40 Ballestas & Paracas statistics for 2026

How many visits do Ballestas and Paracas receive?

These are complete calendar-year site counts from the same official report, with no unique-traveller total inferred.

• Ballestas Islands recorded 554,710 visits in January–December 2019, according to MINCETUR's February 2026 report. (MINCETUR, March 2026)
• Ballestas Islands recorded 466,436 visits in January–December 2023, according to MINCETUR's February 2026 report. (MINCETUR, March 2026)
• Ballestas Islands recorded 587,628 visits in January–December 2024, according to MINCETUR's February 2026 report. (MINCETUR, March 2026)
• Ballestas Islands recorded 618,023 visits in January–December 2025, according to MINCETUR's February 2026 report. (MINCETUR, March 2026)
• Paracas National Reserve recorded 487,799 visits in January–December 2019, according to MINCETUR's February 2026 report. (MINCETUR, March 2026)
• Paracas National Reserve recorded 434,935 visits in January–December 2023, according to MINCETUR's February 2026 report. (MINCETUR, March 2026)
• Paracas National Reserve recorded 412,424 visits in January–December 2024, according to MINCETUR's February 2026 report. (MINCETUR, March 2026)
• Paracas National Reserve recorded 537,793 visits in January–December 2025, according to MINCETUR's February 2026 report. (MINCETUR, March 2026)

What do official Ballestas and Paracas entry tickets cost?

Published daily protected-area entry only, in Peruvian soles. Boat fare, pier use, land transport and museum entry are separate.

Local rates require residence evidence and a DNI. The national-adult entries carry a combined-ticket promotion footnote; confirm its eligibility and validity. Minor age bands need confirmation. The national/local free-entry footnote is not a general foreign-visitor exemption.

• The published 2026 one-day Ballestas Islands admission for a foreign adult is S/11.00; one-day entry; boat, pier, vehicle and museum are separate. (SERNANP, 2026)
• The published 2026 one-day Ballestas Islands admission for a foreign minor is S/3.00; confirm the minor age band and identification before purchase. (SERNANP, 2026)
• The published 2026 one-day Ballestas Islands admission for a national adult is S/11.00; promotion footnote applies beside this category; confirm eligibility and validity. (SERNANP, 2026)
• The published 2026 one-day Ballestas Islands admission for a local adult is S/5.00; local residence evidence and DNI required; confirm accepted locality. (SERNANP, 2026)
• The published 2026 one-day Paracas National Reserve admission for a foreign adult is S/11.00; one-day entry; boat, pier, vehicle and museum are separate. (SERNANP, 2026)
• The published 2026 one-day Paracas National Reserve admission for a foreign minor is S/3.00; confirm the minor age band and identification before purchase. (SERNANP, 2026)
• The published 2026 one-day Paracas National Reserve admission for a national adult is S/11.00; promotion footnote applies beside this category; confirm eligibility and validity. (SERNANP, 2026)
• The published 2026 one-day Paracas National Reserve admission for a local adult is S/5.00; local residence evidence and DNI required; confirm accepted locality. (SERNANP, 2026)

Use the fee and inclusion reference to check what your ticket or excursion actually includes.

How many species are recorded across the Paracas wetland?

The Ramsar inventory covers the wider Paracas site. Its 2021 records are not a current census of Ballestas colonies or a sighting forecast.

• The Paracas Ramsar site's November 2021 inventory lists 216 bird species across the protected wetland; this is not a Ballestas boat-sighting count. (Ramsar Convention, November 2021)
• The Paracas Ramsar site's November 2021 inventory lists 36 mammal species across the protected wetland, not animals expected on one outing. (Ramsar Convention, November 2021)
• The Paracas Ramsar site's November 2021 inventory lists 168 fish species across the protected wetland, not a visitor observation checklist. (Ramsar Convention, November 2021)

What does the Julio C. Tello museum charge separately?

The Ministry of Culture publishes its own museum tariff. A reserve admission is not evidence of museum admission.

• The Julio C. Tello site museum's published adult admission, accessed in October 2026, is S/7.5; it is a separate museum ticket, with category evidence to confirm. (Ministry of Culture, October 2026)
• The Julio C. Tello site museum's published school student admission, accessed in October 2026, is S/1.0; it is a separate museum ticket, with category evidence to confirm. (Ministry of Culture, October 2026)
• The Julio C. Tello site museum's published higher-education student admission, accessed in October 2026, is S/4.0; it is a separate museum ticket, with category evidence to confirm. (Ministry of Culture, October 2026)

Methods and limitations

We checked 49 candidate figures and kept 40 from ten publishing organisations. The annual visitor dataset transcribes the two site rows and their national/foreign breakdowns on page 6 of MINCETUR's February 2026 report, which states information was available in March 2026. We checked that each breakdown adds to its total. Percentage changes on the headline tiles compare 2025 with 2024 and are rounded to one decimal place. No estimate fills the missing years.

The itinerary dataset is our compilation of six official supplier pages. We preserved their advertised durations, check-in details and conflicts. Durations are also expressed in minutes in the CSV for sorting. This is a selected reference, not a representative operator sample, measured sailing study, safety ranking or average. Unknown check-in times stay unspecified. Port decisions and sea conditions can change any outing.

We excluded six headline tour prices because currencies and inclusions differ, an ambiguous child-age rule, an unsupported landmark-age claim and a combined visitor total that could double-count people. Official ticket charges remain separate from commercial fares. Published year or month is used where available; undated supplier and museum records explicitly use the October 2026 access date, not an invented publication date.

Next review: 16 January 2027, with entry charges and boat schedules checked before travel. Report a figure with its source through our contact page; corrections update the table, download and affected guide together.

Cite this page

Ballestas Islands. “40 Ballestas & Paracas statistics for 2026.” Published and updated 16 October 2026. https://ballestasislands.com/paracas-national-reserve/ballestas-paracas-statistics/