Chauchilla Ancient Tombs tour from Nazca: Mummies and ceramics

Mummified bodies and thousand-year-old tombs in the desert

A guided tour from Nazca to Chauchilla archaeological zone explores a pre-Inca necropolis with well-preserved mummies, skulls and tombs over a thousand years old. After the cemetery, the route includes a ceramist's workshop where you see how Nazca potters worked two thousand years ago, and a stop at an informal gold mining site. A professional guide in English or Spanish leads the full route, with hotel pickup and return included.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore Chauchilla tombs and Nazca culture

• Visit Chauchilla archaeological zone
• See skeletons, skulls, and mummies
• Return to Nazca city
• Visit ceramist workshop
• Learn about Nazca ceramics
• Visit informal gold mining site
• Return to hotel

The experience

Chauchilla sits 28 kilometers into the desert from Nazca, a vast burial ground that treasure hunters looted for years before the site was protected. What remains are skeletons, skulls, long braids of human hair still attached to mummified heads, and intact tombs built more than a thousand years ago. You walk through the necropolis with a guide who explains the funerary practices and beliefs that shaped how these pre-Inca peoples honored their dead, including mummified children preserved in near-perfect condition.

After Chauchilla, the tour moves to a ceramist's workshop in Nazca, where the potter demonstrates the techniques Nazca artisans used two thousand years ago to create the distinctive colorful ceramics the civilization is known for. The final stop is an informal gold mining operation where workers extract gold from rock under extreme conditions: a glimpse into how people still work the same landscape for survival. Private transportation and a guide fluent in English or Spanish connect all three stops, and the route ends with a return to your hotel.

What’s included

• Private transportation from your hotel to Chauchilla and back.
• a professional guide who speaks English or Spanish.
• entrance fees to the archaeological zone.
• and return transfer to your hotel at the end of the tour.

Information

Lasts 3h, runs every day at 09:00 and 14:00, from US$ 49 per person, with a live guide in English and Spanish, in groups of up to 15 and with free cancellation up to 24 h before.

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 09:00 and 14:00

GroupUp to 15

Live guideEnglish and Spanish

Audio guideEnglish and Spanish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.You can choose from 6 pickup points.

Book up to14h before

AgesUp to age 80

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 6 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effort

Operated by IZI PERU

Is this one for you?Three hours covers the necropolis, the ceramist's workshop and the mining site, leaving the rest of your day free for other Nazca attractions like the Lines or the museum.

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English and Spanish.

What exactly will I see at Chauchilla?

Chauchilla holds skeletons, skulls, mummified bodies of children in excellent condition, long braids of preserved human hair, and tombs in good condition that are more than a thousand years old. The site is a pre-Inca cemetery that archaeologists have protected and opened to visitors.

How far is Chauchilla from Nazca?

The archaeological zone is approximately 28 kilometers from the city of Nazca, reached by private transportation included in the tour.

What does the ceramist's workshop show?

The ceramist demonstrates how Nazca potters made their colorful ceramics two thousand years ago, explaining the evolution of the civilization's pottery techniques and designs.

Is this tour suitable if I'm not in great physical shape?

The tour is suitable for all physical fitness levels. You walk through the necropolis and visit the workshop and mining site, but the pace and terrain are manageable for most visitors.