Huacachina is an oasis town in Peru

IT’S one of the most barren places on Earth, but hidden between sand dunes lies a spectacular oasis. A precious beauty in the harsh, unrelenting desert.

LYING in one of the most barren places on Earth is an incredible oasis, a site of legendary tales and a retreat for the wealthy

Huacachina is a desert oasis in Peru, four kilometres from the coastal town of Ica. Appearing out of nowhere in the barren desert, the small natural lake is surrounded by palm trees and towering sand dunes, popular for sandboarding and dune buggy rides.

The hidden oasis is a rare beauty in the Peruvian desert. Picture: Christopher Crouzet.

Huacachina is surrounded by huge sand dunes popular with tourists. Picture: ilkerender.

The water levels have been dropping due to private landowners accessing the groundwater via wells. Picture: eder.fortnato.

Legend holds that the lagoon was created when a beautiful native princess was apprehended at her bath by a young hunter. She fled, leaving the pool of water she had been bathing in to become the lagoon. The folds of her mantle, streaming behind her as she ran, became the surrounding sand dunes. And the woman herself is rumoured to still live in the oasis as a mermaid.

Today only 100 people or so live in Huacachina but it has become a popular spot for tourists and local holiday makers.

The desert oasis became renowned in the 1940s as a beauty spa for the wealthy who believed its waters had healing powers. However in the 1950s, Huacachina fell out of favour and was abandoned for decades.

Locals make money from the tourists that come to sandboard the dunes. Picture: robertluna

An oasis of calm and an escape from the blistering desert heat. Picture: ms.akr.

It was not until the 1990s that the tourist appeal of the oasis and its surrounding sand dunes was realised, and tour operators began to offer dune buggy rides and sandboarding to attract thrill seeking travellers to the area.

The oasis has been declared a national cultural heritage site by the National Institute of Culture. The lakeside town even features on the back of the 50 Nuevo Sol note — Peru’s official currency.

Unfortunately groundwater consumption has caused the levels of Huacachina lake to drop as private landowners accessed the precious water via wells. To prevent this spectacular hidden oasis from drying up water must now be artificially pumped in to protect Peru’s natural wonder.

Huacachina is featured on the national currency. Picture: robertluna.

Tourists climb to the top of sand dunes to witness spectacular sunsets. Picture: ilkerender.