How to get from Lima to Caral - Best day trip from Lima
In a previous post, we were talking about the
Sacred City of Caral-Supe which, in our opinion, is the best day trip you can
take from Lima. In addition, we highly recommend that you spend a few days
getting to know the city of Lima when you travel to Peru (check here to discover 10 reasons why you should visit Lima), and in those days you stay in Lima, you must at least reserve one day to
visit the Sacred City of Caral-Supe, which is the oldest city in the Americas,
about 5000 years old and it's considered a World Cultural Heritage.
Now, for this post, we wanted to talk about how you can visit the Sacred City of Caral-Supe, the reason for this
post.
How to get from Lima to Caral
Well, as we mentioned in our previous post about
Caral, visiting a city of historical importance like this always suggested a
great tourist offer and a great facility to find an alternative to visiting. The truth is that it is not far from Lima, about
186 km, in a journey that takes less than 4 hours driving.
However, the process of getting there will not be that simple as we might though, as we will explain below, and we also will talk about the different options that exist and our opinion on them.
However, the process of getting there will not be that simple as we might though, as we will explain below, and we also will talk about the different options that exist and our opinion on them.
This option exists but, as you will easily see
after an online search, a trip to Caral through a tourist agency will always
cost you over € 100 / $ 150 USD per person. Which, for those traveling with
families, as is our case, becomes an impossible value to spend, as it would
have to be a value to multiply by 3.
However, for those who can afford this money,
this can be a great option. Many of the companies offer the possibility to pick
up visitors at the hotel. Also usually have lunch included and may also include
one or another visit besides Caral.
Although it may be good to know another
destinations around Caral, we always advise being cautious as you may risk visiting
Caral on the run as some tour operators may want to take you to other
destinations which, although it seems to be all included in the price, you may
also, need to spend more money to get the most out of the experience.
Something that is also important to keep in mind
is that sometimes many companies take advantage of travel time to try to sell
products, and you may find yourself in the middle of a 3-hour trip each way
listening to blaring music and publicity, which may be uncomfortable. To avoid
these situations, we always try to read reviews of services on TripAdvisor
before we contract. Nothing better reflects the quality of service than the
opinion of those who used it before us. Take a look at this video to get one idea of how the tours work.
Although these services are extremely expensive,
which unfortunately is true for many tourist offers in Peru, where we find that
the prices charged to tourists have nothing to do with the cost of living in the country, there are still possibilities for group sightseeing tours at more affordable prices.
One of the possibilities is to join the
educational visits organized by the Peruvian Government, leaving Lima. You can
consult here to check the dates and prices. The point is
that if prices are much more affordable, you have the problem that they do not
occur on many dates and, you may have difficulty finding a tour for one of the days you are in Lima. Another disadvantage is that they will not pick you up at your
hotel, but this is a disadvantage that is easily overcome, just hire a taxi to
pick you up at the beginning and end of the tour and even then the amounts
charged will be much less than on a regular tourist tour.
On the visits organized by the Government
of Peru, usually, there are some other destinations associated with Caral, such as the
Rough Fishing City, the Supe Community Museum, which makes your visit even more
interesting.
Another option to get a Caral sightseeing tour
at much more affordable prices may be to use online discount sites. In our
case, we searched the Groupon Peixe website (you can search the site here) for tours to Caral and, fortunately, we found that
possible at great prices. To demonstrate how fantastic these prices were, we
can say that for the approximate value of just one person in a Caral package on
other sites, we could go all 3.
Unfortunately, just two days before our
departure, the company informed us that, due to reduced affluence, they would not
visit Caral on the scheduled date. Although they offered us other destination
alternatives, we eventually turned them down and the money was fully returned to us. However, although our experience was unsuccessful, we are aware of those
who have had great experiences, and highly recommend it. If you don't find the promotion on Groupon Peixe, check the Viajes Moda Tours site, is probably the best chance to get good prices for your tour to Caral.
Just the warning, as the trip is so much
cheaper, you will probably be the target of sales attempts during the trip, but with a smile and a firm no,
nothing will spoil your experience.
How to get to Caral from Lima by car
One of the hypotheses we thought was to rent a car and made that trip ourselves. And that is undoubtedly a good possibility and
probably the most economical if you got more than one traveler and, it can go up to 5 passengers, the capacity of the car, which can make this the cheapest way to visit Caral.
However, we did not make that option, perhaps a
little out of fear. The truth is that we love to rent a car and drive in the
countries we travel to, but this is usually outside the big cities. In the
midst of large cities, we do not know, we tend to escape this possibility and
always opt for public transport. While it is true that the trip to Caral is
largely outside large populations, the truth is that we would have to drive in
Lima, a gigantic city of about 9 million people, and as we read and exchanged
experiences, it made us feel a little insecure.
The conclusion after our trip is that driving in Lima is nothing like
driving in a European city, and that is something we definitely agreed after our stay
in Lima. We can't say for you to don't do it, we just say to do it if you feel very confident driving in those conditions because the traffic is very, very confusing and there is also the security
issue and the fact that outside Lima there are risks of as we would easily be
recognized as tourists and when traveling with our son we thought that saving the money would not outweigh the risk.
We invite you to check this video go Tinman to get an idea of how traffic can be in Lima:
If you choose to travel from Lima to Caral by
rental car, we recommend that you make your contract with full insurance. This
is because driving in Lima is a tricky thing for those who are not used
to, but also because, closer to Caral, you will have to drive on unpaved roads that may damage the car and, prepare yourself for the largest and biggest bumps you will ever see on your life. On Panamerica Road bumps are huge and a risk for those who are a little distracted. We have
never seen anything like this, in the middle of a fast lane, huge bumps that,
in case someone gets distracted and passes at high speed, it's sure to cause damage to your car.
How to get to Caral from Lima by Taxi
One of the options to visit Caral is by taxi.
This is an option that has the advantage of comfort and safety, but of course, has
the price defect. Again, contrary to what we might expect, sometimes in Lima, it
is difficult to get cheap prices when we are tourists.
The truth is that we looked for many options
and, the cheapest we got was between $ 180, $ 200 USD. This is an option that, in
case of traveling alone is certainly not worthwhile, but for those who can
occupy up to 4 seats in the taxi, it becomes a more attractive option
financially.
In terms of comfort and safety, it is also
difficult to find better. However, in Lima there are several taxi options and, in fact, you
can even get far more affordable prices than we mentioned earlier for this trip
to Caral. However, one of the issues you should always keep in mind when
traveling to Lima is safety (check here our post for some safety tips for your trip to Lima), and we should not go into taxis that do not give
us the right confidence, and by that we mean that they belong to referenced
companies and are properly identified as taxis, because many don't.
How to get to Caral from Lima by public transportation
We have not taken this route, because it may present some difficulties but, a Peruvian friend had the kindness of explain to us and, we will share it with you. One important thing to say is that it is
important to speak minimal Spanish, because it will help a lot on this journey.
The big question is that you will need to make some changes, you will not be taking a direct bus
from central Lima to Caral. So, let us trie to explain the changes that you will have to do the best as possible.
First of all, your day will be very long, so don´t forget to start really soon. The best way to start is to take a
taxi to Paramonga Tours bus station (in La Victoria, close to the center. The cost will not be too high (about 15 soles, depends on where you start) and it is undoubtedly the easiest
way to start.
As we were talking about, you will take the taxi
to La Victoria station, from where buses leave for Supe. Here you have two
options, Paramonga or Barranca buses, which take the trip that will take you to
Supe. You can buy tickets (between 15 and 30 Soles, 2019 prices) right at the
bus station, and you may have some difficulties if you don't speak Spanish, so
Google Translator can help, or write your destination on paper. Buses run every
20/30 minutes, so you don't have to wait long.
As an alternative to La Victoria, you can also
go to the Fiori Ground Terminal, which is in San Martin de Poros but which is
further from the center of Lima, in particular, Miraflores, where you will be
staying in the same area as us (if not yet). chose where to stay in Lima, try
our article on the best places to stay in Lima here).
After taking the bus, get ready for a bus ride
of about 3h30 hours, which will take you to know more about Peru, so we highly recommend you to enjoy the view. You will observe from the apparent confusion
that is Lima, to the deserts that will accompany you on your trip on Panamericana.
Near the end of your path, you will pass by
Caral, which is just before Supe, but the bus will only stop at Supe Pueblo,
precisely at kilometer 184 of the Panamericana. You will once again have to
find an alternative at the end of your trip.
Here there are two alternatives, which will pass
by taxis or collective vans. When you get off your bus, ask the driver to
direct you to the location where you wish to take your transport, which in both
cases is very close to Supe Market. By the way, it may even happen that you are
getting off the bus and then have a taxi offered to reach your destination.
The point is that it will still be about 25 km
until you reach your final destination, the holy city of Caral, so you can
count on the comfort factor when you reach your final destination. If you are
potting from a collective van, you may have to wait until more passengers
arrive. If you're lucky enough for several other passengers to go with you in
the car, Van can leave quickly, and that's the most economical way to get
around. If you are no longer travelers, you may have to wait, so Taxi may be
the best option.
The big issue is the price difference, while a taxi will charge you something like about 40 Soles (you can negotiate and even
negotiate the round trip price), the van will cost about 5 to 10 Soles per
person each trip ( 2019 prices).
Once you leave, get ready for a bumpy ride, as
the smooth road to Supe to the Sacred City of Caral is anything but “friendly” to
the car and its occupants, but once again enjoy being dazzled by the view and
As you approach your final destination, you will be dazzled by the tops of the
pyramids at the bottom, largely covered with sand and waiting to be discovered.
Now remember that when you reach your final
destination, you will have to be back in Supe by 4pm, when the last bus back to
Lima passes, so you can combine it with your means of transport to the city of
Sagrada de Caral to pick you up in advance to return to Lima.
Another thing to keep in mind when negotiating
the route to Caral is that you are not interested in staying in Caral, but near the bridge that will then take you to the Archaeological Site of the Sacred City of Caral.
If you stay in Caral, you still have to take a walking route that will take you
precious and unnecessary time.
First of all, it should be noted that, in our
opinion, the Sacred City of Caral is undoubtedly an indispensable visit for
those visiting Peru. We know that many visitors to Peru do so with the intention of visiting Machu Picchu, that was also our case, but we can assure you that Peru has
much more to offer and, after our trip, we can guarantee that the Sacred City of
Caral is one of those treasures that you must discover and that will be a wonderful surprise. Believe us, you can't go to Peru without visiting Lima, and
being in Lima, you can't miss Caral (learn more about Caral in our post: Sacred City of Caral: Best day trip from Lima).
Now the truth is that although not far from Lima, it is still a
tourist treasure not much explored, and the options to
visit are not as vast as so many other destinations we can imagine. In fact, it
may even be a difficult and expensive option to visit Caral.
In conclusion to the different options we
have talked about, we have to admit that the Taxi option is the most
comfortable. It offers the possibility to make the route on your schedule and in total comfort. However, the truth is that it is a costly
option but, if you can get 4 passengers in the taxi, is much more affordable
in monetary terms.
Another option, touristic tour, can be much
more expensive than taxiing, except if traveling alone. You can search both
online and in Lima for different cheaper options, but the offer is not very big
and most of the time you will find that it is cheaper to rent a taxi. Just do not
forget, always rent to a trustworthy firm.
Another option, traveling by public transport,
is always the most economical. Remember that in all options, you should start
the day early, as the trip will always take more than 4 hours each way, and in
the case of public transport, much longer, depending on your choices and your starting point.
Another factor to take into account is the lunch
issue. One of the advantages of touristic tours is that they often have meals
included, but if not, they usually have a place destinated to stop. In this case, be aware
of the prices charged for meals, as some companies and restaurants try to take
advantage of tourists to charge excessively high prices.
If you are traveling by taxi, you have the advantage that you can easily get organized to stop somewhere to eat, but if
you travel by public transport you may have a harder time stopping somewhere to
eat, so it may be a good idea to take food with you.
The same is true for the option of renting a
car, where you can enjoy more freedom to make your visit to Caral but we
recommend this option to anyone who is very comfortable driving in Lima, as
traffic can be very confusing for those that come from other places where driving is
“calmer” like ours, that live in Europe. Who choose the car rental option or public
transport, it is important to master Spanish a little, as it will be a fundamental contribution to achieving your goal.
Sometimes, near the entrance to the Sacred City
of Caral, there are food stalls, but generally, this occurs during periods of higher
tourist affluence, particularly in high season and, more on weekends, but not
much to count on. Although we went on a Saturday, we only
found waters, juices and ice cream for sale, as well as some small snacks.
Another point to note is that when you reach
your destination you will be standing by a pedestrian bridge. Once you arrive,
you still have to make a short journey of about 1.5 km. This is a very beautiful,
easily identifiable route, mostly along the Caral River. if you don't want to walk, you can go in a small motor vehicle, for a very low price.
If you wish you can only do one walking route and if so we recommend that you take the walking route when you head to the Sacred City of Caral so you can see its splendor as you approach. The motor vehicles are also a fun experience, especially for those traveling with children, so we really recommend going on foot to the Sacred City of Caral, and return in the back of the motor vehicle. The cost is low and should be negotiated, like so much in Peru.
If you wish you can only do one walking route and if so we recommend that you take the walking route when you head to the Sacred City of Caral so you can see its splendor as you approach. The motor vehicles are also a fun experience, especially for those traveling with children, so we really recommend going on foot to the Sacred City of Caral, and return in the back of the motor vehicle. The cost is low and should be negotiated, like so much in Peru.
- The Sacred City of Caral is open to the public
every day, between 9am and 4pm;
- The temperature in Caral is generally hot and
dry, with temperatures around 19 ° C low and 27 ° C high. You should wear
appropriate clothing as well as sunscreen, sunglasses and insect repellent;
- Take plenty of water. You can also buy it next to
the pedestrian bridge or at the entrance to the Sacred City of Caral but then
the price will be higher.
- The admission price is 11 soles for adults and
1 sole for children, seniors and school children and 4 soles for college
students.
- You will have to walk along with a guide, who will pay at the time of the visit. The price is 20 soles per group, which can go up to 20 people maximum. It may be worth waiting for a few more visitors to share the cost of this visit.
- You will have to walk along with a guide, who will pay at the time of the visit. The price is 20 soles per group, which can go up to 20 people maximum. It may be worth waiting for a few more visitors to share the cost of this visit.
- We always feel the need to say that the prices we refer to
are merely indicators, as they may change. We ask that you always confirm with
the corresponding companies.
If you are planning your visit to Peru, here is a list of some of our destination-related posts that are sure to be very helpful in organizing your itinerary:
- 10 reasons why you should visit Lima
- 20 things you should know when planning your trip to Machu Picchu
- What is the Sacred Valley of the Incas? What to see in the Sacred Valley, Peru
- How to avoid the crowds in Machu Picchu
- How to visit the Rainbow Mountain in Peru? Things to know when planning your trip
We really hope that our ideas help you to prepare for your visit and if you are planning your trip to Peru and, that you have the chance to visit the Sacred City of Caral - Peru. If you still don't have a place to stay, we always do our reservations with booking, they are our partners and its with them that we get the best deals. You can look for the best deals by clicking here, it won't cost you any money and it helps us to support our blog.
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We would also like to invite you to leave your opinion and questions and, in case you have already visited Caral, let us know about your experience using our comments box. Thanks for your visit to our Non Stop Family Travel Blog, come back often and, if you liked our article, don't forget to share it with your friends.
- 10 reasons why you should visit Lima
- 20 things you should know when planning your trip to Machu Picchu
- What is the Sacred Valley of the Incas? What to see in the Sacred Valley, Peru
- How to avoid the crowds in Machu Picchu
- How to visit the Rainbow Mountain in Peru? Things to know when planning your trip
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