
What to do around Huaraz (day trips)
Of course most of the visitors of Huaraz go there to do a more day trek or master a mountain. However it is also worth to do some small day trips to get to know the region. The advantage is that you can get to know several different parts apart from each other. Those day trips are also good for preparation for a longer one. Here I want to present some options.
Laguna Paron
This Laguna is closest to the Artesonraju, the mountain which inspired the logo of Paramount. There are organised tours that go there and as you need a guide to enter the park it is easiest and cheapest to take a tour.
I made a tour with Andean Summit, however I was not completely happy with it, as we only had two hours and the guide was always hurrying us on. The positive thing about it, was that non of the tours by Andean Summit include food, so you can/have to bring your own vegan food.
The tour was 55 Soles (16.70$) and the park entrance 5 Soles (1.50$) as it is a community park.
You first make a stop near the airport to take a picture of Huascaran the highest mountain of Peru. Then another stop in Carhuaz to buy ice cream or wait until everybody else ate their ice cream. After wards you drive to the laguna where you have two hours to walk around. You can either climb the viewpoint with the guide (45 mins), walk to another viewpoint at the end of the laguna (100 mins), walk around the laguna or go kayaking (30 mins) on the lake (for additional 20 Soles/6$).
I think the best view to mountain Artesonraju is at the viewpoint at the other end of the lake. However the other mountains around are super beautiful as well. The trip is from 8am to 6pm.

Laguna 69
This classic trip which most of the visitors do is another day trip that usually starts at 5am and ends at 6pm. The tour is 40 Soles (12.15$) excluding a park entrance fee of 30 Soles (9.10$).
You will see two lakes and have 1 hour free time. For the hike you need 3 hours up and 2.5 hours down. That’s why you start this day trip so early in the morning.
Glacier Pastoruri
This day trip to the glacier includes a visit to the Puya raimondii, the biggest pineapple plants in the world, that can get up to 10 m tall, and the lake of 7 colours.
The trip starts at 9am and ends at 6:30pm. It has two stops in Ticapampa where you will have breakfast (8 Soles/2.45$) and lunch (15 Soles/4.55$ 20 mins each). Please discuss with the agency before booking this trip about vegan options. The hike to the Glacier is 40 mins (be aware that you reach 5000m over sea level) and you have half an hour at the glacier. The tour is 60 Soles (18.25$) and the National park fee is 30 Soles (9.10$).
Chavin
Chavin is an archeological sight of one of the oldest civilisations of the continent. The heart of the ruins are the different tunnels that are underneath the sight. Therefore it is important to get a guide, you easily can get lost.

