Huaraz: Pastoruri Glacier - Day Tour - Ice and Adventure
Description
Get up close and personal with the spectacular Glaciar Pastouri on this thrilling expedition. This one-day adventure takes you to the heart of the Cordillera Blanca to witness the impressive glacier up close. Hike through pristine Andean landscapes, catch stunning views, and have the opportunity to explore this remarkable natural wonder. Glaciar Pastouri offers a day filled with awe and adventure in the high-altitude realms of Peru.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Unforgettable adventure tours south of Huaraz to the snow-capped Pastoruri and observe beautiful landscapes of the Cordillera Blanca. We will pass through picturesque towns of: Recuay (3,422 meters above sea level), Ticapampa (3,456 meters above sea level) and Catac (3,466 meters above sea level), where we will stop for a coca tea against soroche. the first place to visit the source of carbonated waters natural
Continuing with the tour, we will take a detour from the paved road towards the Pachacoto Gorge, we arrive at the PATOCOCHA lagoon, an area where wild ducks of different varieties live, we will see the spring of gasified waters of PUMAPAMPA also known as the “source of the youth”, a little lake of 7 colors called UMAPASHIMIN. We will find the most representative plants in the Peruvian Andes, measuring up to 12 meters and living for approximately 100 years
We will make a brief stop to see the Puya Raimondi, a representative plant of the Andes, it can grow up to 12 meters high, produces clusters of up to 8 thousand flowers and lives up to 100 years, but once it blooms it dies. We will observe murals of cave paintings.
We will take a walk of approximately 1 hour (one way) until we reach the snowy Pastoruri (5,000 meters above sea level).We will tour its large ice walls that give us an understanding of the atrocious retreat of the glaciers due to the global warming of our planet and obtain impressive views of the mountain landscape that surrounds this place. In this place you can enjoy contact with the snow and frozen lagoon.
After lunch in Catac we return to Huaraz
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
The day before departure, we will send you information on the organization of the excursion by WhatsApp and by email.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(6)
I didn’t actually get to go to the glacier. Altitude sickness got the best of me. I was told we were going to take horses and not to worry. The guy with the horses told me no because he had two left so he wanted to sell them to a couple to use because he would make more money. The group left without me and locked me out of the bus. So I paid to sit in gravel cold for two hours. Then lunch came. My name wasn’t listed anywhere. I was told we had to sign up before. I was unaware of this, so I didn’t get to join the group for lunch. However, I wasn’t the only one. A number of people didn’t know this either so we had to once again wait outside in the cold. So 7 of us went 8-5 without food. I went through my emails and messages multiple times. There was nothing about signing up for this. Additionally, on visitors page it says entrance fees covered. They are not. This I was told ahead of time but they wouldn’t tell us the prices until we reached the activity so no one knew how much money to bring. They also stopped frequently so their friends could board the bus to try to hustle us. They picked up 3 hitchhikers. The tour guide was yelling so loudly 4 people bought earplugs at one stop. We made jokes about it. He didn’t get the sarcasm and continued as we passed around a 24 count bottle of advil. It was gone before it made it back to the front. No one felt comfortable leaving anything unattended with all the random pickups, etc. in 60+ countries and hundreds of tours, this ranks as the worst.
The tour itself was beautiful, but the guide did not speak English at all despite the tour being advertised as having an English-speaking guide. Not “limited English” — literally no English communication during the tour. This was disappointing and misleading. If the tour is actually Spanish-only, this should be clearly stated in the description.
Well organised. Lunch stop was fabulous. Walk to the glacier was hard due to altitude. Alex the guide was excellent.
The tour was in Spanish, but the guide was happy to explain whatever I asked in English and everyone was really friendly… plus incredible scenery. Really enjoyed it.
The guide was nice, but the glacier was much smaller than I expected. You can’t get close to the glacier like what the photos show.
Overall a perfect day. The tour was definitely NOT in English even though it was purchased and stated English. Although I had my doubts about it since there doesn't seem to be many English-speaking tourists generally. And the price was cheap. However the tour guide did tell us some things individually when we stopped. Everyone was very nice. Also note that they pick you up from hotel in the AM but do not drop you at hotel afterwards. You have to walk/taxi to your place. Oh and if you take the horse UP, it will not be waiting for you when you come back to descend. It will be a different horse and a new charge, which we didn't know until getting back to the bottom - this has nothing to do with the tour operator, but just a tip. It was well organized. I would definitely do it again.
Thank you so much for your feedback and for sharing that, overall, you had a perfect day! 🌞✨ We’re really glad you enjoyed the experience. Your comment is very helpful — we’ll review this with our local partners to ensure better clarity and consistency moving forward. If you're ever back in Peru, we’d love the chance to give you an even smoother experience! Warm regards from all of us at Izi Peru 🇵🇪💛
