry season, with sunny days and pleasant daytime temperatures ranging between 15°C and 25°C. During the rainy season, which extends from November to March, temperatures are milder, with highs around 20°C and lows around 10°C.
• Altitude: Huaraz is situated at an average altitude of approximately 3,052 meters above sea level. This elevation provides the city with a cool climate and a unique atmosphere.
• Best time to visit: The dry season, which usually runs from May to September, is the best time to visit Huaraz. During these months, the weather conditions are more stable, with clear skies and lower chances of rain. You can enjoy favorable weather for activities such as trekking, hiking, and visiting the lakes and glaciers of the region. Temperatures are usually pleasant during the day, with possible drops at night due to the altitude.

How to get there

Huaraz, located in the Ancash region of Peru, is accessible both by land and air. Here are the main options for getting to Huaraz:

• By land: The most common way to reach Huaraz is from the city of Lima. From Lima, you can take an interprovincial bus to Huaraz. The bus journey takes approximately 8 to 10 hours, depending on traffic conditions and the choice of transport company. There are several bus companies that offer this service, with different schedules and levels of comfort.
• By air: If you prefer to reach Huaraz by plane, you can take a flight from Lima to the Comandante FAP Germán Arias Graziani Airport, located in the city of Anta, near Huaraz. From the airport, you can take ground transportation to Huaraz, which is approximately 25 km away. Flights to Huaraz are usually operated by small airlines and are subject to availability and weather conditions.

Tourist Attractions

Huaraz is known for its stunning natural beauty and spectacular mountain landscapes. Here are some of the main tourist attractions you can visit in Huaraz:

• Laguna 69:  Considered one of the most beautiful lakes in the region, Laguna 69 is located at an altitude of approximately 4,600 meters above sea level. Its turquoise water is surrounded by snow-capped mountains.
• Huascaran National Park:  This national park, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is home to the Cordillera Blanca, which boasts more than 20 mountains exceeding 6,000 meters in altitude.
• Nevado Pastoruri:  Located at approximately 5,240 meters above sea level, Nevado Pastoruri is an impressive snow-capped mountain known for its glacier.
• Callejón de Huaylas:  This beautiful valley is known for its picturesque villages, natural landscapes, and views of the imposing mountains.
• Chavín de Huántar:  Situated approximately 110 kilometers from Huaraz, Chavín de Huántar is an important archaeological site dating back to the pre-Inca period.
• Laguna Parón:  Considered one of the most stunning lakes in Peru, Laguna Parón is located at approximately 4,200 meters above sea level. Its waters are turquoise in color.
• Laguna Llanganuco:  Located in Huascaran National Park, Laguna Llanganuco is another natural gem of Huaraz. With its crystal-clear waters and stunning view of the Huascarán and Huandoy snow-capped mountains.

Important Dates

• January 1:  Fiesta de los Negritos del Niño Jesús (Festival of the Black Child Jesus)
• January 18-21:  Virgen de la Chiquinquirá. Caraz, San Sebastián, and Recuay celebrations
• February:  Carnaval Huaracino: Parade of floats
• March/April (movable):  Holy Week, Huaraz is filled with religious fervor and celebrations
• May 2-10:  Festival del Señor de la Soledad (Festival of the Lord of Solitude): Processions, masses, and devotional activities in honor of the Lord of Solitude.
• June 24:  Fiesta de San Juan (Festival of Saint John): Celebrations with dances, music, and cultural activities in honor of the patron saint.
• July 22-31:  Callejón de Huaylas Tourist Week
• August 13-22:  Festivity of Our Lady of the Assumption of Chacas

Here is an authentic list of typical dishes from Huaraz’s gastronomy:

• Pachamanca:  A traditional dish consisting of beef, pork, or lamb, as well as potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn, all cooked slowly underground with hot stones.
• Puchero:  A comforting broth made with beef, pork, or chicken, potatoes, sweet potatoes, cabbage, carrots, and spices, cooked slowly for hours.
• Picante de cuy:  Guinea pig is also used in this stew preparation with chili peppers, onions, tomatoes, and spices, accompanied by rice and potatoes.
• Humitas:  Corn dough cakes filled with cheese, wrapped in corn husks, and steamed. They are sweet and savory at the same time.
• Chupe de camarones:  A hearty and flavorful soup made with fresh shrimp, potatoes, milk, yellow chili pepper, and aromatic herbs.
• Tamales:  Corn dough filled with meat, wrapped in banana leaves, and steamed. It is a traditional and popular dish in the region.

Frequently Asked Questions

What clothing should i bring for my huaraz hiking tours.

It is important to wear appropriate clothing to adapt to the weather conditions and activities you will be doing. Here are some recommendations on what type of clothing to bring:

Layered clothing: Due to temperature changes throughout the day, it is advisable to wear several layers of clothing that you can add or remove as needed.

Thermal clothing: Especially if you plan to do trekking or spend time in higher altitude areas.

Durable pants: Opt for comfortable yet durable pants, preferably made of materials such as nylon or polyester, that are resistant to wind and water. Avoid jeans, as they can become uncomfortable and take longer to dry in case of rain.

Proper footwear: A pair of hiking boots or sturdy sneakers.

Hat and gloves: Even during the dry season, temperatures can be cool, especially in the mornings and evenings.

Sun protection: Huaraz is located at a high altitude, which means increased sun exposure. Don’t forget to bring broad-spectrum sunscreen, sunglasses, and a hat.

What to do in Huaraz?

Huaraz offers a wide range of activities and attractions for visitors. Here are some standout options to enjoy during your stay:

Trekking and hiking: Huaraz is known as the trekking capital of Peru, and there are numerous impressive routes and trails to explore. Huascaran National Park offers options such as the famous Santa Cruz Circuit, Laguna 69 Trek, and the hike to the Pastoruri Glacier.

Visits to lakes and lagoons: Huaraz is surrounded by beautiful lakes with crystal-clear waters. Laguna 69, Laguna Churup, and Laguna Paron are some notable examples.

Glacier and mountain excursions: For the more adventurous, Huaraz offers the opportunity to explore glaciers such as Pastoruri and Churup, as well as ascend iconic mountains like Nevado Huascaran, the highest mountain in Peru.

Cultural visits: Huaraz also has a rich cultural heritage. You can visit archaeological sites such as Chavín de Huántar and the Petroglyphs of Wilcahuaín to explore the region’s history and culture.

Huascaran National Park: This national park, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, encompasses a diversity of ecosystems, including impressive snow-capped peaks, valleys, lakes, and a wide variety of flora and fauna.

What level of physical fitness is required for participating in Huaraz Hike?

The required level of physical fitness for participating in tours in Huaraz varies depending on the difficulty level of each tour. Some tours require good physical condition and endurance, especially those involving long hikes or mountain ascents. It is important to assess your physical fitness and choose tours that suit your capabilities.

How long do the hikes in Huaraz last?

The duration of hikes in Huaraz can vary depending on the route and difficulty level. On average, hikes usually last between 4 and 8 hours, but there are longer options that can take several days, such as the famous Santa Cruz trek. It is important to inquire about the specific duration of each hike before embarking on it.

What are the advantages of buying a Huaraz Vacation package?

Buying a Huaraz Vacation Package has several advantages. Firstly, it allows you to access a variety of organized services and activities, such as transportation, specialized guides, and accommodation. Additionally, tour packages often include visits to the main attractions of the area, ensuring a comprehensive and well-planned experience.

What types of accommodation does the city of Huaraz offer?

Huaraz offers a wide variety of accommodation options to suit all budgets. You will find everything from hotels and resorts to hostels. There are also options for homestays and camping for those who prefer a closer experience with nature. It is advisable to book in advance, especially during the high season.

How to prevent altitude sickness in Huaraz and what measures to take?

Altitude sickness, also known as “soroche,” is common in high-altitude places like Huaraz. To prevent it, it is recommended to acclimatize gradually before engaging in intense physical activities. Drinking plenty of water, avoiding heavy meals, and consuming carbohydrate-rich foods can help alleviate symptoms. Additionally, consulting a doctor for altitude sickness medication, if necessary, is advisable.

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• Climbing Huascarán (6768m)
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• Artesonraju (6.025 m.)
• Urus (5423m)
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• Huaraz Boulders
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• Other popular trad sectors
• Other Boulder Sector
• Recuay Rock Climbing
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• Llanganuco Lagoon
• Punta Callan
• Rataquenua View Point
• Tour Chavin
• Bike Touring
• Mountaineering
• Horseback Riding
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Zen Travellers

Two round the world travellers and our guide for adding a little zen to your adventures. Travel advice, stories, and inspiration!

Huaraz Trekking and Hiking – A Complete Guide

Nestled in the impressive Cordillera Blanca range of the Andes, Huaraz is increasingly becoming a world-class destination for high altitude adventures as Huaraz trekking is some of the best in the world.  The hiking in Huaraz has led to it being called the trekking capital of Peru, which is hard to dispute.  It also offers a more budget-friendly and quieter alternative to crowded Cusco.

By far the biggest draw of Huaraz is trekking in the endlessly picturesque Cordillera Blanca and Negra ranges.  Popular hikes such as the Santa Cruz trek, Laguna 69, and the Huayhuash trek get all the attention, but there are a number of great things to do in Huaraz and more hikes than those three to explore!

Table of Contents

• 1 About Huaraz, Peru
• 2 When to Visit Huaraz
• 3.1 Laguna 69
• 3.2 Laguna Paron
• 3.3 Pastoruri Glacier
• 3.4 Laguna Willcacacocha
• 3.5 Laguna Churup
• 3.6 Santa Cruz Trek
• 3.7 Alkipo-Ishinca Trek
• 3.8 Mateo Peak
• 3.9 Pisco Peak
• 3.10 The Huayhuash Trek
• 4.1 Tipping?
• 4.2 Getting There – Bus or Flight
• 4.3 Renting Camping Equipment
• 4.4.1 Our Cautionary Tale
• 5.2 Casa de Abuela
• 5.3 Main Square Shaved Ice
• 5.4 Main Square Popcorn
• 5.5 Gran Muralla for Chifa
• 5.6 Mercado Central de Huaraz
• 6 Where to Stay
• 7 Mountain Zen in Peru

About Huaraz, Peru

Razed by an earthquake in the 70s, as much as 95% of the city was destroyed.  Unfortunately, there’s also garbage in many places, stray dog gangs that battle for turf in the parks, and it is impossibly noisy because of the local denizen’s addiction to their car horns.  Overall, the town itself is largely without the charms you will find in its more famous counterparts of Cusco or Arequipa .

Nevertheless, it does have some cute gardens, a small artisan’s market where you can load up on sweaters, thick socks, toques and gloves or mittens for your hike, as well as plenty of tasty restaurants, and a town square where you can pose for pictures with alpacas in shades.

So rather than being a destination in and of itself, Huaraz serves as a launch point for a variety of treks to suit any ability level. You will need to acclimatize before doing any of hiking so we recommend spending a couple of days walking around town before heading out to explore any of the trekking Huaraz has to offer.  Huaraz’ elevation is 3,052m, which may be quite a change depending on where you’re coming from. We came from mostly close to sea-level elevations in Ecuador so the first couple days in Huaraz I felt winded just walking around town and we took it easy before tackling even the lower Huaraz hiking trails.

The two mountain ranges close to Huaraz are the Cordillera Blanca and the Cordillera Negra.  Many of the popular hikes and treks are actually closer to the town of Carhuaz so you can expect to spend a fair amount of time in minibuses getting to the trailhead.

Interestingly, the mountain Siula Grande from the Cordillera Blanca range is featured in the film about defying death in the mountains, “ Touching the Void “.  Alpamayo, another mountain that you can climb from Huaraz is thought by some to be the “most beautiful mountain in the world.” And just two more facts,  Huascaran National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site as it is the world’s highest tropical mountain range.  Huascaran itself is the tallest mountain in Peru at 6,768m and is a very challenging technical climb that can take up to a week to the summit!

With vast and scenic expanses, opportunities for alpine activities to suit every level and interest, hikes that are popular, and hikes where you will find solitude in nature, Huaraz is the perfect place to find some mountain Zen in Peru.

When to Visit Huaraz

The trekking season in Huaraz is generally believed to be the best from May to October, with June and July considered to be “Andean summer” meaning the days are warm and dry, but the nights are cold. These are also the busiest months.

November through March are the wettest and quietest months. We were in Huaraz in late June to mid-July and it only rained once, but you sure felt the cold once the sun went down. Definitely dress in layers and stock up on wool goods in the artisan’s market!

The Best Hiking and Trekking Trails in Huaraz

We did the Alkipo-Ishinca 3 day trek,  Laguna Wilcacocha (acclimation), Laguna 69 day hike (acclimation), and the Mateo Peak 2 day trek but we’ll fill you in about all of the most popular options because there are SOO many great Huaraz treks and we don’t want you to be overwhelmed with information like we were.

Regardless of which agency you book with be sure to bargain for prices and definitely ask for a discount if you are taking more than one tour from the same agency.  The prices given below are what we were quoted during our July 2018 trip and may differ depending on when you travel and who you talk to.  We also have (a lot) more to say on picking the right agency later in this post.

This beautiful but tough Huaraz day hike can be booked by pretty much any agency in Huaraz and the experience will be more or less the same. It’s probably one of the most famous Huaraz hikes and the trail is about 15km with 600m total elevation gain. Most of the elevation gain comes at the end of the hike which is a gruelling climb to over 4,600m.

It is an excellent hike for acclimatizing to do other even more challenging treks in the region. It is beautiful, but it will be chock-filled with people, including the kind (Chileans maybe?) that insist on blasting their music from a speaker on the trail. Still, it was well worth it for the amazing views, and we paid just 30 sol(or $10usd) each. From here, you will see similar views to those along the Santa Cruz trek as it’s in the same range.

If you’re looking for a more unique experience, some agencies can arrange a 3-day trek to the summit of Pisco mountain with a visit to Laguna 69 tacked on at the end which might be a good way to dodge the crowds at the lake.

Laguna Paron

Another great day hike from Huaraz, and an ideal acclimation hike since you make some nice stops along the way and it climbs to 4,185m. It is far easier than Laguna 69 and only requires about 40-60mins of hiking. Tours should be around 50 sol and it will take about 2 hours of driving to reach it from Huaraz.

Pastoruri Glacier

From Pastoururi Glacier you can get extremely close to a beautiful, but unfortunately rapidly receding glacier at 5,000m without working too hard as you’re dropped off at a parking lot with only a 30-40 minute hike to the glacier.  It takes about 2.5 hours to drive to the trailhead from Huaraz and tours cost about 30-60 sol.

On the way to the glacier, you will likely stop to see the Puya Ramondi plants, which only grow in high elevations in Peru and Bolivia. The giant plants are interesting not only for their size but because they only bloom once in their life.  When they do they can have about 20,000 flowers that attract dozens of hummingbirds!

Laguna Willcacacocha

There is no need to hire a guide for this hike! You can take a taxi to the top of the hill for about 35 sol (about 10 USD) and then walk down, or if you’re feeling adventurous, seek out Collectivo E or 10 towards the town of Chiwampa.  Ask to stop at the Santa Cruz bridge and hike up and down yourself. (They will likely understand if you indicate your destination is Laguna Willcacocha as well)

Collectivos can be caught at Av. Antonio Raymondi which we of course, only noticed in Maps.me the day after I tried to hail the wrong collectivo and was told by an uncharacteristically unhelpful Peruvian that he didn’t understand a word I was saying. Suffice to say, hailing a taxi for about 35 sol is easier, but taking collectivos is part of the fun. At the very least, it is easy to hail one back to Huaraz as anyone passing by will be going there. Expect to pay about 2 sol each way.

At the top, you will reach heights of 3,725m and see the Cordillera Negra range as well as the start of Cordillera Blanca. There is a small lagoon at the top where you can see Ruddy Ducks, Puna Ibises, and Gallinules. You can also camp at the top for a gentle acclimation if you so desire. Once you’ve returned to the bottom you can flag down any collectivo heading back to Huaraz.

If you’re looking to do the hike with a guide expect to pay about 25 to 50 sol.  We saw a guided group at the top and give mad props to the guide who was picking up garbage left behind by unscrupulous hikers and campers.

Laguna Churup

This hike can be done as a tough DIY, a guided hike, or as an overnight. It requires 500m of elevation gain and a steep scramble over rocks that scares some people to reach the lake but will be far less crowded than the other options.

At 4,450m it is another great acclimation hike before venturing onto more challenging treks. You can take a collectivo to the trailhead in Pitec if hiking the DIY way, or go with an organized tour. It should only take about 1 hour to reach Pitech from Huaraz if going with a tour, but expect a longer travel time if travelling by collectivo.

Churup Lake can also be combined with the 3-day Quilcayhuanca Cojup trek if you’d like to spend some time camping in the backcountry.

Santa Cruz Trek

This insanely popular hike is perhaps Huaraz’ signature trek for casual backpackers. While hardcore mountaineers delight in climbing the “most beautiful mountain in the world” Alpamayo, or the highest mountain in Peru, Huascaran, backpackers and trekkers have to “settle” for circling around these peaks via passes rising to well over 4500m.

The Santa Cruz trek allows vistas of Alpamayo (although not the “most beautiful” side of the mountain as that is the climber’s face) as well as Huascaran. It can be a crowded hike but from all accounts a very rewarding one.  If you’re visiting Huaraz for trekking this hike should definitely be on your radar.

You can do the hike unguided or as part of a tour, and if you do the latter we recommend shopping around to find the best price.  It’s a good idea to ask to see the equipment that you will be required to use during the hike as we heard horror stories of people getting fleas from equipment or having to sleep 3-4 people in a “2 person” tent.  If they say you can’t see it because it’s being returned the same day then you know it’s probably not going to be washed between uses.

Expect to pay about $115-$150 for a budget operator, or $240 for a more reputable company.  We met some fellow travellers that were very happy with the pricier option from Eco-Ice.

Alkipo-Ishinca Trek

This trek is an excellent alternative to Santa Cruz for those looking for a scenic trek, but wanting to escape the crowds.

We did this trek with Climber Land which had deceptively good ratings online.  We have no complaints about the trek, the cook, or the equipment that was provided to us by Climber Land, but our guide was, unfortunately, one of the worst guides we have ever hired in all of our travels. This guy somehow made the guide that spent his whole time flirting with the trainee in the Rwenzoris look good.

That being said, we do recommend this hike, just do it with another tour operator in Huaraz. You will see staggeringly beautiful scenery, including the endlessly stunning Laguna Alkipo, you’ll climb to 5,000m on Alkipo pass, camp without crowds on the first night, and get up close and personal with some high-flying picturesque peaks in the Cordillera Blanca.

On the second night, you will camp at Ishinca base camp at 4,390m and be surrounded by views of the incredibly vast glaciers of Toccaraju. You can also have a shower for a fee and grab a drink in the Refugio if you so desire.

We paid about 650 sol per person for a “guided” trek, including food, mules, and decent quality equipment.  We highly recommend the hike, especially if you are looking to get away from the crowds of Santa Cruz but make sure you ask your agency lots of questions.

Our Cordillera Blanca guided hiking experience took a dramatic turn for the better when we booked a 2 day climb up Mateo Peak with Peruvian Classic Adventures. After Alkipo-Ishinca, I came down with a bad cold so although we really wanted to do Pisco peak and were sufficiently acclimated, I didn’t think I could handle the 12-hour, 1,500m one-day elevation gain.

Instead, we figured we would do some of the day hikes mentioned above, such as Paron and Pastorui, but we remained open to be persuaded to do something else. With this in mind, we stopped in to talk with Dario at Peruvian Classic Adventures and asked him to persuade us to do something other than a couple more crowded day tours.

He proposed his agency’s “signature trek” which is a 3-day jaunt through picturesque passes to a very easy, beginner mountaineering peak, Mount Mateo at 5,165m for $300usd per person. He also gave us the option of joining an existing trek and doing a 2 day to the peak for only $150 per person. We opted for the 2-day tour and it worked out great for us. As an aside, joining an existing tour is a good way to shave a little off the price of the tour.

The first day was a very gentle (compared to Laguna 69 and Alkipo-Ishinca) trek through rolling terrain in the Cordillera Negra.  There we crossed through Quechwa farmland and were greeted by some friendly farmers in their traditional clothing. It only took about 4 hours to reach our camping spot and was easy enough for me to do as I got over my cold. Our guide Angri did indeed speak English and was passionate, informative, courteous, and professional. He was everything we wanted in a guide. He explained local flora, pointed out features of the landscape, and helped us understand the Quechwa farmland we were walking through. It gets better.

Once we reached our camp, he helped us set up our tent and took some trout from the nearby farm and cooked them up fresh for us. He even gave me an impromptu Spanish lesson when I misused a pronoun, so we hadn’t even made it to the glacier yet and I had already learned a lot from him. Our 4 season tent kept us super warm and Dario kindly provided us with good-quality, thick mattresses to sleep on since he wanted me to be extra warm as I fought my cold. He also provided all ropes, harnesses, ice axe, crampons, snow pants, glacier glasses, and thick gloves for the glacier portion.

On our second day, we woke up early and drove to 4,750m where we began our hike up to Mateo Peak. Again, Angri was an incredible guide, stopping to help us navigate tricky scramble sections on the rock and pointing out features of the landscape. One thing that stuck with me for slightly macabre reasons, was when I asked which lake I was looking at out in the distance he said it was unofficially called “new lake”. As in climate change recently created this lake by causing glaciers to melt. Sad.

As we reached the spot where we needed to put on our crampons, harness, serious gloves, snow pants, etc. he explained everything to us in detail and checked-in multiple times to be sure we felt comfortable and ready to start crossing the glacier. The trip up to the peak went slowly and steadily, with Angri demonstrating leadership the whole time. We were thrilled to make it to the peak and try out glacier travel for the first time and we couldn’t have asked for a better guide.

On the way back into town from the glacier, we stopped in Carhuaz for ice cream (not included) and lunch with beer (included!) and made a toast to yet another amazing experience in a foreboding range.

We desperately wanted to do this trek but the Alkipo-Ishinca hike destroyed my immunities and I came down with a nasty cold. Pisco Peak is touted as a good beginner mountaineering climb and it’s staggering 5,752m summit features a panoramic view of the surrounding snow-capped peaks of Chacraraju, Huandoy, Chopicalqui and Huascaran — all of which reach heights of over 6,000m.

It is a tough 3-4 day hike where on day 1 you drive to 3 hours to Cebollapampa at 3,990m and climb to the base camp at 4650m. On Day 2 you can climb 12 hours to Pisco summit and back to base camp, or climb 3 hours to Moraine camp at 4,950m.  On Day 3 you’ll either walk 1.5 hours to the road from base camp or climb 10 hours to the summit from the moraine camp. Day 4 only applies if you camped at Moraine, but you will walk approximately 1.5 hours to the road to drive 3 hours back to Huaraz.

As it involves glacier travel, most companies don’t take groups larger than 3 people and it requires a licensed mountain guide. That said, you could get the same quality guide as we had for Alkipo-Ishinca so do check reviews thoroughly and ask lots of questions before deciding on an operator. (Have we said that already?) Based on our experience on Mateo we would certainly trust and recommend Peruvian Classic Adventures for this adventure.

The Huayhuash Trek

Saving possibly the best for last, the Huayhuash Trek is an 8-day trek that achieves elevations up to 5,490m.  Each pass that you ascend offers incredible views of the Cordillera Blanca, alpine lakes, and glaciers.  It’s considered to be one of the best alpine treks in the world.

You can do this hike solo, or with a guide.  Friends we met while hiking the Colca Canyon near Arequipa had done it solo but said it would have only cost a fraction more to do it guided because of all the permits that they had to purchase.

They raved about the views to the point that we were jealous, even with the hikes that we had done in Huaraz.  You can read a basic overview of the route on Peru Hop’s website.

Tips for Travelling in Huaraz

Yes, you should tip your guide, cook, and porter if you have one depending on the quality of the service you received. We tipped our guide for Mateo Mountain and somewhat unsurprisingly, did not tip our guide for Alkipo-Ishinca.  (You can read my rant about his guiding services below) We did, however, tip the cook. It’s not often you eat that well at such high elevations!

Getting There – Bus or Flight

At about 2 months into our 14 month trip around the world, we ended our wonderful time in Ecuador in the beautiful city of Cuenca which serves as an entry point to Northern Peru. There is not much (aside from long bus rides) between the south of Ecuador to the North of Peru, but that all changes once you reach the action-packed town of Huaraz. The city is miles from nowhere which is part of what makes it so special.

We reached it via a very long bus journey from Ecuador, going from Cuenca to Chiclayo on a gruelling 13-hour overnight bus with Azuay transport, then a bus from Chiclayo to Trujillo with Linea Transport, and finally onto Huaraz the next day with Cruz del Sur.

A less punishing route would be to fly into Lima and it’s an 8-hour bus ride from there using Cruz Del Sur or Movil Tours . The terminale norte bus terminal is close to the airport.

There are light aircraft flights to Huaraz from the Lima airport with the LC Peru airline. They only allow 15kg of luggage allowance and depart once per day.

Renting Camping Equipment

You can easily rent camping equipment in Huaraz but do make sure you check it all out first.  As with most things in Huaraz, there is a cheap version available and a good version available.

If you have back problems as I do, the coin-thin “mattresses” that most companies provide for treks may cause you problems, so I strongly recommend picking up a Therm-A-Rest Neo-Air mattress . It is super lightweight, barely takes up any room in my pack, and makes sleeping in a tent on the ground downright comfortable. I have used it multiple times hiking at home and during our 14 month trip around the world.

Choosing A Tour Agency – The Wild West

Huaraz seems to be the wild west of Peruvian tourism. We have had wonderful guides for hikes based out of Cusco and Arequipa, but we only had one great one in Huaraz. Our guide for Laguna 69 simply pointed out the trail and our “guide” for Alkipo-Ishinca was without hyperbole, the worst guide we have ever had for a guided trip anywhere in the world. Professionalism is a problem in Huaraz which is unfortunate since the area is so beautiful and worthy of being on any mountain lover’s bucket list.

In addition to there being vast discrepancies in the quality of guide services, prices offered by operators for the same hikes vary greatly, as does the degree of difficulty that individual agencies will rate hikes. This article in the Huaraz Telegraph sums up the problems that can be encountered in Huaraz quite well.

You should also be aware that many agencies selling the most popular treks, such as Santa Cruz, Laguna 69, Pastoruri Glacier, and Laguna Paron simply farm them out to a few main operators, mainly Genesa and Galaxia.

So sometimes when you book with a well-reviewed company you are just paying for them to sell you a tour operated by one of those other not as well-reviewed companies for a cut. This is neither shocking, nor a unique practice but the difference in Huaraz is that some of the budget companies don’t have the same professionalism that can be expected elsewhere. Unless you go up dramatically in the price range you’ll likely be getting the same service.

We don’t want to dissuade anyone from going but do be prepared to put more research into which operator you go with than you might on say the Salkantay Trek in Cusco and be prepared to ask lots of questions before you hand over your money. Also, make sure you leave thorough reviews, both good and bad, so companies can be held accountable when they use questionable practices, but also so that other travellers can be sure which companies are the best.

If you’re booking the popular hikes (such as Laguna 69, Laguna Paron, Pastoruri Glacier, and the Santa Cruz trek), you will most likely be doing it with a low-cost operator with a bus-full of other tourists and a guide that does little more than point to the general direction that you must travel now and then.

A low-cost agency where we got some straight talk and good quotes for prices was Andino Trek (thanks Frank!). We didn’t end up booking with him because it wasn’t open when we had made our decisions but we appreciated his candor nonetheless.

Our Cautionary Tale

We booked our Alkipo-Ishinca trek with Climber Land but despite the agency having reasonably good reviews online, our experience with the guide that the agency provided was terrible. As Frank from Andino Trek explained to us, the agencies don’t often know who the guide is ahead of time and who you get depends on who is available that day.

We surmise that some of the people selling you the tours have more scruples than others. The less the scruples, the more likely they are to tell you whatever they think is necessary to make the sale. The guy working the desk at Climber Land (if my memory serves me well his name was Ivan) obviously over-promised and under delivered when he said we would be getting an “English-speaking” guide.

To be clear, we’re not just talking about someone who isn’t strong in English, that is something we would not complain about since we both know how hard it can be to speak another language; we mean he barely knew any words and didn’t understand us when we spoke to him V..E..R..Y S..L..O..W..L..Y.  Secondly, Ivan told us it was “non-technical” and straightforward trekking, which ended up not being entirely true and both of these things would prove dangerous as described below.

While on this “guided” hike, we never travelled together as a group and our “guide” would start walking as soon as we caught up thereby foregoing the common knowledge mountain courtesy of the “F*** you stop.” I have asthma for jeebus’ sake, I simply can’t run up mountains at over 4,500m. In fact, this was my very first time climbing to over 4,300m and I was unsure how my asthmatic lungs would handle the elevation.

Early into the hike I told him plainly and clearly in Spanish that “you are walking too fast” to which he just grinned goofily in response.  Simply put, the pace he was setting for our group was dangerous for me and he didn’t give one rip. We wanted a guide with us on the trek to be able to help us if I ran into trouble at high elevations, but this guy was useless.

I’m not exaggerating when I say he was useless, he got us lost 2 separate times. At the height of the pass over 5,000m, he took a wrong turn which meant that we had to do some moderate downclimbing during our descent. This may seem like nothing, but chew on this: a friend of mine died in the Rockies downclimbing on a slope that was too technical for his abilities.

Now fortunately for us, we have some experience scrambling so we were able to get ourselves down safely, but if you have never encountered this terrain and were relying on your guide to help you, this guy wouldn’t have been able to in English. I saw him explaining how to scramble to the Spanish-speaking guy, telling him to test his hand and footholds before putting his weight on them for example, but he didn’t even bother to try to do the same for us.

This was moderate scrambling and while I don’t think that a fall in this area would have been deadly, it could have resulted in broken bones which would be an ordeal and half in such a remote area.

Then we continued our off-the-path descent by being “guided” down a super-steep, boulder and knee-high grass-filled gully that just didn’t seem right to me. There were times where the 3 of us paying guests ended up on top of cliff bands with no clear route down and our “guide” was nowhere to be found. I mean we couldn’t see him at all. How does one guide when they’re not around to guide? What is the meaning of guide?

We had to guide ourselves down his wrong turn and it was exhausting. He told us our descent would take about 1.5 hours, but it took 4. This terrain was no joke either and I broke my finger falling in similar terrain in the Rockies. Given the terrain, we were likely walking over animal nests, possibly chinchillas or ground-nesting birds which meant his wrong turn made us betray our principles of trekking and leaving no trace .

Once down, I heard the cook giving him a hard time for us being so late (my Spanish comprehension is better than my speaking skills). The cook had over 50 years of experience in the park and proceeded to tell the guide that he was stupid and took a wrong turn at the top of the pass.

So our guide that we paid, had without a doubt, lead us astray and he was lucky no one got hurt. We would have been able to a much more enjoyable descent if we had gone the right way and it would have actually been the non-technical trekking we were promised.

During those rare moments we got to actually speak with our guide that we paid, he explained that he also leads trips up to Pisco Peak. Now Pisco is no trek by any stretch of the imagination, it’s a proper mountaineering summit and is meant to be guided by a certified mountaineering guide.

It’s considered a great beginner mountaineering mountain but it does involve navigating a small crevasse, so imagine if you’ve never walked on a glacier before and your guide can’t speak with you in your language and insists on travelling 500m to 1km ahead of you at all times. Not a good scene. Since this is what you get when you pay for an “English-speaking guide” from Climber Land, we don’t recommend using them for any of your trekking needs in Huaraz. Given this experience, we’re honestly surprised by all the good reviews.

So in light of this be sure to read every single review, ask loads of questions, and leave feedback after your trek so fellow travellers can book tours with confidence!  The mountain ranges of Huaraz provide for some amazing hiking and trekking but the terrain and altitude are not to be taken lightly.

Where to Eat and Drink in Huaraz

When you’re not doing one of the many Huaraz day treks or multi-day hikes it’s good to know what to do in Huaraz.

We went here way too many times, but Trivio has delicious local Sierra Andina craft beer on tap, cooks up wicked-good burgers (both veggie and carnivore) and french fries, as well as local foods, and provides free filtered water. You can even bring your water bottle in for a refill to cut down on plastic waste. The amount of plastic bottles strewn in the streets and rivers around Huaraz is pretty staggering.

Casa de Abuela

This cute place features delicious pizza and well-priced wine. You can take away both the pizza and the wine too.

Main Square Shaved Ice

During the hot, Andean summer days,  a shaved ice from one of the vendors near the main square is the perfect treat to cool off. Just don’t eat it in the shade. There are many flavours to choose from and they gave me a funny look for only picking one, so make sure you mix and match. A cup costs about 3 sol.

Main Square Popcorn

Also in the main square are popcorn vendors selling generous portions of popcorn for 1 sol (like $0.30, so treat yo-self). They have both salty (saltado) and sweet (dulce) flavoured popcorn and you can order a mix (mixto) if you like.

Gran Muralla for Chifa

For those who may not know, “Chifa” is Peru’s take on Chinese food. Many of the dishes are ones you know and love with some local ingredients subbed in. We enjoyed our first Chifa experience and just like ordering Chinese at home, we had enough leftovers to eat again.

Mercado Central de Huaraz

Head to the central market for fresh vegetables and staples to cook on your own. Also, go because markets are always fun to visit and provide a glimpse into the local culture. There is also a Trujillo supermarket in town on Av. Mariscal Toribio de Luzuriaga if that is more your style.

Where to Stay

Base Camp is popular with the backpacker circuit and is right in the centre of town, but we loved staying at Humberto’s Guest House . A nice family runs the place and it is actually a few rooms added to their house. Our room was a good size, there was usually hot water, and it was very comfortable for sleeping.

The family would even cook breakfast for us at 4:30 am to accommodate our early departures for hikes. They also take requests for dinners which are a bargain at only 10 sol. Humberto himself is a guide and can provide you with information on hikes, professional guiding services, and equipment.

We even crossed paths with him on our way back from Alkipo-Ishinca where he was guiding a group of repeat customers to a 6-day summit circuit. He can also set up a Santa Cruz trek for you using his good quality equipment for $150.

A double room is a bargain at about $15 and staying with Humberto was a fun experience as it felt like we were part of the family for the week. 5-year-old Adriana had us in stitches with her silly energy, and she even introduced us to the neighbour’s puppies (perritos)!

Mountain Zen in Peru

In sum, the trekking that can be done from Huaraz is some of the most exhilarating in the world.  While some care needs to be used when booking treks, the scenery will be sure to take your breath away both in terms of elevation and sheer beauty. We had some challenges and certainly ranted about them a little here (ok, ok, a lot!) but when we think back on it, Huaraz was a major highlight of our time in Peru.  If you haven’t done so already, be sure to add trekking in Huaraz to your bucket list and revel in the mountain Zen that is to be found there!

Our experience trekking in the Cordillera Blanca left us craving more high altitude adventures in this stunning mountain range and we’re already planning our next trip to the region. Pisco peak calls! Indeed, an ideal second itinerary could be Laguna Paron and Pastoruri as acclimation hikes, followed by perhaps doing Santa Cruz self-guided, and then Pisco mountain.

If we had all the time in the world, we’d love to do some of the longer treks in the region such as the 7-12 day Huayhuash circuit or 8-day Alpamayo circuit.   The region’s superlative beauty and adrenaline-pumping expeditions inspire strong desires for repeat visits and there are adventures for all appetites.  No matter your level of hiking experience you can find something that suits you here.

Looking for Mountain zen in Peru?  Continue south to Cusco and hike to Machu Picchu or further south to Arequipa for some Volcano and canyon hiking!

5 Replies to “Huaraz Trekking and Hiking – A Complete Guide”

This seems like an amazing adventure! Your photos are absolutely stunning!

Thanks! It’s such a beautiful area, I’d love to go back and do some more hiking there!

This is why I’ve wanted to visit South America for so long – it looks just wonderful. Some great tips here that we’ll hopefully use one day, never thought of renting camping gear before (and now I don’t know why!) Stunning photos too by the way, absolutely cannot wait to see it all for myself <3

How luggage is carried during overnight tracks? Can the agency arrange a porter if you cannot carry heavy stuff yourself?

I’m sure any agency in Huaraz would be happy to arrange a porter if you wanted to lighten the load!

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• Huaraz Hills Hike
• Wilcacocha Hike
• Paron Lake Tour
• Yanapaccha Viewpoint Tour
• Llaca Lake Hike
• Rajucolta Lake Hike
• Pastoruri Glacier Tour
• Laguna Churup Lake Hike
• Ahuac Lake Hike
• Lake 69 Hike
• Pisco Base Camp and Lake 69 Trek
• Quilcayhuanca to Cojup Valley Trek
• Santa Cruz Classic Trek
• Santa Cruz to Ulta Valley Trek
• Llanganuco to Alpamayo Base Camp Trek
• Santa Cruz to Alpamayo Trek

Huayhuash Classic Trek

• Huayhuash Unique Trek
• Huayhuash Mini Trek
• Mateo Mountain Climb
• Vallunaraju Mountain Climb
• Yanapaccha Mountain Climb
• Pisco Mountain Climb
• Tocllaraju Mountain Climb
• Chopicalqui Mountain Climb
• Ishinca Valley Mountain Climbs
• Cordillera Blanca Classic Climbs
• Alpamayo Mountain Climb
• Quitaraju Mountain Climb
• Huascaran Mountain Climb
• Join a Group
• TESTIMONIALS
• TRIP GRADES
• 10 Day Trek
• Fully Supported
• Small Groups Only

Hike one of the most beautiful trekking circuits in the world . This is the most dramatic high altitude trek in the  Peruvian   Andes  with magnificent views of mountains of the Cordillera Huayhuash such as Yerupaja 6634m being the second highest mountain in Peru , Siula Grande made famous by  Joe Simpson  in his book and film “ Touching the Void ”, Ninashanca, Rondoy, Jirishanca, Rasac, Carnicero, Trapecio, Sarapo and beautiful glacial lakes. The dramatic and beautiful glacial lakes and valleys of the range provide memorable campsites and good trout fishing. Andean condors are seen more often in the Huayhuash than on other Peruvian treks, attesting to the area’s remoteness.

Our Huayhuash Classic Trek navigates some old trails that once was used by the first trekkers in the range and also includes the most scenic views like Siula Lakes viewpoint, Santa Rosa Viewpoint/Pass, view towards Siula Base Camp and a deep soak in the hot springs of Guñoc – Viconga. You won’t miss anything!. 

Trip Highlights

• Unique Mountain Views
• U–Shaped Valleys
• Deep Glacial Lakes
• World Class Trek

Departure Dates

Trekking details, trekking itinerary, lets go vamos.

Day 1: Huaraz 3090m – Chiquian – Llamac – Pocpa – Pallca – Quartelhuain 4170m –  Cacananpunta Pass 4690m – Janca 4200m

You are picked up at your accommodation early in the morning at 4am and begin the journey along the Callejon de Huaylas Valley. We drive through many rural villages until we reach Quartelhuain 4170m. 4/5 hours drive. Here we have our breakfast (included in the trip price) while the donkeys are loaded.

After breakfast, we slowly climb up to 4690m to cross the Punta Cacanan Pass then, as we descend, we are rewarded with stunning views of the nearby peaks of Rondoy and Jirishanca. Our camp is situated at Janca Valley 4200m. 5 hours walk.

Day 2: Janca – Carhuac Pass 4630m – Laguna Carhuacocha 4050m

We ascend towards Paso Carhuac 4630m pass from where we have splendid views of Nevados Carnicero, Siula Grande, Yerupaja, Jirishanca. We then descend to our camp at the beautiful Laguna Carhuacocha 4150m. 5 to 6 hours walk.

Day 3: Carhuacocha – Siula Punta Pass 4800m – Huayhuash 4350m

We ascend towards Paso Siula Punta 4850m pass with nice views of the surrounding mountains and crossing above the glacier fed lakes of Siula and Quesillococha. From the pass we descend to our camp at Huayhuash 4350m passing a beautiful lake and always enjoying views of the great mountains of the range. 8 hours walk.

Day 4: Huayhuash – Portachuelo de Huayhuash Pass 4780m – Viconga Hot Springs 4350m

We ascend gradually towards Paso Portachuelo de Huayhuash 4780m pass from where we have great views of the Cordillera Raura. We then descend to the big lake of Viconga and then to our camp at 4350m near by the Viconga Hot springs. 5 to 6 hours walk.

Day 5: Viconga – Cuyoc Pass 4900m – Cuyoc 4500m 

We go over Punta Cuyoc Pass with a sustained uphill hike of 3 hours to a breathtaking 4900m pass. From here we marvel the spectacular views of the mountains. We then descend to our camp at 4500m. 5 hours walk.

Day 6: Cuyoc – Santa Rosa Pass 5100m – Cutatambo 4265m 

We ascend towards the highest pass on the trek Paso Santa Rosa 5100m pass from where there are fantastic views of mountains and lakes. We can see the Siula Glacier where Joe Simpson crawled down in his epic battle for survival, and also Siula Base Camp. We then descend to our camp Cutatambo in Callinca Valley 4265m. 5 to 6 hours total walk.

Day 7: Cutatambo – Huayllapa Village 3600m 

Today we come down to Peruvian sea level, following Calinca valley for 4 hours. The community of Huayllapa is one of the highland villages of Lima Region located at 3600m. Villagers are mainly farmers and shepherds and few of them work in tourism sector as cooks and donkey drivers.

Day 8: Huayllapa – Tapush Pass 4770m – Gashpapampa 4600m

We slowly climb up to 4770m in the morning to cross Punta Tapush Pass, we then descend to Gashpapampa 4600m. 7 to 8 hours walk.

Day 9: Gashpapampa – Llaucha Punta Pass – Huacrish Lookout – Laguna Jahuacocha Lake 4050m 

We descend before ascending towards Paso Llaucha Punta 4850m pass, with fantastic views of the mountains of Rondoy, Jirishanca, Yerupaja, Rasac and Sacra. From the pass, we hike up to a ridge which takes us to Huacrish Lookout to have an unique views of the Huayhuash Mountain Range. We then descend to our last camp at the beautiful Laguna Jahuacocha 4050m lake. 4 to 5 hours walk.

Day 10: Jahuacocha – Llamac – Huaraz

Today is our final day of trekking, we follow the river down the valley and then a water channel that brings water to the community of Llamac. We can enjoy our final views over the range before descending steadily down to Llamac. Here we meet our transport and drive back to Huaraz. 5 hours walk and 4 hours drive.

Altitude and Acclimatization

This is a major factor on this trek and we strongly recommend that you arrive in Huaraz at least 4 days before the trek departs and spend time doing day hikes to higher altitude, this will help with acclimatization to the new altitude. 

Grading & Fitness

In order to get the most out of the trek you should be in good physical condition. It is not easy to grade the fitness level required for the trek, since it is a subjective matter. However, we have classified this trek as strenuous. We trek approximately six to eight hours per day with several long ascents and descents.

TRIP REVIEWS

Rodolfo, I really appreciated your easy going nature. Thank you for a great trip and great service.  Hayden, Australia

Rodolfo and his crew were totally professional, knowledgeable and energetic, always willing to help. They could not have made the trip any better. Evans, USA

I had a really great time in Peru! Thank you again for being a great guide. Illiana, USA

A trek with a 10 out of 10 Wow factor! From start to finish Rodolfo and our trekking team were amazing. Sonia, Australia

FEATURED TRIPS

• 7 Day Ishinca Valley Mountain Climbs
• 7 Day Cordillera Blanca Classic Climbs
• 4 Day Tocllaraju Mountain Climb
• 3 Day Pisco Mountain Climb
• 4 Day Chopicalqui Mountain Climb
• 7 Day Alpamayo Mountain Climb
• 2 Day Yanapaccha Mountain Climb
• 2 Day Vallunaraju Mountain Climb

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Would you like to do this trip?

• Huaraz – Huayhuash Trek
• Individual Tours in Peru

The Huayhuash trek on the mountain range is one of the most beautiful treks in the world – and it’s easy to believe.

The villages Pocpa and Llamac are usually the trailheads for this trek.

The entire length of the Cordillera Huayhuash ranges only 30 km but within its compact area lays amazing towering peaks. At almost every turn, you come face to face with glistening vertical walls of ice, snow and rock. Beautiful lakes, different kinds of birds and keep an eye out for the massive Andean Condors and for Siula Grande 6,344 m.s.n.m , the site where the popular book and motion picture “Touching the Void” took place!

• Entrance Fee: Camping fees (This varies per year, please ask current rate, approx. 260 soles
• Maximum altitude : 5200 Meters (Santa Rosa pass).
• Location: Cordillera Huayhuash.
• Average temperature : Between 13° C – 23° C during the day/ -3°C to – 1°C at night.
• Distance: 70 Km
• 06 Days/ 05 Nights
• April to October
• Easy-Moderate

Travel Program

Day 1: huaraz - transfer cordillera huayhuash at 9:00 am – via chiquian village -camp matacancha camp (4150 m).

Leaving Huaraz at 9am, arrive to the first campsite at 3pm aŌer a lunch stop in Chiquian. There is no hiking on the first day. After arriving, relax and enjoy the view of Rondoy mountain and the valley, where there is often spectacular sunsets.

Driving  4 hours approx 

Overnight Camping

Hiking  5 Hours approx

 B/L/D

Day 2: Camp Matacancha Camp (4150 m) - Mitucocha - Trekking Punta Carhuac Pass (4640 m) - Laguna Carhuacocha (4200 m)

Hiking  8 Hours approx

Day 3: Camp Carhuacocha - Trekking Siula Pass (4950 m) / Laguna Quesillococha - Huayhuash Camp (4450 m)

Day 4: huayhuash camp - trekking to pass trapesio (5041 m) / elefante camping over (4400 m).

Wake up early for the Trapesio pass at 5,041m, with an optonal 40 extra minutes of hiking to reach the glacier Then descend while passing 5 beautiful lakes to reach the campsite Elefante Camping at 4,400m. Approximately 6-7 hours of hiking to reach the campsite. It is also optional to hike 2 hours from the campsite to San Antonio pass at 5,100m.

Hiking  7 Hours approx

Day 5: Camp Elefante - Trekking up to the Pass Santa Rosa (5100 m) - Trekking Down to Village Huayllapa at (3487m)

Day 6: from village huayllapa - with public transport to the city of barranca and return to huaraz, or you also have the option of continuing to go to lima.

Waking up at 1am in Huayllapa, say goodbye to the staff and take a car to Barranca on the coast. From Barranca there is an option to go by bus back to Huaraz or conƟnue to Lima. Both the bus to Huaraz or Lima are not included in the price of the trek.

Overnight  Hotel

Hiking  No more hiking

Driving  8 hours approx 

 B/L/-

Included meals: B =breakfast; L =lunch; D =dinner

What's Included

Services included in the prices:.

• 5 MEALS PER DAY: (breakfast, snack, lunch, tea time, dinner).
• BREAKFAST: Omelet, pancake, fruit salad, serial, scrambled eggs… coffee, tea, milk, chocolate, butter, jam, cheese etc.
• SNACK: fresh fruit, chocolates, crackers, cookies, sweets drinks.
• LUNCH: salads, soups, rice, chicken, coca tea.
• TEA TIME: different hot drinking’s, coffee, tea, milk, chocolate, crackers, popcorn, and Tequeños.
• DINNER: different kind of soups, salads, main courses, pasta, chicken, trout, beef, vegetarian options available, dessert, hot wine
• One free acclimatization tour, you can choose; ( lake Paron , Lake 69 , Glacier Pastoruri ) Information: www.huaraz.viajes
• One free night at Hotel Valery; www.hotelvalery.pe
• Entrance Fee Huayhuash community (250.00 soles) per person
• Tent Superior (04 season) special for Huayhuash trek
• Sleeping mat: Size, 200 cm X 60 cm X 5 cm
• Kitchen tent
• Dining tent
• Certificated Trekking guide: (Speaks English and Spanish)
• Certificated cook
• Donkey driver
• Emergency Horse
• 05 Kilos personal Luggage for the Donkeys
• Kitchen and dining full utensils.: Chair, table, stove, gas, plates, caps, forks
• First aid kit
• Private transport
• Hot water every day in the morning to clean up your hands and face
• Boiled water to fill your bottle every day
• For traveling with us we give you a gift: A cap, a buffet and a t-shirt

Not included:

• Personal Trekking gear.
• First day breakfast.
• Travel accident and health insurance.
• Transfer – Airport/hotel/airport /🕸️🕸️bus station/Hotel – Lima.
• Bus ticket Huaraz/Lima.
• Travel luggage and Travel cancellation insurance.
• Not mentioned food (restaurant) and beverages.
• Personal Spending.

We Recommend To Bring :

• Hiking boots.
• trekking socks (synthetic fibers).
• Hat for cold weather (fleece or other).
• microfiber shirts and thermal.
• Trekking pants.
• Sunglasses.
• Day Backpack or advance 20-30 liters.
• down Jacket.
• waterproof jacket (Gore-Tex or other) seasonal.
• Waterproof Pant (Gore-Tex or other) seasonal.
• Waterproof Layer seasonal.
• Headlamp (with extra batteries and bulbs).
• Sunscreen (lips and skin).
• Personal First Aid Kit.
• Photographic Material.
• Wash bag and towel.

Hiking poles.

Toilet Paper.

What to Bring

What to Bring or take fo Day Hiking and Technical Equipment for Climbing Expedition

This equipment list is compiled to provide you with adequate help when choosing your equipment for a climb. Most items are required. Please consider each of them and make sure you understand the function and exclusive use for mountaineering, before substituting or removing items from this list. Please note that this list has been carefully annotated by the organizer. Remember that mountaineering, climbing or mountain expeditions tours is an extreme, risky sport, therefore everything related to it is of great attention.

Equipment Trekking

Equipment Mountain

Dressing appropriately for the mountains can make the difference between a pleasant trip and a really uncomfortable one. Clothing must provide the right degree of temperature, perspiration and be well ventilated. Preferably cotton clothing should be avoided, as in humid conditions they absorb body heat.

In general, the weather conditions in in the Andes of South America can vary from day to day and even throughout the day. Therefore, clothing must be versatile.

Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions you may have regarding the necessary equipment.

→ If you need to rent mountain equipment click here :

Prices & Dates

PRICE (USD)

TRAVEL STATUS

01 MAY 2025 / 06 MAY 2025

01 JUN 2025 / 06 JUN 2025

01JUL 2025 / 06 JUL 2025

01 AUG 2025 / 06 AUG 2025

• Sin­gle Sup­ple­ment (I want my own room and tent) – $000 on request.

Please note: Insurance for emergency evacuation is required for this trip. Call for more details.

» Additional dates available upon request » Rates may vary from July 26th to 31th for the national holidays

Prices (per person):

Deposit for reservations: — USD (– EUR) ✓ Full payment 40 days before. No refund if you cancel less than 30 days!

3% early bird discount when booking 6 months prior to departure 2025

Legend Booking-information: EZZ Single room supplement 🟢 On this trip, places are still available. 🟡 On this trip, only a few places left. 🔴 This trip is sold out / closed.

Juventino Albino Caldua

Expert guide certified by IVBV - UIAGM - IFMGA Co-Founder, Peru Expeditions

• WhatsApp: +51 943 081 066
• E-Mail: [email protected]

Hans Honold | Certified Mountain and Ski Guide

For a trip with a Professional Certified Mountain Guide from abroad with your own language that you speak, please request us to get in touch. We have guides working for our company from all over the world who are members of IVBV/UIAGM/IFMGA Certified Guides.

• Tel: +49(0)7344 929144-0

It is very important to have accident coverage for trekking and climbing mountains, more if you go a technical mountains over 6 thousand meters, we oblige and recommend buying travel insurance with our partner Global Rescue, you get the peace of mind that the finest medical, security evacuation, field rescue, intelligence and telehealth.

• Tel: +1 (617) 459-4200

Only $1000 deposit to book

Pay over time, interest free

No booking fee, no change fee

24/7 support

Accommodations

Scroll through our exclusive accommodations for this trip below. Although very unlikely, we will be able to make substitutions when necessary. The comfortable accommodations that guests stay in every night offer comfort, the level that these options are are 3 stars and some hostels in some towns of first class quality to make your stay very pleasant. *These exact accommodations are not guaranteed. In some cases, alternative accommodation of similar quality and location can be used.

Peru: Hotel Conde de Lemos Arequipa

Best mountain tents – luxury service – premium overnight in camping, peru: hotel rumi wasi in chivay, peru: hotel conde de lemos puno, peru: hotel inca wasi plaza cuzco, peru: hotel puma, peru: hotel rubi, peru: hotel churup, peru: hotel valery, peru: hotel kamana, maps & downloads.

• Weather Forecast
• Location on Google Maps
• [dkpdf-button]

Frequently Asked Questions

What our travelers or clients always ask questions before joining our trips, tours & expeditions, read all the information provided here.

Suggested FAQs

What experience and how fit do i need to be to climb this mountain is this program suitable for children or older people.

For our mountain climbing trips: If they are easily accessible mountains: For easy-climb mountains, well, you don’t need much experience, but if you already want to climb mountains above 6,000 meters and the conditions become more difficult, we recommend if you already want to go through mountains above 6,000 meters, have a basic or intermediate course for a good preparation. It is very important to be physically, technically and psychologically prepared.

Regarding the preparation of children: Everything will depend on which mountain you want to climb with your children, once you are clear on which of our tours or mountains you want to go with your children, we can give you some advice or see how to prepare them before going with they.

Regarding older people: It all depends on the condition of experience and how well the person is in health, on many occasions older people are the best to walk in the mountains because they have more experience, so it is always good to ask and find out about their experience of older participant. If you have any other questions, please contact us. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

Will I need to bring any technical equipment of my own? Is it possible to rent equipment, and if so, what would be the approximate cost of that?

In all our trekking or mountaineering trips we do not include personal equipment in our prices, so you have to have your own equipment: Personal equipment (such as boots, ice ax, crampons, harness, sleeping bag, mat, Goretex, etc. ) and also within each page of the trips that we sell is a small list so you can see it on our website.

Our company can also rent the materials that you would need for your trip, see the list here on our website: https://peru-expeditions.org/equipment-rental/ . For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

Are there any other special requirements such as permits/insurance/vaccines that I need to consider before the tour?

Safe and effective vaccines are available that provide strong protection against serious illness, hospitalization and death from COVID-19. Billions of people have been vaccinated against COVID-19. Getting vaccinated is one of the most important things you can do to protect yourself against COVID-19, help end the pandemic and stop new variants emerging.

We also recommend having accident insurance, we always recommend. We are Partners –Global Rescue. If you have any other questions about the trip we can schedule a date for a calling via WhatsApp. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

What experience do I need to have? How fit do I need to be? Is this program suitable for children or older people?

To do long-distance hiking you need to at least train or do some tours such as visiting lagoons to get the experience and feel comfortable with what you do, it is always good before doing a long-distance hiking tour to test yourself so as not to be with the problems of altitude sickness during the trekking, and if you travel with children it is good to first train them before taking them, if they are accompanied by an adult of legal age, they must do a good acclimatization before going on the long-distance tour or with high altitude camps If you want to know or learn more advice, we can schedule a call via WhatsApp to clarify your doubts. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

How far in advance should I start training and what kind of training do you suggest?

The preparation is according to what type and what technical level you want to go and climb a trek or mountain, the preparation will always gain experience little by little.

For this type of demanding or technical climbing sports, it is recommended to do some summits above 5 thousand meters beforehand and have good knowledge of high mountain technical equipment such as the use of technical ice axes, ice screws, correct use of crampons, and of course all the technical material. For more information, we can schedule an appointment to be able to explain in more detail everything about the mountain equipment and the preparations prior to joining our outings. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

What is the average distance and altitude gain that we will hike each day?

Every day we have active walks around approximately 4, to 5 sometimes 6 hours of walking, everything is according to your pace and physical condition of each person, in each of our travel programs you will find more detailed information, and if If you need more information about each day of the travel program, we can schedule a call via WhatsApp to clarify your doubts or questions, for this please contact us. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

Will there be porters to help to carry group and personal equipment?

In our trips, either hiking or mountaineering: Depending on the type or destination of the trip that you are going to book, in some parts of the treks you go with mules or donkeys or sometimes with horses, and within the mountain trips, the approach camps are also They go with mules or donkeys, but there are some stretches where pack animals can no longer reach. In this part, our logistics is fully supported by the porters.

Who are the porters? They are people from the area who were born and live in the heights of the towns, they are very strong and are very acclimatized, the reason is that after the tourist season ends they dedicate themselves to agriculture and livestock for that reason they are people They are used to the altitude and have lived in nature all their lives and they are happy to be in the mountains together with our expeditions. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

How will accommodation and meals be handled during the trek?

About accommodation or meals during the tour: Well, depending on the type of tour, when the tour is a classic cultural tour or a city tour, we eat during the route in tourist restaurants and sleep in category hotels that the client has requested.

If the tour is with camps and trekking: During the activity, logistics we include the service of Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner with traditional and typical meals of the region where you are going to travel with us, during the night we stay in tents, and we have a special tent for the kitchen and another for the dining room.

If the trip is at altitude or in the mountains: We bring special high mountain food, It are quicker meals to cook and we provide complete logistics such as Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, and we sleep in special 4-season high mountain tents, with the best tents. If you have any questions or concerns, we can schedule an appointment via Whatsapp to clarify all your doubts and give you better information so that your trip is an unforgettable tour.

What is the guide-to-client ratio to climb this mountain?

In mountains above 5000 meters: A local guide takes a maximum of 3 clients = Ratio 3pax = 1 local guide

In technical mountains: In large-big mountains we manage the travel policy, a guide and a maximum of 2 clients = Ratio 3pax = 1 local guide. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

What is the best time of the year to climb this mountain?

For all the trips that we offer within our main tourist destinations such as South America and Central America, also including the ascent of the 7 continents and the 7 highest peaks of each continent, on each page of our website for each trip we indicate that month or what season to travel, then please read the information you find in our travel offers for each tour. If you have any other questions you can contact us by WhatsApp with one of our travel experts. Thank you so much. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

Do I have what it takes to succeed on this expedition?

In the interest of the team’s enjoyment and success, we work with every single guest to ensure they are properly prepared and ready for this expedition. We pride ourselves on vetting every member to make sure that the team can bond and succeed together. It really sucks to be grouped with members that are much faster, or much slower, than you are. No one wants to the weakest link on a trip like this. By setting expectations and a solid training plan, we work to insure maximum cohesive success. Use this trip as an exercise motivator, and we will succeed together with style.

How can I get to the trailhead/meeting point?

For the pick-ups of each trip, depending on the place or the trip that you are going to make with us, the meeting point is always at our office, in one of our trips we pick you up where you are staying or staying, or in some cases a A representative of our company will pick you up and then ship you to your transport to continue with your destination of the tour or trip you have booked with us. If you wish to request more information, do not hesitate to contact us. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

What is the best time of the year for this hike?

What happens in the event of bad weather.

About the meteorological conditions of the climate, we try to organize the trips of each tour in the best season to have the best views and enjoy the selected trip but sometimes even is good season we can have bad weather, in this case on hiking or treks trips The complications are minimal, but when this happens during high-altitude climbing expeditions, the complications can become very difficult, that is why the bosses or leaders of the local guides must always make the most correct decision for the safety of our passengers, so we always recommend listening to the best advice from the local guide assigned for each tour. If you have any other questions please contact us. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

Can I join a group?

We as a local company and connoisseurs of tours have departures on different dates. The best thing to do is to join a travel group to take care of your budget, and of course you can join our groups, but on trips like mountaineering we recommend going in small groups. To join a group, ask us for the dates and we will send you the necessary information to be able to join any of our trips.

Why go in a private trip: For trips whether trekking or high mountains, going privately is the most recommended option, but the costs are more expensive. So, if one joins a group, the prices will be more reasonable. In the mountains, the only disadvantage is if you are in a wall with another partner and if one of the participants gets tired or gets sick. In this case, you have to abort or cancel the summit and return together. For more information, contact us. We can schedule a call via WhatsApp to clarify all your questions.

In a mountain, for example, if 3 people go and one of the participants falls ill on the route, for security reasons they have to cancel or abort the summit or return all together. The same in a technical mountain if the climbing partner gets sick they all have to return, for these reasons sometimes it is better to go private only because for a single person the costs are more expensive for the same reason that the trip would already be private .

For more information please contact us. For calls or inquiries to this number: +51 943 081 066

Additional information

Vaccinations, first aid kit, why choose us, join a group.

VISA NEEDED

Citizens traveling for tourism purposes are exempt from the visa requirement for up to 90 days. 

The passport must be valid for at least 6 months from the date of return to the country.

There are some countries that have some restrictions on the visa to be able to visit some countries in the world, for this important information request us to be able to give you more exact information, since the information changes every year and then to be able to provide you for more accurate updated information,   →  contact us!

CURRENCY EXCHANGE DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU ARE:

Local money | $1 = 000 | EUR 1 = 000 = Let us to know which destination would you like to travel to so we can send you the current information of the day to your → E-mail, or by WhatsApp.

Local currency is exchanged on site. You can change both dollars and euros, the two currencies are the most used. We recommend taking bills of different denominations.

ATMs are available in the larger cities. Attention! We avoid dollars from the years 1996-2006 (some series from these years are not accepted at all). It is better to take dollars issued after 2006 to better the most recent of the current year.

VACCINATIONS BEFORE YOU LEAVE

Compulsory vaccinations :

– They are not required

Recommended vaccinations : – Hepatitis A and B (3 doses: 0/1/6 months, at least 2 doses administered at least 2 weeks before departure) – Tetanus – Diphtheria – Typhoid fever – Yellow fever (yellow fever) – Antimalarial prophylaxis is recommended for traveling in the jungle area

In some destinations that you are going to visit, the information that is on our website may not be updated. To have more precise information, contact us by → E-mail or WhatsApp and we will provide you with more detailed information.

TRAVEL FIRST AID KIT

Everyone should have a personal first aid kit, and in it: medicines against diarrhea and stomach problems (sometimes appearing when the bacterial flora changes), painkillers and medicines for the throat. In addition, good creams with a UV filter or so-called blockers (sun radiation in the mountains is very high).

ATTENTION! Due to parasites and bacteria for drinking, we recommend using mineral water in the original bottle and boiled. To have more precise information, contact us by → E-mail or WhatsApp and we will provide you with more detailed information.

WHO ARE WE AND WHY CHOOSE US?

We are a travel agency that provides authentic and innovative experiences with a respectful relationship with the socio-cultural customs, the environment and the regulations of the countries we promote. We are characterized by the personalization of our tourist services, with empathy, attitude and professionalism; turning customer dreams into reality and exceeding their expectations. We are “Registered Travel and Tourism Agency”. To know more about → US click here please!  

ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A TRAVEL PARTNER?

Join a group with us: Trekking, hiking and expeditions. What is your profile? Are you planning to go on a trek or expedition in South America and you are not yet sure about the most suitable offer? If you are looking for a partner, we have the solution. Peru Expeditions Tours has some groups that you can join and share you experience with on an unforgettable journey. (» Upcoming Trips / Upcoming Departures / Open groups / Confirmed / Trips Guaranteed 100%) » WHERE WOULD YOU LIKE TO CLIMB, WALK, HIKE, AND TREK? For more information please click here! → JOIN A TRIP WITH US!

Why Travel with us

Your safety is our priority, expert guides, sustainable tourism, andean chefs, food on the trail, small groups.

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You are an adventure lover and you dream of leaving with a thrill. Peru Expeditions Tours is also an option for you. Take advantage of our travel offer that we have for you!

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We are a recognized tour operator 100% peruvian company that specialists in adventure and traditional tours service.

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10 Best Treks and Hikes in Huaraz Peru

Known as the capital of hiking in Peru , Huaraz is arguably the best place to experience the breathtaking Andes Mountains and the famous Cordillera Blanca Mountain Range – the world’s highest tropical mountain range.

Even from the town itself, travelers can feel the fresh mountain air and see snow-capped mountains in the distance. But perhaps the best way to experience them is to go on one of the hikes in Huaraz.

We’ve been on many Huaraz hikes – from day hikes to multi-day treks, and let me tell you, they are simply world-class.

That is why we’ve decided to write this article on the 10 best hikes in Huaraz so you can also enjoy some of the beauty of this region. Enjoy!

Best Day Hikes In Huaraz Peru

There are some beautiful day hikes that you can do from Huaraz. Some of these are a good way to get acclimatized to the high altitude of Huaraz or used for training for the more difficult multi-day treks. 

But don’t underestimate the beauty and difficulty of these treks. Some of these day hikes and treks definitely took my breath away (physically and metaphorically).

1. Laguna Paron

Laguna Wilcacocha is probably one of the easiest day hikes in Huaraz. About 4 hours of hiking in total , not only is the path easy, but the way to do-it-yourself is easy as well. If you are lucky with the weather (unlike us), you should see a range of snow-capped mountains behind Wilcacocha Lake.

To do it yourself, simply take the  Route 10 or Route E  van at the northeast  intersection of Antonio Raymondi and Hualcan Street . You will see a bunch of vans pass by but just make sure you get on the right one. If you are unsure, you can always ask the locals for Route 10 or Route E.

When you get on the bus, tell the bus driver you are going to Laguna Wilcacocha. The other option is to download the app maps.me and look for the Wilcacocha trailhead on the map. Get off when you are close to the trailhead.

Laguna Wilcacocha is the perfect hike to acclimatize to the altitude and prepare for your other big  hikes in Peru .

• Duration:  3-4-hour hike round-trip
• Difficulty:  Easy
• Maximum Altitude:  3786m

3. Laguna Churup

Lagunas Llanganucos, or Llanganucos lakes, are comprised of two small lakes , the Orkoncocha and the Chiancocha. Typically people arrive at Llanganuco through an organized tour or taxi and then walk around the lake and trails.

The trail is  very easy , lasting 1-2 hours and you get to see the beautiful Llanganuco lakes from different perspectives.

At about 3,850 meters high, hiking to Lake Llanganuco is a very good activity to help you acclimatize to the altitude of Huaraz.

If you do the  Laguna 69 tour , you will pass Laguna LLanganuco, where you will be dropped off for 10 minutes to take photos.

At the Laguna Llanganuco, you also have the option to ride boats and cross the lake.

Unless you are planning on spending a considerable amount of time at the Llanganuco Lakes, seeing them on the way to Laguna Paron is enough.

• Duration:  1-2-hour of hiking if desired
• Difficulty:  Easy-Moderate
• Maximum Altitude:  3800m

6. Laguna Rajucolta

Laguna Rajucolta, or Rajucolta lake, is a rather  unpopular destination in Huaraz . However, that doesn’t mean it is not beautiful. The hike to Laguna Rajucolta takes you through 3 hours of flat and peaceful trail through the  Nevado Huantsan mountains .

Rajucolta lake is a very good hike to acclimatize to the altitude of Huaraz and prepare you for harder hikes.

As far as I know, only tour companies offer transportation to Laguna Rajucolta. However, you can try your luck asking around the reception of your accommodation to see if you can do it yourself.

• Duration:  6-hour hike round trip with 1 hour of driving each way
• Maximum Altitude:  4270m

7. Glacier Pastoruri, One Of The Highest Hikes In Huaraz

If you are getting tired of the beautiful lakes in Huaraz, why not change it up and see a glacier instead?

Pastoruri Glacier is located 5000m above sea level but don’t be intimidated by that. The walk up to the glacier is well paved and extremely easy but you should still take it easy because of the altitude.

Nowadays, visitors can no longer walk on the glacier because of how much it has declined. Matter of fact, glacier Pastoruri isn’t even a  glacier by definition.  It no longer builds up ice in the winter due to GLOBAL WARMING so by definition it is just a piece of ice. 

Peru makes up 70 percent of the world’s glaciers  and it is extremely sad to see some of them disappear.

Glacier Pastoruri probably would not even exist in the upcoming years, so check this out before it is too late.

• Duration:  2-hour hike round trip
• Max Altitude:  5000m

8. Nevado Mateo

I didn’t want to include this as part of a day hike from Huaraz because it isn’t exactly a hike. At 5150 meters above sea level, Nevado Mateo is more like a climb where you’ll need crampons, ice pick, and ideally a little bit of ice climbing and mountaineering experience.

Our day begins at 3 AM when the transport comes and picks you up from your hotel in Huaraz. From there, it is a 2-hour drive to the base of the moraine at around 4750m. This is where you’ll start your hike.

It takes about 4 hours in total to complete the ascent and descent. At the top of Nevado Mateo, you truly have some of the best views of the Cordillera Blanca.

However, we must warn you, that this is one of the most exhausting Huaraz day hikes since you’ll wake up early and summit quite a high elevation.

• Duration:  4-hour hike round trip
• Difficulty:  Difficult
• Max Altitude:  5150m

Best Multi-Day Treks In Huaraz Peru

Other than day hikes and treks, Huaraz also offers plenty of options for those interested in longer hikes. Though these multi-day treks in Huaraz are extremely beautiful, probably some of the bests in the entire world, they can also be long and tough.

The shortest multi-day trek is 3 days and the longest is 12 days! That is almost 2 weeks!

• Note: There are many hikes inside the Huascarán National Park that are more challenging. In fact, there are 27 snow-capped peaks above 6,000 meters above sea level, including the Nevado Huascaran (Mount Huascaran), Peru’s highest peak at 6,768 meters high.

For the sake of our Huaraz guide, we will only include the ones that are hiked by the everyday traveler and tourist

1. Santa Cruz Trek, The Famous Cordillera Blanca Trek

The Santa Cruz Trek is a great introductory multi-day trek to what Huaraz has to offer. On the Santa Cruz trek, you will pass by many local villages that live in the Cordillera Blanca and have some stunning views of the beautiful snow-capped mountains nearby.

The Santa Cruz duration is usually about 3 to 4 days, with each day composed of 3 to 8 hours of hiking, depending on your fitness level. You definitely want to be acclimatized and trained for this hike.

The Santa Cruz trek is also a Huaraz trek you can do independently, but please be prepared and have some experience with high-altitude independent trekking!

• Duration:  3-8 hours of hiking per day, 3 or 4 days of hiking
• Total Distance:  50km (31miles)
• Difficulty:  Moderate-Hard
• Max Altitude:  4750m (Punta Union)

Want to experience the Santa Cruz Trek with a guide? Check out our recommended tour here!

2. Cordillera Huayhuash Trek, The Hardest Trekking In Huaraz

The Cordillera Huayhuash Trek is the  most impressive multi-day trek in Huaraz . And let me tell you, it is definitely the  most beautiful trek I have ever seen in my life . Travelers fly from all over the world just to hike this trek and see the beauty it has to offer with their own eyes.

Though not as difficult as the Mt. Everest hike, The Cordillera Huayhuash trek is pretty much the Mt.Everest trek of Peru.

On the trek, you will see Peru’s second-highest mountain , Yerupaja, sitting at 6634m. You will also see Siula Grande , made famous by the book and movie, “ Touching the Void .”

It is unquestionably the most amazing thing to do in Huaraz.

There are many variations of the Huayhuash trek but the most common one is 130 km (81 miles) in 9 to 10 days. Though I have heard of a 4-day Huayhuash trek as well as a 12-day Huayhuash trek. The travel agencies will have more information on that.

After you finish that trek, make sure you treat yourself to some authentic and heartwarming Peruvian food such as a Caldo de Gallina!

• Duration:  4-12 days depending on the trek.
• Total Distance:  130 km (81 miles) the typical one.
• Maximum Altitude:  5000m

Want to experience the magic of the Huayhuash Circuit? Check out our recommended tour here!

Map of The Hikes In Huaraz

Above is an interactive map featuring all of the best hikes in Huaraz. Using this map, you can determine how far some of these hikes are, especially if you don’t planning on going with a trekking company!

How To Prepare For Hiking In Huaraz Peru

Many of the hikes in Huaraz are at very high altitudes. Even the city of Huaraz is at 3000m, an altitude that can give you altitude sickness easily if you are not careful. 

No. 1 thing to NOT DO is arrive at Huaraz from 0 elevation and immediately start a trek. Huaraz trekking is no joke for the unacclimatized.

I arrived in Huaraz and immediately went hiking Laguna Paron (4200m) the next day. I couldn’t breathe the day after because I had  HAPE (High Altitude Pulmonary Edema) , a condition that happens when you don’t have enough oxygen in your blood.

The scary thing is  HAPE is the reason for many people’s death while hiking Mount Everest .

A great tip for traveling in Peru is to always bring some Acetazolamide, or Diamox, with you. They are great medication for cases of bad altitude sickness.

So, please don’t rush your trips, especially for people on a short vacation. Take time to get acclimatized.

No. 2 thing to be aware of is that most of these treks are difficult, especially the multi-day treks. It is a good idea to hike around Huaraz and use some of the easier hikes to acclimatize and train for your multi-day treks.

We also highly recommend you to purchase some travel insurance when hiking in Huaraz. It is a small cost for peace of mind and knowing you will be protected on these hikes!

Things To Bring On Your Hikes And Treks In Huaraz

Depending on which hike you pick and the duration of your hike, the items you need to bring might alter slightly. But in general, these are the things you should bring:

• Sunscreen  is a necessity – The sun at high altitudes is much stronger than the sun at sea level. Plus, the reflection of the sun from the snow makes the damage much worse.
• Rain poncho  or raincoat ( Him / Her ) – Weather can change so quickly at such high altitudes. Pack one for safety, especially if you are visiting during rainy season
• Filtration Water Bottle – It will help you in dire circumstances, especially if you are on a multi-day trek. You can save weight and money by having a filtration water bottle.
• Gloves  and Hat – For the cold weather you will encounter at high altitudes.
• Sturdy Hiking shoes ( Him / H e r ) – The terrain in the Huascaran National Park is pretty tough, we recommend some good hiking boots to protect your feet.
• Coca leaves – Trust me, you will need (want to) have some for your hikes. They built Machu Picchu using these things. You can easily get them in the markets of Huaraz.
• Food/Snack/Water – Pack according to how long your hike is going to be.
• Money!  A lot of these parks will charge an entrance fee. Also some villages you pass by will also require you to pay them.

All other questions should be addressed to the tour companies before the start of your Peru trek ! There are plenty of tour companies to choose from on the main street (Centenario) of Huaraz.  

Where To Stay In Huaraz Peru

Best Hostel in Huaraz –  Selina Huaraz

Selina Huaraz is one of the best-looking hostels in Huaraz. With comfortable beds and spacious rooms, guests can enjoy spending their days here relaxing and acclimatizing to the altitude! The most important thing is that their showers are boiling hot, one of the things you must need in Huaraz!

Best Hotel in Huaraz –  Hotel & Bungalows Villa Valencia

Located in a quiet part of town, Hotel & Bungalows Villa Valencia is perfect for a good night’s sleep after a day of hiking in Huaraz. With their comfortable beds and warm covers, you will be sleeping like a baby after!

Their interior design is very modern, the breakfast is good, and is one of the best overall choices for accommodation in Huaraz. 

Huaraz Peru FAQs

Is huaraz peru worth visiting, how many days to stay in huaraz.

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Final Thoughts: Hiking In Huaraz

By now, you should know that there is no shortage of hikes in Huaraz to pick from. Whether you are looking for something with breathtaking views or one that’ll challenge you physically and mentally, you can find it in Huaraz.

Have you found your hike in Huaraz? Let us know in the comments!

Disclaimer: Some of the links above are affiliate links. That means if you book or make a purchase through the links, we will earn a small commission at  no extra cost to you ! The money will help run this site! Thank you !

World Traveler, Travel Blogger, Photographer

LivingOutLau

Sean is the founder of the travel blog, LivingOutLau. He has been to over 30 countries in over 5 years of travel. Every day, he is traveling and sharing his discoveries of the world through exceptional travel guides on his blog!

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30 Aug A Complete Travel Guide to Huaraz: Peru’s Hiking Capital

If you’ve stumbled upon this blog post it must be that you’ve discovered some of the best hiking in Peru is not solely in Cusco. While the treks to Machu Picchu are stunning, some of the most impressive views of this popular backpacker destination can actually be found in Huaraz, otherwise known as Peru’s hiking capital. 

Sitting in a valley outside the Cordillera Blanca Mountain Range, Huaraz is an outdoor enthusiast’s paradise and a hub for some of the most beautiful trails in the world through the Andes Mountains. Tourists from Huaraz can choose from a number of activities including day trips to glaciers, ice-climbing summits, hiking to gatorade blue lakes,  or even tackling multi-day treks such as Santa Cruz and the famed Huayhuash.

By the time I visited Huaraz, photos of bright blue lakes and icy glaciers had been saved in my bucket list folders for years, so it felt surreal to finally be there. In total, I spent about a month in Huaraz taking day trips to places like Laguna 69 and going on longer treks like Santa Cruz and Huayhuash. My time in Huaraz was nothing short of incredible and a place where I witnessed some of the most mind-blowing natural scenery and pushed my body to limits I didn’t even know it could go. 

If you’re ready for a bit of adventure, here’s everything you need to know to visit Huaraz, Peru:

What's in this post

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where is Huaraz?

Getting to huaraz, how to get to huaraz from lima, how to get to huaraz from trujillo, acclimating to the altitude, how can you avoid and treat altitude sickness, how to deal with high altitude while hiking, things to do in huaraz.

• Explore the city

Laguna Churup

Laguna llaca.

• Laguna Paron
• Pastoruri Glacier
• Laguna Llanganuco
• Nevado Mateo Summit
• Santa Cruz Trek
• Huayhuash Trek
• Take a self-care day!

Where to Book Tours in Huaraz

Where to rent & buy gear, where to stay in huaraz, where to eat & drink, where to buy groceries, how long should you stay in huaraz, best time to visit huaraz, is huaraz a good solo travel destination, is huaraz safe, what to pack, travel insurance.

*This post includes affiliate links and I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. By using my links you’re merely supporting what I love to do: write this blog! I only recommend products/companies that I use myself. Thank you for your support 🙂

WHERE IS HUARAZ?

Huaraz is about 400 km (250 miles) north of Lima sitting at about 3,052 m, or 10,013 ft (pretty high up there!). It’s a small city in a valley surrounded by snow-capped Andean mountains and is the main hub to depart from when exploring the Cordillera Blanca and Cordillera Huayhuash Mountains.

GETTING TO HUARAZ

Huaraz doesn’t have an airport so the only way to get there is to drive yourself or take a bus (the most popular and most practical option for most).

To get to Huaraz from Lima, you can take an 8-9 hour bus. It’s possible to depart during the day, but the most popular option is to book a night bus so you can sleep (hopefully) the entirety of the trip. 

There are a number of bus companies to book with such as Movil , Civa and Cruz del Sur . For easy booking and comparing prices, you can search and book your ticket on Busbud .

When choosing your ticket, note there are different seating options based on seat reclining degrees and other factors. For example, cheaper seats only recline 140 degrees whereas premier seats recline 180 degrees, similar to a bed for better sleep – a game changer on those overnight trips.

Ticket prices are typically around S/100 ($25 USD) depending on when you book and which seat you choose.

After arriving in Huaraz by bus, you can walk or take a taxi to your accommodation.

If traveling the other way from Huaraz to Lima, the process is the same.

To get to Huaraz from Trujillo, you can also take an 8 – 9 hour overnight bus which can be booked with Movil or Linea . For easy booking and comparing prices, you can search and book your ticket on Busbud .

When choosing your ticket, note there are different seating options based on seat reclining degrees and other options. For example, cheaper seats only recline 140 degrees whereas premier seats recline 180 degrees, similar to a bed for better sleep – a game changer on those overnight trips.

Ticket prices are typically around S/65 ($17 USD) depending on when you book and which seat you choose.

After arriving in Huaraz, you can walk or take a taxi to your accommodation.

If traveling the other way from Huaraz to Trujillo, the process is the same.

ACCLIMATING TO THE ALTITUDE

When you arrive in Huaraz, before you do any activities you first need to acclimate to the high altitude. Huaraz is at 3,052 m / 10,013 ft and all the outdoor activities mentioned below are even higher. This can be a shock to the body and it’s absolutely essential that you give yourself time to acclimate  before taking on physical activities.

For those wondering what acclimating means… basically there’s less oxygen at higher levels and your body needs time to get used to functioning while using less oxygen. If you’ve never been at a higher altitude like this, you can expect feeling more fatigued much easier, having headaches, getting dehydrated quicker and if you get major altitude sickness you can have other symptoms like nausea and diarrhea.

Give yourself time to acclimate for at least 2-3 days before doing anything strenuous and anticipate that you may need to take it slowly. Make sure to drink lots and lots of water daily and stay nourished. To avoid altitude sickness you can also take medication (I personally recommend doing this before hiking) and drink coca tea – a popular beverage to help with altitude in Peru. 

In the unfortunate scenario that you do get altitude sickness, it’s ideal to have altitude medication,  Imodium , nausea meds , ibuprofen and electrolytes . If you’re able to descend from the higher altitude, do that otherwise take it very slowly and rest when you can.

While hiking, it’s essential to stay hydrated and take it slowly. You’ll notice physical activity is more difficult at high altitude and you may be out of breath very easily. That’s ok, just remember that how you react to the altitude doesn’t have anything to do with your fitness level. So without judgment, take it slowly and listen to your body. 

For me personally, I feel like I never fully got used to the high altitude and even as someone in decent shape, every hike was exhausting and made me feel like I had asthma. But I learned to be patient and go at my own pace.

To avoid altitude sickness symptoms especially at the higher hiking trails, I also suggest taking altitude medication in the morning before even beginning your hike. You will still feel the effects in terms of exhaustion and difference in breathing, but you should minimize your risk for unwelcome symptoms (especially in the outdoors) like headaches, nausea and diarrhea. Personally I’m not a big medication person, but after getting these uncomfortable symptoms once during a hike which caused me to turn back, I’d rather just take the pill and avoid it altogether. 

It’s also common in Peru to chew on coca leaves while hiking – something I didn’t find helpful but many do.

1. Explore the city

When you first arrive, (like I mention above) it’s best to not have any physical activity immediately planned to allow yourself time to adjust to the altitude. Instead, spend your first day or two exploring the local market, walking through Plaza de Armas, shopping for gear, comparing tour options, hanging out at cafes, stocking up on snacks for hikes, and buying alpaca woven clothes for the cold nights. 

Some exploring on your own is always encouraged, but here’s some places I enjoyed while in Huaraz:

• Mercado Central de Huaraz
• Plaza de Armas
• Artesian market of handmade knit clothing next to the Cathedral

California Cafe

• Andino Cafe
• Cantuu Cafe

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2. Do a day hike on your own

Many activities in Huaraz require or are more convenient to do with a guided tour because of transport. However, there are a few day hikes that you can do on your own by catching a colectivo or taxi to the trailhead and following the trail freely. These are all great as highlights to your Huaraz trip or as a means to acclimate before longer treks.

Laguna Churup is my most highly-rated day hike to do self-guided because it’s easy to complete on your own. It’s very straightforward to get to the trailhead and the trail is clearly marked. While still popular, Lake Churup is also not too touristy and it’s absolutely beautiful!

Length: 6 km /  3.6 miles in total

Height: 4,450 meters /  14,600 feet

Type of trail:  In and out. The trail is a steady climb up, not technical although there is a small portion where you’ll need to grab onto chains to climb up, but it’s nothing too difficult.

Time:   From the bus stop, it’s about a 45 minute drive to the trailhead. The hike up takes about 2-3 hours to complete on average. At the top, you’ll probably spend about an hour there (or longer if you want to swim), and finally the way down is about 1.5 hours followed by a 45 minute drive back to Huaraz. Altogether, you should expect to leave Huaraz at 7am and be back around 3/4 PM (if you catch the earlier buses back) making your trip in total about 7-8 hours.

Location:  Laguna Churup is about  45 minute drive from Huaraz, in Huascaran National Park, specifically in an area called Pitek.

Getting there:   To get to the Laguna Churup trailhead, it’s pretty simple. In Huaraz, go to the intersection of Avenue Agustin Gamarra and Avenue Antonio Raymondi. It’s here on Google Maps but also labeled as “Bus to Llupa” or “Combi hacia Llupa” on Maps.Me. From here you can catch a colectivo van by paying 20 soles round-trip and they will drop you off directly at the trailhead. Colectivos begin leaving at 7am and leave thereafter pretty frequently whenever the bus is full. 

My suggestion is to arrive at 6:45 AM and catch the first bus at 7 AM. To get back to Huaraz, the vans begin around 2 PM and leave every half hour or so once they are full.  In my experience, this was a very organized system where the driver gave me a ticket, explained pick up times, and it honestly felt more reliable than many of the tours I went on.

Entrance fee:  The Huascaran National Park fee is S/30 ($8 USD). If you plan to do more activities soon after, there’s also a 3 day pass for S/60 ($15 USD) and a month pass for S/150 ($38 USD).

Solo travel approved?   Absolutely, yes! It’s easy to meet others while in Huaraz to join you on this hike, but even if you don’t and end up venturing out alone, the trail is plenty safe and there will be many other backpackers on the collectivo who will join you on the trail. Just make sure to have all the right gear you need in case.

Laguna 513 is comparable to Laguna 69 (read more later in this post) minus the crowds and features bright blue water with a towering Hualcan mountain peak behind. It’s a well-marked trail that’s easy to do on your own and perfect to acclimate before doing longer treks.

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Length:   15 km  /  9 miles

Time:   6-7 hours to complete not including transportation

Type of trail:  In and out

Height:   4,431 meters / 14,537 feet

Elevation gain:   865 meters ~ 2,837 feet

Location:  The trailhead begins in Carhuaz from an area called Shonquipampa , about an hour drive from Huaraz.

Getting there:   It’s possible to reach the trailhead by a private taxi all the way there, or by taking a colectivo to Carhuaz and then a taxi into the Shonquipampa valley. There are also some tours available for Laguna 513 that you can find in the city.

Entrance fee:  None!

Solo travel approved?   This is a well-marked trail so if you’re confident in hiking alone it’s possible to do, just make sure you have all the appropriate gear and are prepared. Otherwise, I suggest finding some friends to join you, or there are a few tours available in Huaraz.

Laguna Llaca is a much less popular trail and good for those who are really trying to get off the beaten path. I didn’t do it myself, and there’s little information on the internet about it, but I did meet a Peruvian guy and Dutch girl who completed the hike, both of which said it was stunning and a unique experience compared to the other busy Huaraz lakes. However, it seems there is a bit more work to get there, so this is for the adventurous, and down-for-whatever travelers. 

To learn more about this trek here it is on AllTrails and a helpful review on TripAdvisor . But remember, not everything is on the internet, when in doubt ask someone at your accomodation reception, other travelers, or tour guides about Laguna Llaca.

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Length:   AllTrails lists this as an 18 km / 11 miles hike

Time:  This is a longer one, and will take about 7 hours to complete not including transportation

Type of trail:   In and out

Height:   4,470 meters / 14,665 feet

Elevation gain: 938 meters / 3,077 feet

Location:  This is close to where Laguna Churup is located, about 27 km out of Huaraz in Huascaran National Park.

Getting there: It’s possible to take a private taxi (ask – they’ll know where to go and give you a price) or take a collectivo to Marian and then start the trail from Lazy Dog Inn .

Entrance fee:  The Huascaran National Park fee is S/30 ( $8 USD). If you plan to do more activities soon after, there’s also a 3 day pass for S/60 ($15 USD) and a month pass for S/150 ($38 USD).

Solo travel approved?  Ishhh… because of the difficulty to navigate getting to this lake I would personally not do it alone. However, if you meet a group of people who want to join and split a taxi, then I would absolutely go for it! Just make sure to have all the appropriate gear you need just in case.

Other honorable mentions for day hikes that I’ve heard of but admittedly know nothing about are Laguna Radian , Laguna Rajucolta , and Laguna Wilcacocha for those who want more day hike options in Huaraz.

3. Take a tour to Laguna Paron

Laguna Paron is one of the most popular day trips you can do in Huaraz because it has absolutely stunning views for almost no physical effort. For those looking for a wild hike, this may sound disappointing but it’s a great way to acclimate and a staple activity in Huaraz. If you’re lucky enough to have clear skies, you’ll see the shiny mountain peak the Paramount Pictures logo is inspired by and yes – the water really is that blue.

What’s included in a tour to Laguna Paron and what to expect:

All tours to Laguna Paron are the same. You’ll be picked up from your hotel or hostel around 8 AM and then have a 3 hour drive in a van stopping once in Carhuaz, where you’ll have 25 minutes to grab snacks and try the famed ice cream in town. From there, the van will drop you off directly at the base of Lake Paron. 

The view is spectacular just from the bottom, but you’ll have 2 hours to further explore the area. Some options are hiking 30 minutes up to the mirador, walking around the lake, and even taking a kayak or rowboat on the water for an extra S/10-20 ($3 – 5 USD). I suggest starting with the mirador to ensure you get that panoramic view and saving any extra time for further activities.

How difficult is a tour to Laguna Paron?

In terms of physical difficulty, not difficult at all. You’ll be dropped off at the base of the lake, so the only hiking you need to do is walking 30 minutes up to the optional mirador.

How long is a tour to Laguna Paron?

In total, the whole trip should be about 9-10 hours , pick-up at 8 AM and arriving back in Huaraz around 5 or 6 PM. While the highlight of the trip is obviously the incredible lake views, the majority of your time will be spent in a car so be prepared by having podcasts, movies, music, and/or a book downloaded for the ride.

Where to book a tour to Laguna Paron:

I recommend  booking through Krusty Travel Hostel which usually has the best prices and is a good place to stay as well. If they’re not offering it at the time, American Tours and Golden Expeditions have competitive prices, as well.

Price:   A tour to Lake Paron is S/50 ( $12 USD) per person + an entrance fee to the park for S/5 ( $1.5 USD).

4. Witness Pastoruri Glacier

Once the highlight of visiting Huaraz back in the day, Pastoruri Glacier is sadly melting due to global warming. But before it goes, it may be worth a visit if you’ve never seen a glacier up close and want another day trip with little physical challenge to acclimate. 

The glacier itself sits at 5,000 meters and is one of the few glaciers left in the tropical region of South America. In my honest opinion, it was much smaller than seen in past photos but still interesting to see up-close (however it will become less impressive as time goes on, unfortunately). The tour also helped prepare my body for high elevation, and the drive was stunning. In fact, the road to Pastoruri Glacier is one of the highest paved roads in the world.

What’s included in a tour to Pastoruri Glacier and what to expect:

A day trip to Pastoruri Glacier includes pick-up from your hotel at 9 AM and a 3 hour drive to the glacier trail. Along the way, you’ll stop at a restaurant for a quick cup of tea and to make a reservation for lunch later, followed by two separate viewpoints along the road for a picture, then finally make it to the glacier.

From the parking lot, you’ll walk along a paved trail about 30 minutes up to the glacier. While the trail is not technically difficult at all, the altitude leaves you pretty winded so just take your time.

You’ll have about 2 hours to explore the glacier (including the walk there and back) and then head back to Huaraz, stopping one last time at that same restaurant for a late lunch before arriving back in Huaraz at 5 or 6 PM.

How long is a tour to Pastoruri Glacier?

In total, the trip is about 8 hours, from 9 AM – 5 PM.

How difficult is a tour to Pastoruri Glacier?

Not too difficult. It’s about a 30 minute walk to the glacier, which is somewhat uphill but nothing crazy. You will be out of breath because of the sheer height of the area, but with patience almost anyone could do it.

Where to book a tour to Pastoruri Glacier:

I recommend   booking through Krusty Travel Hostel which usually has the best prices and is a good place to stay as well.  If they’re not offering it at the time, American Tours and Golden Expeditions have competitive prices, as well.

Price:   A day trip to Pastoruri Glacier costs about S/35 – 45 ($9 – 12 USD) + an entrance fee to the park which is about S/30 ($8 USD).

5. Hike to Laguna 69

This is the day trip that draws most tourists to Huaraz these days, the famous Laguna 69.  Sitting at 4,600 meters is a crystal blue lake reflecting the icy peak of Chakrarahu. Visitors will walk through a vast valley passing cows feeding on grass, and trudge up two ascents past a waterfall, Laguna Lago and then finally making it to Laguna 69. 

Thanks to social media, this lake has gone absolutely viral and 100’s of tourists visit everyday. But despite being tainted in over-popularity I still highly, highly recommend visiting Laguna 69. Not only is it a staple to Huaraz, but a practical way to acclimate for longer treks because of the elevation and the double ascents to get your stamina working.

What’s included in a tour to Laguna 69 and what to expect:

A tour to Laguna 69 includes pick-up at your hotel or hostel at 4:30 or 5 AM, transport to and from the lake, and a licensed guide.

The drive to and from the lake is a long one, about 3 hours one way without stops. However, in the morning along the way you’ll actually make two stops: one for breakfast (which you’ll pay for separately), and one nearly at the trailhead at Laguna Llanganuco to take a quick picture. 

You’ll start hiking at about 9/10 AM and have about 6 hours to complete the trail. To stay on track, the guides will recommend that if you are not at the lake by 1 PM you’ll need to turn back regardless to head for the bus so that the group leaves by 3 PM for Huaraz.

Trail Length, Difficulty & Details of Laguna 69

Laguna 69 is a 14 km (or 8.6 miles) in and out trail that begins with a walk through a valley, a first ascent of switch-backs, another flat walk, and then another final switch-back ascent to the lake.

While people of varying physical abilities complete this day hike, it’s definitely not a walk in the park. Because of the altitude & length it can be tough so it’s best to come prepared and have at least a day or two to acclimate in Huaraz. During the trail, it’s important to take it slow, listen to your body, and drink lots of water. If you’re worried about altitude, it’s worth taking medication beforehand as well – in fact, I recommend it.

Where to book a tour to Laguna 69:

I recommend   booking through Krusty Travel Hostel which usually has the best prices and is a good place to stay as well. 

A tour to Laguna 69 is about S/50 ($12 USD) + the entrance fee to Huascaran National Park for S/30 ($8 USD). If you plan to do more activities in the park soon after, there’s also a 3 day pass for S/60 ( $15 USD) and a month pass for S/150 (~$38 USD).

6. Kayak at Laguna Llanganuco

If you’re not feeling up to the challenge of Laguna 69, you can still make it up that way to Laguna Llanganuco where you can kayak and enjoy the vast, turquoise lake. In all honesty, if you’re doing Laguna 69 I don’t think it’s worth it to come all this way again for Llanganuco, however this is a great option for those with limited physical ability who still want to enjoy the outdoors or for those traveling with kids.

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Where to book a tour to Laguna Llanganuco?

I recommend   booking through Krusty Travel Hostel which usually has the best prices and is a good place to stay as well. If they’re not offering it at the time, a number of tour groups in town are safe to go with, all of them offering a similar tour so just go with the best price.

7. Ice Climbing Mateo Summit

On the other end of the spectrum, a challenging and rewarding day trip is ice climbing to summit Nevado Mateo. If you’ve ever wanted to summit a mountain, this is a great opportunity because as far as summits go, it’s minimal effort since it begins high up and therefore can be done in only a day. But even still, it’s a brag-worthy activity to reach the top of this 5,150 meters (16,896 feet) mountain peak plus you’ll have the opportunity to try ice climbing with ice axes, a harness, and all.

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What’s included in a tour to Mateo and what to expect:

A tour to Nevado Mateo Summit should include all the equipment needed for an ice climb, so no need to rent gear. Get some sleep the night before, because this is an early tour with pick-up from your hotel or hostel at 3:00 AM. The drive to the trailhead is about 2 hours, so you’ll start climbing around 5/5:30 AM. 

The climb itself is 3 km/1.8 miles with a 400 meter/1,300 feet elevation gain and will take about 2 hours to go up. Because of the altitude, expect to be walking very slow which is completely normal. In total, the trip should be about 9 hours so you’ll return to Huaraz mid-day.

Where to book Mateo ice climbing:

I suggest booking through Krusty Travel Hostel which typically has the best prices, provides high quality gear and is a good place to stay making it a convenient option especially when being picked up at 3 AM.  The day before the climb they’ll also have you try on boots and make sure you’re ready to go.

Ice-climbing Nevado Mateo Summit is about S/200 ($50 USD) + the entrance fee to Huascaran National Park for S/30 ($8 USD). If you plan to do more activities in the national park soon after, there’s also a 3 day pass for S/60 ($15 USD) and a month pass for S/150 ($38 USD).

8. The Santa Cruz Trek

Out of everything to do in Huaraz, without reservations I cannot recommend the Santa Cruz trek enough. During this 4 day trek you’ll walk through vast valleys, through blooming meadows, up to a polar lake, climb to Punta Union pass, and camp under the stars.

Beyond the impressive scenery, Santa Cruz is perfect for many tourists for a variety of reasons: it’s super affordable, it’s not too long, and it’s ideal for first-time trekkers! While it comes with some physical challenges, I think it’s totally doable for the average able person. 

I ended up doing this hike in preparation for the Huayhuash trek, and while it wasn’t my main focus coming to Huaraz it ended up being a major highlight. Santa Cruz was just challenging enough to be rewarding, but not so demanding that I couldn’t enjoy the moments in nature, feeling the mountain breeze and photographing memories. A major bonus was enjoying it all with two other solo female travelers I met, joking our way through cold nights in the tent and long days walking. 

Besides the famed Huayhuash trek (read below), which may not be for everyone, Santa Cruz is one of the best things you can do in Huaraz, so be sure to make room in your Peru itinerary!

Distance, Difficulty & Details of the Santa Cruz Trek:

The Santa Cruz trek is 4 days and 3 nights hiking trail through the Cordillera Blanca that covers about 50 km (32 miles) and reaches the highest elevation of 4,750 meters (15,583 feet) at Punto Union Pass. 

The map of the trek is shown below on AllTrails (which is roughly accurate) but when you discuss with tour operators they should give you a map and explain the hiking details of each day.

What to Expect from the Santa Cruz Trek: what’s included, camping conditions, weather, etc:

Most tour operators include the same: a licensed guide with a first-aid kit, camping equipment including tents, sleeping mats, and sleeping bags, all of your meals provided (except for the first breakfast at a homestay), transportation, and mules to carry a bag with your belongings. 

What’s not included is any clothing, hiking poles, hiking boots, travel insurance and a water bottle – although water is provided. Additionally, most tours don’t include the Huascaran National Park entrance fee which is S/30 ($8 USD).

In terms of weather …you can definitely expect pretty cold nights dropping to or below freezing. During the day, the weather can vary between sun and heat, or clouds and maybe rain. This will vary depending on season, elevation, and just luck.

As for camping, the conditions are pretty simple for Santa Cruz: just you, a sleeping bag and a tent. No fires are allowed and the Santa Cruz campsites do not offer any amenities like toilets or a shower.

If you’re not used to camping like this, it will probably be the most rough part of the trip. But it’s only 4 days and *hopefully* you get used to it. My biggest recommendations are to bring plenty of layers to stay warm, something to serve as a comfortable pillow, maybe another item to cushion your hips from the ground, toilet paper and a plastic bag to toss trash, and wet wipes to clean yourself.

Where to Book the Santa Cruz Trek: 

The Santa Cruz trek is available from a number of tour operators in Huaraz but I found the cheapest option was through Krusty Hostel who uses Huayhuash Expeditions. They were professional, provided a duffle bag for my things, easy to book with and were the most affordable compared to other tour groups. They’re also  a comfortable B&B so it’s convenient to book a night’s stay there before and after your trek while they hold onto your remaining luggage.

Price of Santa Cruz Trek:

Booking through Krusty Hostel, the Santa Cruz trek was S/600, roughly $150 USD and the best price you can find in Huaraz. Another guy in my tour booked elsewhere and paid 200 soles more with nothing extra provided (if anything, less because he wasn’t provided a duffle bag).  

9. The Huayhuash Trek

Named one of the 10 most beautiful treks in the world, the Cordillera Huayhuash circuit should absolutely be on your bucket list. While it’s not for the faint of heart, the magnificent views of snow-capped peaks, turquoise glacial lakes, rocky terrain, and mind-blowing views pay off all the challenges of the trail. Over 5-12 days you’ll push your strength and stretch your stamina for one of the most rewarding and immersive adventures through the Andes Mountains.

Full disclosure, the Huayhuash circuit is a difficult one, and for many reasons: not only trail distance, but for the high altitudes and mental stamina to span over the whole trip. About every day is a mountain pass, and the entire trip is over 4,000 meters, the highest reaching 5050 m / 16 568 ft. Weather can be unpredictable up there, and you may need to hike or sleep through hail or even snow. What’s more, how your body reacts to these conditions – especially the altitude – can also be challenging.

On the other hand, as long as you have the proper gear, the mental fortitude, are properly acclimated, and in good enough physical condition, the hike itself really isn’t that technical. Just one foot in front of the other! 

So if you’re up to the challenge, I can surely tell you Huayhuash will be an adventure of your lifetime.

Distance, Difficulty & Details of the Huayhuash Trek:

The traditional Huayhuash circuit is considered difficult and can be done in 8-12 days. The most popular route is 8 days, which is what I did and what I’ll speak about. 

During the 8 days Huayhuash Circuit you’ll hike about 130 km/80 miles and reach elevations as high as 5,050 m / 16 568 ft. Unlike the Santa Cruz trek which centers around one mountain pass, during Huayhuash you’ll do about one mountain pass every day which makes it a much more demanding trek. 

The map of the circuit is shown below on AllTrails (which is roughly accurate) but when you discuss with tour operators they should give you a map and explain the hiking details of each day since there can be slight variations.

What to Expect from the Huayhuash Trek: what’s included, camping conditions, weather, etc:

Most tour operators include the same for the Huayhuash trek: a licensed guide with a first-aid kit, camping equipment including tents, sleeping mats, and sleeping bags, all of your meals provided (except for the first lunch at the restaurant in Llamac), all transportation, and mules to carry a bag with your belongings. Some tours (like with Krusty Hostel/Huayhuash Expedition) will also include the park entrance fee and an emergency horse to ride in case.

What’s not included is any clothing, hiking poles, hiking boots, personal items, travel insurance and a water bottle – although water is provided. 

In terms of weather , expect it all. At night and in the morning you can guarantee it’s going to be frigid, with temperatures at or below freezing. During the day you can guarantee you’ll have everything from hot, to cloudy, to cold, to hail, and maybe even a snow storm (if you’re lucky like me…). My group joked that every day in our day packs we needed clothes for all seasons, and the story of our lives was stripping and adding layers every other hour.

As you can imagine,  this is no luxury stay. You’ll be camping in tents throughout the trip except for one day where a hostel is optional. Fortunately, unlike the Santa Cruz trek there were toilets at every campsite. Not always the best, but they did provide some privacy. Halfway through the trek, we also camped in a village where a shower was available and if you wanted to pay extra, this is where you could stay in a hostel. 

Where to Book the Huayhuash Trek: 

I’ve recommended Krusty Hostel to book all tours throughout this blog post, but for Huayhuash I really, really recommend it. I shopped around a lot for the Huayhuash trek in Huaraz and Krusty Hostel offered the lowest possible price at S/1500 ($390 USD). I was extremely pleased with the gear, my guide, the group, and the entire experience. They provided a spacious duffle bag so you don’t have to pick and choose with fresh layers, the guide was encouraging and hilarious, an emergency horse and the entrance fee were included, and it’s a popular place to book the trek so I was paired with the best group of fellow backpackers I could have possible asked for, especially going into it not knowing a soul.

Price of the Huayhuash Trek: 

When booked through Krusty Hostel , it’s S/1500 ($390 USD) for 8 days. Everywhere else in Huaraz who I spoke to was charging anywhere from S/1700 – 2500 a lot of times depending on group size. 

10. Take a self-care day and get a massage

After all that hiking, you deserve a self-care day – my final recommendation of things to do in Huaraz. In between my Santa Cruz and Huayhuash trek I treated myself to a full-body 1 hour massage at Centro de Masajes Huaraz . It was S/80 ($20 USD) and worth every penny after long days of pushing my body to its limit.

WHERE TO BOOK TOURS IN HUARAZ

As mentioned already, I most recommend booking all tours through Krusty Hostel who works with Huayhuash Expeditions for longer treks. In my experience they always had the best prices and provided high quality gear.

Once I discovered Krusty, they were my go to.  Throughout Huaraz you’ll see ‘TOURS’ signs everywhere and are welcome to shop around. However, after booking a few different tours myself with different groups I found that they all offer the exact same packages (sometime even combining groups) and service was never anything to write home about; therefore the only thing that really mattered was price. Once I discovered Krusty had the best prices, it saved me time and energy.

How far in advance do you need to book tours?

For day tours you typically don’t need to book anything more than 1-2 days in advance unless it’s a holiday. However for activities leaving early morning between 3- 5 AM, try to add a time cushion the day before.

For a longer trek such as Santa Cruz or Huayhuash you might want to secure your spot much earlier, just in case. As soon as you arrive in Huaraz or after you’ve done your first hike I would book these. Even still though, I booked Santa Cruz one day before leaving and Huayhuash two days before.

WHERE TO RENT AND BUY GEAR IN HUARAZ

If you’re looking for hiking clothes , you can find everything from windbreaker jackets, winter coats, hiking pants, base layers and more at a number of outdoor apparel stores in Huaraz on the main street. Many sell high-quality brands such as Patagonia, Cotopaxi, Columbia, etc. However don’t expect lower prices, you’ll find about the same name-brand prices you’d find in the U.S.

For those on a budget or backpackers who only need a quick, cheap solution for a one-time trek, there are also plenty of places where you can buy clothing second-hand for a fraction of the cost. On the same street as the Central Market just behind the main street, you’ll find such stores to shop around. I bought a NorthFace windbreaker jacket for about $25 USD and two breathable sweat proof t-shirts for $7 each. 

If you’re looking to rent gear or equipment such as hiking poles, tents, sleeping bags, or even winter coats then I recommend Mont Blanc Trekking & Climbing .

WHERE TO STAY IN HUARAZ

For the backpackers and budget travelers, I recommend staying at Krusty Hostel . It’s nothing fancy, but I found this B&B a really comfortable stay and a bang for your buck. The dorm rooms are about $8 USD a night, and have larger twin beds that are not bunks which is a major plus. Private rooms are also available for about $20 USD. The showers are always hot, breakfast is included, there’s a rooftop, fast wifi, and it’s where I recommend booking tours from as well.

Search for availability or book here

Mid-Range $$-$$$

If you’re looking for a step up in accommodation from the broke backpacker budget, try Selina . They have both comfy dorm rooms and privates available at their beautiful courtyard stay which also features a spacious kitchen for cooking, several rooftop balconies, a cowork space, yoga studio, and movie theater. Note, they do host events late into the night on weekends, so if you have an early wake-up call be aware there will be loud music Friday’s & Saturday’s. However, if you’re the party hard and still wake-up and hike type, this is for you. Otherwise, during the week it’s pretty chill.

Search for availability or book Selina here

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Selina Huaraz - The Garden (@thegardenhuaraz)

Overall, most stays in Huaraz will be very much homestay/lodge style; you won’t find massive chain hotels in this mountain city. However, since most of your time in Huaraz will be spent in the mountains anyways, you don’t really need anything too fancy. The most important things to have wherever you choose is a hot shower, warm blankets, and in relative proximity to the main square to book tours, etc.

WHERE TO EAT & DRINK IN HUARAZ

Andino cafe .

Andino has fantastic food at all hours of the day but I especially loved the Andino breakfast which included homemade bread, fresh juice, a nicely brewed Americano, perfectly scrambled eggs, breakfast potatoes, pico de gallo, and a spicy mango salsa. It also has great wifi if you want to stay and chill – although there are no outlets which may shorten your stay.

This is a great hangout spot if you’re having a slow day while acclimating, just have some downtime or are looking for a cafe with good wifi to work from. The only thing, I’ll admit, is the food was not anything special to me. Not bad at all, but not special (I came for the atmosphere) – although the pancakes are impeccable. You can also find a lot of guide books and information about trekking here. 

Paulino’s Indian Cuisine

If you love indian food and are craving something besides Peruvian food, I highly recommend Paulino’s. For a mountain town in Peru it was surprisingly pretty decent indian food and the hearty meal I always needed after trekking. In fact, I went about 3 times and thought about it through my whole Huayhuash trek!

Cantuu Cafe 

Cantuu is a small vegan cafe that serves breakfast items, hamburgers, sandwiches, pizzas and other items. Although I’m not vegan, I loved this little spot as a place to grab a coffee, piece of cake or avocado toast and chill. They also have great wifi!

If you’re looking for a quick and affordable lunch, Pashta has good sandwiches made with quality bread for around S/9 ($3 USD).

For the Americans or others craving some soul food, Archies is your place. There was one day I had a mean craving for fried chicken and stumbled upon Archies and it did the job with a huge crispy portion accompanied with ranch and a spicy sauce.

This is a good all-rounder restaurant with various options to suit a large group. They also have great cocktails, I recommend the various pisco sours!

Wintata Karaoke

I didn’t party much in Huaraz, but out of the two nights that I did – this was my favorite spot! After trekking Huayhuash my entire group celebrated by getting drunk and having a night of karaoke. Highly recommend ending your trip on this note.

WHERE TO BUY GROCERIES IN HUARAZ

Whether you’re cooking a lot in Huaraz or looking for somewhere to buy food/snacks for trekking, you can find everything you need at the local grocery store known as Trujillo . They’re all over Huaraz.

 Additionally, there’s a local market known as Mercado Central de Huaraz where you can also find fresh produce. Keep in mind if you plan to do multi-day trekking on your own, you won’t find any dehydrated food in Huaraz and will need to bring it yourself either from Lima or your home country.

HOW LONG SHOULD YOU STAY IN HUARAZ?

This totally depends on what activities you plan on doing and if you want to do multi-day treks like Santa Cruz or Huayhuash. To figure out how long you should stay, decide which activities you want to do, tack on 2-3 days to acclimate if coming from sea level, and then consider any rest days you want to have in between activities.

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO VISIT HUARAZ?

The best time to visit Huaraz is from May to September. This falls during Peru’s winter but it’s also dry season which means you’ll mostly avoid rain during hiking. 

Normally traveling outside of a peak season can be beneficial because it means less people and lower prices, but in this case I would not recommend it. I mean why visit the mountains anytime outside of mountain season? It would be a shame to miss out on activities because conditions are bad or hike a long way just for the views to be covered in fog or rain. My advice: stick to May – September.

IS HUARAZ A GOOD PLACE FOR SOLO TRAVELERS?

Yes!! Actually as far as outdoor-activity heavy destinations go, it’s a great solo traveler destination! Huaraz is safe, there are many other travelers to meet, and it’s not only easy but standard to join a tour group for most of the hikes. As a solo traveler myself, I met fantastic people on every single hike/trek and also made lots of friends at my hostels.

IS HUARAZ SAFE?

The city itself is considered very safe and I personally ran into no issues – not even cat-calling. However, that doesn’t mean you should let your guard down; as always use common sense and be aware of your surroundings. When trekking, especially if on your own, make sure you’re prepared with the right equipment, follow the path and make sure you know the way.

WHAT TO PACK FOR A TRIP TO HUARAZ

Below is a packing list of items I would consider must-haves for Huaraz, Peru:

• Waterproof hiking pants
• Long sleeve shirt(s)
• Short sleeve shirt(s)
• Pullover or hoodie
• Thermal base layers for camping
• Sweater, pants, socks (authentic wool from Peru is a good option!)
• Jacket for warmth
• Rain jacket
• Beanie , gloves , neck gaiter
• Baseball cap
• Supportive hiking boots
• Hiking socks
• Reusable water bottle
• First aid kit
• Altitude medication, imodium , nausea meds , ibuprofen , & electrolytes
• Microfiber towel
• Pillow (for camping)
• Portable charger and/or solar charger (esp. if doing multi-day treks)
• Kindle (a lot of downtime on treks)
• Larger pack
• Waterproof backpack covers
• Camera gear to capture the amazing views!

And everything else you would need on your trip such as regular clothes, toiletries, etc.

Travel insurance is always a must, but especially during your trip to Peru where it’s likely you’re doing physical, outdoor activities and have many reservations at risk if any plans change. Injury and cancellations happen, it’s goo to have peace of mind!

My most recommended travel insurance is World Nomads which is designed and made specifically for adventurous backpackers.

→ Learn more about World Nomads Travel Insurance coverage here

However, if you’re on a budget I  suggest Safety Wing asa cheaper alternative for just travel medical emergencies. 

→ Learn more about Safety Wing Insurance coverage here

And that concludes my Huaraz guide! I hope you found it helpful and are as hyped as I was to visit this hiking mecca. Get ready to have your mind-blown and have some adventures of a lifetime!

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I’ve read some very bad reviews about the gear and the food when doing the Hauyhaush trek with Krystyna Tours I’m a bit nervous to book with them

Caroline Rose

You mean Krusty travel? The gear was totally fine in my experience and the food albeit repetitive, was good to me and considering we were remote for 8 days!

Lucinda Ware

Hi Caroline, my boyfriend and I are in Huaraz now and are trying to decide between Santa Cruz and Huayhuash which is proving incredibly difficult Did you have a clear favourite? Or which would you recommend if you absolutely had to chose one. For reference – we are both pretty fit and enjoy hiking and will be heading to Patagonia later in the year.

Hi Lucina, sorry for the late reply I hope you had an amazing time in Huaraz! For the sake of other’s visiting this blog post, I want to answer this question.

Both Santa Cruz and Huayhuash are beautiful and there’s pros/cons to both. Santa Cruz is shorter, cheaper, and involves more hiking through the valley. It is still a challenge as you’re a high altitude, but the whole trek is kind of working up to one mountain pass and down the other side. I will say, the distances though per day are pretty long even if not always up hill, it’s a lot of walking. But absolutely beautiful!!

Huayhuash on the other hand is 8 days, more expensive, and involves a mountain pass every day and is considered much more challenging, although the days hiking ended earlier than Santa Cruz (shorter distances). I will say the views are absolutely epic, and if this is your deciding factor then I would choose Huayhuash. Not to say Santa Cruz isn’t also beautiful and a really fun trek, but Huayhuash is more iconic in my opinion.

Both have something different to offer though, and I really enjoyed both treks.

Hi Caroline, Thanks for the informative blog! I am looking into doing the Santa Cruz hike, but will be limited in time so would like to book ahead wherever possible. The bit of information that I cannot find in your blog is if any of the recommended tours provide English speaking guides. As a solo female traveler that doesn’t speak any Spanish this is kind of high on my wish list. Thanks!

Hi Marije! Many companies provide an English-speaking guide, in fact the company I went through that I recommend here in this post spoke English. Krusty Hostel using Huayhuash Expeditions. I believe the Selina hostel also works with English speaking guides.

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Tours in Huaraz

The city of Huaraz is home to many attractions that are wonderful. A combination of history and nature, Huaraz is a paradise for outdoor enthusiasts in Peru because it offers a multitude of hiking possibilities.

If you are a trekking and nature lover, you can’t miss this little gem in the Andes of northern Peru. Find our customized tours and tour packages with a variety of options and prices to suit your needs.

Visit Laguna 69, Nevado de Pastoruri – Puya Raimondi, Laguna Parón, Chavin de Huantar and much more.

Best Excursions and Guided Tours Huaraz

Laguna 69 – full-day trek.

Parón Lake – Full-Day Tour

Chavin de Huantar & Querococcha Lake – Full-Day Tour

Pastoruri Glacier – Full-Day Tour

Frequently asked questions from our customers

Where is the city of huaraz.

It is a Peruvian city, capital of the Ancash department, and the most populous city in the department. Situated on the banks of the Santa River, it is situated in the valley of the Callejón de Huaylas in northern Peru.

It is guarded by the huge snow-capped Huascarán and has a privileged geography with landscapes that include snow-capped mountains, lagoons, archaeological sites, Huaraz comes from the Quechua “WARAQ”, which in Spanish means “Lucero”.

 The city is an important arrival point for adventure and high mountain sports enthusiasts in the Cordillera Blanca and the Cordillera Huayhuash.

3.052 meters

The climate of Huaraz is considered a temperate tropical mountain climate, characterized by sunny days and cold nights. The highest temperatures in Huaraz occur in August when it reaches 24 °C and the lowest in the month of July with 4 °C. Huaraz has a rainy season and a dry season.

Comandante FAP Germán Arias Graziani Airport

Best times to visit Huaraz

The best time to travel to the city of Huaraz is between May and September. This is when you can be sure that most days are clear.

Huaraz is known as the most famous for trekking and hiking in Peru, so for treks of 1 or more days, less rain is essential.

The capital of Ancash, considered as “the Peruvian Switzerland”, is named after its location around the snow-capped mountains of the Cordillera Blanca.

Most visited places in Huaraz

It is located in the Huascaran National Park, which is north of Lima. The hike to Lagoon 69 is an unforgettable experience in which you can observe gigantic landscapes decorated with waterfalls, rivers, vegetation and the snow-capped mountain peaks that belong to the Cordillera Blanca of Peru. To get there you have to walk for about 3 hours. 

Campo Santo de Yungay

Campo Santo de Yungay was once one of the most beautiful towns in Peru, to which one of the most remembered tragedies in Peru’s history happened.

In 1970, an earthquake not only destroyed everything around it, but also caused a great flood that buried the town and its 10,000 inhabitants, today it is possible to visit this place and learn more about its history.  You can also observe the gigantic rocks left by the alluvium.

Nevado Pastoruri

Visiting the base of Nevado Pastoruri is an experience not to be missed, where you can see one of the fastest receding glaciers in Peru, as well as incredible landscapes around the imposing mountain and the gigantic chunks of ice resting in the glacier’s lagoon. 

Churupa Lagoon

Churup Lagoon is located a few kilometres from Huaraz, in the Ancash region. It is the most easily accessible lagoon from Huaraz, it has hues ranging from deep blue to emerald, a range of colours protected by the mountains that can be seen around it.

It is situated at over 4,000 metres above sea level, from the lagoon you can also see the incredible snow-capped mountains of the Cordillera Blanca and Cordillera Negra.

This is considered the largest lake in Cordillera Blanca. Lake Parón offers impressive views of different snow-capped mountains such as Artesonraju, Piramide, Huandoy Norte, Chacraraju, Paria and Pisco.

You can get to know it by visiting its viewpoint, or you can take a walk of approximately 3:30 hours along the shores while you can observe the waterfall and its vegetation.

Chavín de Huantar

This is an archaeological site in Peru. It was the centre of the chavin culture, it was built by the chavin culture more than 2200 years ago.

Being the most important of the Ancash depsrtament, this great architectural work had two temples, of which some of its parts are still preserved with two temples, the chavin culture is considered one of the oldest known in South America. In which you will find a mysterious network of labyrinths.

Llanganuco Lagoon

This is located 25 km north of Yungay. The lagoon is located within the Huascaran National Park, it springs from the snow-capped peaks of Huascaran, Huadoy, Pisco, Yanapaccha and Chopicalqui.

The real name of the lagoon is Chinaconcha (female lagoon in Quechua), and it is separated from the next lagoon called Orconcocha (male lagoon in Quechua). At the lagoon you can take good photographs while acclimatising to the altitude of the Andes.  

Huaraz Travel Guides

Get ready for an immersion into the wonderful history and culture of Huaraz. Our travel guide will help you plan your trip to this city, rich in history with one of the best food scenes in the Americas.

Transportation in Huaraz

Dreamy Tours, has years of experience in tourist transport in Peru. This allows us to guarantee the quality of our service. We offer tourist, corporate, luxury, business and private transportation to meet all your requirements.

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Accommodation in Huaraz

Find your new favourite accommodation in Huaraz, Peru. We have a variety of options for your accommodation in Huaraz, from Superior to standard, in the best area of Huaraz, with access to tourist sites, easy access to transportation and entertainment.

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Pastoruri Snow-Capped Mountain

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Camping Multi-day trek Akilpo Trek

Akilpo ishinca trek.

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What's included

• All Cooking equipments
• All meals included
• Certified professional trekking guide
• First aid kit, supplementary oxygen, radio.
• Mountain cook
• Private transportation round trip
• Trip briefing one day before the Trek
• Unlimited bottled water
• Huascaran National Park Entrance Fee
• Medical insurance and emergency insurance
• Personal equipment/accessories for the trip
• Personal expenses
• Services not specifically stated in the itinerary
• Sleeping Bag
• The first breakfast and last dinner
• Tips to guide and driver

Pampa Akilpo

Departure at 6 am, Driving: 1,5 hours Trail Note: 6 hours’ trek/elevation change (+888m ), distance (9km), Trailhead (3500 m), Campsite (4380m) Meals included: Snacks, Luch & Dines Highlight: Honcocpampa ruins, Yuracyacu waterfall, immense valley, extensive ancestral high Andean forest, great campsite.

Lake Akilpo - Ishinca

Start at: 7 am   Campsite arrival:  2-3 pm Trail Note: 6 hours’ trek/elevation change (+661m /-661m ), distance (8km), campsite (4380m), highest point (5041m) Meals included: Breakfast,snacks, Luch & Diner Highlight: stunning Akilpo Lake, Panoramic view at Urus pass, over 10 snow-capped mountains to see, perfect campsite to enjoy the sunset.

Milluacocha Lake- return to Huaraz

Start at: 7 am  arrival back to Huaraz:  3-4 pm Trail Note: 6 hours’ trek/elevation change (+248m /-1178m ), distance (14km), the highest point (4628m) Meals included: snacks & Lunch Highlight: emerald Milluacocha lake, impressive Tocllaraju, and Palcaraju mountains, Ishinca valley, the Andean village of Collon.

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