Trujillo: Four stops on the Moche Route

Following on the coast of Peru, a “short” 4-hour bus ride bring us to the city of Trujillo, a unmissable stop for those looking to know more about Peru’s culture and history. Even though the city might seem as chaotic as Chiclayo at first, strolling around the Plaza de Armas and seeing the cathedral is definitely a much better paseo. That being said, the real treasure of the city is a variety of archaeological sites (mostly ancient temples also known as huacas) which were built by the Moches, an indigenous population dating back to the per-Inca era.

CHAN CHAN (PALACE NIK-AN)
This archaeological site is nothing but the largest pre-Columbian city of all South America which has been comfortable sitting in the UNESCO world heritage list for the past decades. Most of the city walls, decorations and especially bas-relieves have been conserved well and can still be seen pretty much everywhere around the site nowadays.

When visiting the site, you get a chance to walk the same streets that the Moche people use to walk on in the past and even though most of them have been closed off to visitors/tourists, the current marked trail encompasses all the site’s highlights.

bus to Huanchaco

Getting here: In order to get to Chan Chan getting on to any of the buses heading from Trujillo to Huanchaco on the routes A, B, C or the most common H, will get you there. Commonly, the Ovalo Grau roundabout and the OLTURSA terminal seems to be good spots to get them, otherwise, just look out for the orange and red buses that say Huanchaco on the front anywhere on the Avenida España. The buses will leave you at the beginning of the road leading to Chan Chan (1.5km) where you can decide to walk or take one of the taxis waiting if available. Fare price 1.40soles/pp.

Entrance and timings: Currently, the entrance to the site is 10 soles/pp and also include the entrance to the site museum (500m down the road where the bus stop left), Huaca Esmeralda and Huaca El Dragon/Arco Iris. On-site guides offer tours for 40soles per group of 5 people. Site is open from 9am to 4pm.

HUACA DE LA LUNA
This complex, also known in full as Huaca del Sol y de la Luna, might not be as huge as Chan Chan but the bas-relieves and decorations here are way more incredible. Differently to other temples, in Huaca de la Luna the colours and shapes of the bas-relieves have remained perfectly conserved until today. Just imagine standing next to a whole five levels pyramid which has one side full of gorgeous and unbelievable decorations.

At time of writing, Huaca del Sol is not open to visitors since there has only been very little excavation and facilities for tourist have yet to be implemented.

Colectivo to la Campiña

Getting here: The site is located near the city of Moche, east of Trujillo. The easiest way to get here from the city center is hop on one of the many colectivos that are constantly running back and forth on the Av. Los Incas (in the part that has double lanes). The colectivos are usually white-and-blue with a sign saying “Campiña”, fare is 1.50 soles/pp and trip takes just 20min.

Entrance and timings: The cost to access the site is 10 soles/pp and there’s an additional charge of 5 soles/pp if you decide to visit the on-site museum. Currently you need to have a guide to visit the site but thankfully it’s a service provided for FREE. Obviously, if you think the guide did a good job small tips are appreciated. Site is open from 9am to 4pm.

HUACA LA ESMERALDA
Somewhere halfway through in-between Chan Chan and Trujillo sits the small Huaca La Esmeralda. The site is pretty small and kind of tucked away from the usual tourist route therefore don’t expect many people if you drop by to visit. Here there are some nice bas-relieves relatively in a good state but to be honest, if you spent the morning visiting the other two sites this surely won’t stand out. Still it can be a nice short visit to do on your way back/to the more famous sites.

Getting here: Pretty much just take the same bus to go to Huanchaco that you would be getting to go to Chan Chan but tell the driver to let you down at Huaca La Esmeralda or at the junction with Av. America Oeste. You’ll be dropped off on the main road and from there you’ll still have to walk 4-5 blocks to get to the actual site. Fare to get here should be 1 sol/pp and takes around 10min.

Entrance and timings: The ticket for Chan Chan also includes entrance to this site (and viceversa) even if you decide you wanna visit only this place. Site is open from 9am to 4pm.

HUACA EL DRAGON/ARCO IRIS
Probably the most tucked away Huaca of the lot which is a must to visit. Once again, the whole site is pretty small and quick to visit but contrarily to Huaca La Esmeralda, the bas-relieves and decorations here are pretty unique. Pretty much all the walls of the place are decorated by a bas-relief showing two dragons figures standing underneath a rainbow (reason of the site’s name). What an interesting mix, uh! And did we mention that all bas-relieves are in near perfect condition?

Getting here: Even though, this is probably more visited than La Esmeralda, finding information to get here was much more difficult. In order to get here you need to jump on any colectivo heading toward “La Esperanza” which is the neighbourhood where Huaca is found; this colectivos can be found on the Av. Nicolas de Pierola (closest to the center) or Av. Tupac Amaru. Make sure to tell the driver to let you down at “Huaca El Dragon”; you’ll surely be dropped at 2-3 blocks from the Huaca either on the Av. Tahuantinsuyo or Av. Jose Gabriel Condorcanqui. Fare to get here should be 1 sol/pp and takes around 10min.

Entrance and timings: The ticket for Chan Chan also includes entrance to this site (and viceversa) even if you decide you wanna visit only this place. Site is open from 9am to 4pm.

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