You are here: NazcaFlights.com > Archaeological Tours > Cantalloc

The Aqueducts of Cantalloc

How does an ancient tribe survive in one of the driest places in the world? The answer involves a spiral-shaped feat of engineering.

 

Price: The cost per person for individual travellers is 40 soles, and two or more travellers travelling together pay just 25 soles each.

Additional costs: A visit to the archaelogical site requires a site fee of 10 soles per person, which the Peruvian government charges in order to maintain the various archaeological sites in the area.

Duration: 3 hours

What are the Aquaducts of Cantalloc?

Two thousand years ago, the inhabitants of Nazca created a system of underground aquaducts to irrigate crops that were growing in dry desert lands. Although the design for the aquaducts is highly practical, it happens to involve beautiful and fascinating spiral designs that capture that curiosity and attention of all who visit them. In Nazca you can find many postcards of the Cantalloc aquaducts because they are a very recognizable archaeological site here.

Although many places in the world have aquaducts, this particular system is unique in Peru. And as a testament to the long-lasting nature of the constructions there are to this day more than thirty underground channels which are still being used to this day by farmers who grow cotton, corn, beans, and pototaoes. This tour includes a short visit to the minor Incan ruins of Paredones.

This tour can be done at any time during the day. Today local people call this place Paredones, which was built long ago when the Incas expanded their empire on the Nazca Valley. Later on, we will visit a sector known as the needles, where it is possible to observe a huge trapezoid from the top of a little hill. Here you will be able to be very close to a genuine Nazca trapezoid and will also get a good insight into the meaning of the Nazca Lines. Afterwards, we are going to visit the ancient channels of Cantayo. On this place we will walk around for about 40 minutes, visiting the enormous spirals holes and also the channels. Our guide will explain how the Nazca people built all these channels and also will take us for a stroll in the surrounding fields to see some crops produced by the native community.

The Shape of the Spiral

The spiral is more than just an aesthetically pleasing shape, it is a fundamental pattern that is found throughout the universe. The DNA in every cell of the human body, is in the form of a double-helix, which is two spirals. The galaxy we live in, the Milky Way, is a spiral-shaped galaxy. It is thought that the Nazcans created these holes in the shape of a spiral because....

Included in the tour

Pick up from your hotel in Nazca.
Comfortable transportation to the archaelogical site.
Professional guide that will conduct the tour in English.
Transportation back to your hotel at the end of the tour.

Recommendations:

You are in a desert - it's gonna be hot. Wear light clothing, as the weather in Nazca used to be very hot, especially from December to March).

Travel voucher:

You will receive an electronic voucher via e-mail once your booking is confirmed.
For every confirmed booking you will be required to print your electronic voucher for presentation at the moment we start the excursion. The electronic voucher acts as a confirmation for all the services you request.