A first-timer's guide
The Peruvian Paso horse show near Lima: what actually happens
A van south to a private hacienda, a horse ridden at a gait no other breed performs, a dancer brought into the same ground for the marinera, and lunch afterwards — here is the shape of the afternoon, in order.
See Peruvian Paso horse show tickets on GetYourGuide ↗The afternoon in order
| Before lunch | After the show | |
|---|---|---|
| What happens | Hacienda tour, then the horse show and marinera | Lunch and drinks at the hacienda |
| Time | About 90 minutes' drive, then the show | Runs to about five hours total |
| Taking part | You can ride a Paso horse | Seated lunch, drinks included |
| Getting there | Pickup from San Isidro, Miraflores or Barranco | Drop-off included on this booking |
| Flexibility | Free cancellation on GetYourGuide | Book at least two days ahead |
It starts with a drive, not a show
The afternoon opens with a van pickup from one of three hotel zones — San Isidro, Miraflores or Barranco — and a drive of roughly ninety minutes south into the Pachacamac district. There is no shortcut around this leg; it is the same road every booking for this hacienda uses, and it sets the pace for the whole afternoon rather than being a formality before the real event starts. Treat the drive itself as part of the experience rather than dead time — it is your first sight of Lima's coastline giving way to the drier, quieter country south of the city.
Three pickup zones, and why the phone number matters
Rather than a single meeting point, this booking collects from three separate hotel zones — San Isidro, Miraflores and Barranco — which means the driver needs to reach you directly rather than you finding a fixed corner. The phone number you give at booking is how that coordination actually happens, so it is worth double-checking it is entered correctly and that your phone will have signal or WhatsApp access on the morning of the show.
The hacienda tour comes before the horses perform
On arrival, a guided walk through the private hacienda — in Spanish or English — introduces the horses and the property before the formal show begins. It is a working property rather than a purpose-built tourist venue, so the tour tends to cover the stables and the animals plainly rather than as a staged introduction. This is also the point to mention if you want to take up the booking's included ride on a Peruvian Paso horse, since it is arranged during this part of the visit rather than automatically.
Riding one yourself, if you want to
A ride on a Peruvian Paso horse is listed as part of this booking's inclusions, and it is worth asking about specifically during the hacienda tour rather than assuming it happens on its own. Even a short, guided ride is usually enough to feel the difference the paso llano gait makes compared with an ordinary horse's trot — which is, in a sense, the whole point of the afternoon made physical rather than just watched.
The show is built around one gait
Chalanes bring two or more Paso horses through the paso llano — the breed's natural four-beat lateral gait — at close enough range to see the footfall pattern clearly. It is the reason the show exists: nothing about jumping, racing or trick riding, just the smoothness the breed is bred for, demonstrated at walking and working pace rather than a gallop. Riders sometimes carry a full glass without spilling it, a deliberate demonstration of the gait's lack of bounce rather than a party trick.
The marinera brings a dancer into the same ground
Partway through, a marinera segment adds a dancer to the show, the horse trained to hold the dance's rhythm beside her rather than stand as a backdrop. It is a specific staging of Peru's national dance that only works with a horse trained for exactly this, and it is one of the more memorable stretches of the afternoon for most first-time visitors, not least because it makes the gait's precision visible in a completely different context from the earlier riding demonstration.
Lunch closes the afternoon, not opens it
Once the show ends, lunch and drinks are served at the hacienda — the booking treats this as the second half of the visit rather than a rushed stop beforehand. The listing describes lunch and drinks specifically, not a large buffet, so it is worth setting expectations accordingly rather than picturing a huge spread of dishes.
What the whole five hours adds up to
Door to door, from pickup to drop-off, budget around five hours for the entire afternoon once both legs of the drive are added to the hacienda tour, the show and lunch. That makes it a genuine half-day commitment rather than a quick add-on to another plan, and it is worth building your Lima schedule around it rather than trying to squeeze it into a gap between two other bookings.