Apu Ecolodge | Established Campground

February 3rd, 2024 by swissoverlander.ch

A very nice place to stay and relax in the Cordillera Blanca. Super friendly and helpful owner Eric which can tell you everything about the surrounding hikes. Also a good place to leave your car attended while you are on a multiple day treck. We will be back in may 😉👍.

January 24th, 2024 by Petra Blaho

We were really excited about this place. It has everything you need. At first we wanted to camp here in our car, but then Erik offered us one of the apartments. The grounds are very clean. Erik is a really good host. We will definitely come back here again!

January 5th, 2024 by mitreisend.com

Spent 4 nights and really liked the campground! Level, grassy parking, clean bathroom, a dining room you can use for working, fire pits and a pizza oven!
Been here on New Years Eve and liked it - there is a higher building/ tower so we saw all the fireworks!

They helped us to get a taxi up to Laguna Paron - 170 SOL. They also offered us to take their car for 200 SOL, but I don’t think you have an insurance while driving it.

I wouldn’t say that the family is unfriendly - they are just not to open, but we experienced this a lot in northern Peru.

40 SOL for 2 in a Van.

December 4th, 2023 by orlando.tillero

Amazing place to stop and relax for a few nights. Unfortunately, we could only stay 2 nights. Otherwise, we would've stayed at least 4 nights enjoying the vibe here. There is plenty of space to camp, there are also cabins for rent. The hot showers were amazing. Close to Laguna Paron, Cañon del Pato and other attractions in the area. Only a short tuk tuk ride to the center of town where you can find multiple groceries stores, restaurants and gas stations. Highly recommended.

October 20th, 2023 by vivirparacontarlaco

El mejor lugar de Caraz y toda la zona, a eso sumarle la compañía y guía de su propietario Erick, quien ofrecer tours por toda la zona, tiene amplio conocimiento de su historia y es una gran persona, el lugar cuenta con zona de camping, bungalows, fogata, lavandería, baños muy limpios, agua potable, petfriendly y una gran zona verde, está a poco tiempo del pueblo

August 29th, 2023 by mrandmrstravel.nl

Spend two night here in the van and left our van here for 4 days while hiking the Santa Cruz trek. We payed 80 soles in total. He also helped us arrange transportation to the start of the trek. Good place to start and end your Santa Cruz Trek.

June 23rd, 2023 by Kai-Olaf Dammenhain

great place, nice, friendly, warm welcome, very clean, Erik offers great tours into the mountains

May 18th, 2023 by baranovakova.bn

Good place for one night, paid 40s/2p/n. Clean toilet with toilet paper. Not real camping, you stay in the garden among apartments and dining room. Apu is helpful and speaks English.

September 10th, 2022 by leticiagrasselli

Beautiful place. They don’t have a kitchen with stove and refrigerator, but there are bbq spaces (grill, sinks, tables). Only one bathroom available (hot shower).

20 soles p.p.

August 18th, 2022 by Flo

Very quite and peaceful, the perfect place to relax. 20SOL per person sleeping in the van.

August 12th, 2022 by Nomad Katia

I've stayed for a week here. Great place as a base for Cordillera Blanca near Caraz. City easily accessed on foot (2,5km), simple restaurants and groceries nearby. Erik, also a motorcyclist, is very friendly and helpful. We rode together and, when my bike had issues and I needed to transport it to Lima, he offered to take it in his pickup truck. Hot water, wifi kicked on and off (average when on), very relaxing environment.

July 21st, 2022 by beats2nd.life

Best camping in a while. Clean bathrooms, hot water (especially during the day), excellent mountain view and even a Pizza oven.

We measured the gates:

The small, main gate with the bell is: 2.61m high and wide enough for any vehicle. Clearance was, at least for us with a 6m long Fiat Ducato, more challenging. While exiting we had to add some bricks and wood to avoid touching the ground.
The second gate doesn’t have a hight limitation but the road there is more narrow which might require some maneuvering. While entering we touched the ground due to the 50-80cm high, rocky „ramp“ as mentioned a few times before.

All in all an excellent campsite, once you’re in ;)

July 19th, 2022 by baptistemiaz

Great base camp for planning a tour in the cordilliera bianca and/or have a rest. We left our 2 bicycles and gear in a locked room while trekking a few days and felt very secured about it. We spent 4 peaceful nights under our tent (15sol per person per night) with access to all facilities (hot shower, electricity,…) and enjoyed beautiful view from the rooftop. Eric is very friendly and helpful. Highly recommended!

July 19th, 2022 by follow_nadle

We made it with our Ford E350 through the small entrance without problems. We paid 20 Sol p.P.p.N. and stayed for three nights. The campside is beautiful and we liked it.

June 20th, 2022 by Nomada Viajero

Wouldn’t recommended to be honest.
the place is beautiful, it has a good view but the service is terrible. the staff is insufficient for such a big place, only 3 people. I repeatedly felt negligent service. At first glance the owner Erick is kind, however he is insensitive who only thinks about money... I paid $1,500 soles for 30 days, the last day I broke my ankle and the unhappy man tells me that in 2 days I must leave. I could not believe it. I repeat, the place is beautiful, the customer service is bad and the owner is an insensitive and bad person. If you are looking for a place with a patio, green area, well located, good price and friendly staff, I highly recommend Caraz Dulzura… it’s an excellent hostel

Honestamente no recomiendo el lugar. el lugar es bonito, tiene buena vista pero el servicio es terrible. el personal es insuficiente para un lugar tan grande, solo 3 personas. en repetidas ocasiones me sentí desantendido. a primera imagen el dueño Erick es amable, sin embargo es un insensible que solo piensa en el dinero… pagué $1.500 Soles por 30 dias, el ultimo dia me fracturo el tobillo y el infeliz me dice que en 2 dias debo irme. no lo podía creer. repito, el lugar es hermoso, el servicio al cliente es malo y el dueño un insensible y mala persona. si buscan un lugar con patio, zona verde, bien ubicado, buen precio y un personal amable les recomiendo mucho Caraz Dulzura… es un excelente hostal.

April 23rd, 2022 by roamingwithromi

Beautiful property with lots of fresh vegetables and fruits. Erick is super accommodating and can help with anything you may need. No height limit, there are two entrances. Views of the mountains to the south and the snow capped mountains to the north. Hot showers and hot potable water on demand! He also brews his own beer and it's super delicious. Lots of green areas for dogs to play and fast wifi.

January 11th, 2020 by Elsionworldtour

travel with motorhome 6.90 meter.

It was not possible to cross the second door a bit down the road.

There is a bump!!! not 80 cm but high enough to damage my motorhome.

so we left.

September 19th, 2019 by ameibinns

I stayed for two nights and found it very pleasant. When I mentioned to Eric that the shower was very small he immediately offered his private bathroom. Nice fruit. Kitchen and living room if the weather is unpleasant. Very friendly.Recommended.

September 1st, 2019 by natalie.neagu

Dont understand what were the accessibility complains about.. we didnt bother to enter through the main gate because it seemed we were just on the limit (we are ~2.5m). We entered through the other gate, which has no height limit. Didnt have to jump over nothing and there is parking right there. You can also take your van further up infront of the kitchen.

This place is awesome and pleasant. You can have homemade beer for 10s. staying in the van is 15 pp.
Eric was super friendly and helpful! He took us to his mechanic (Omar) and helped with communication.

August 8th, 2019 by VictorNicolien

Nice place, we loved it. Camping for 15 soles pppn. Good bathroom with hot water. We had a decent dinner for 20 sol. They grow fruits here (I.e. blueberries, raspberries) which are delicious. Also their own Apu beer. Would recommend!

May 12th, 2019 by alain.meyere

NOT good for Big and medium rigs (mine is 7,3 long, 3m high, so does not enter to the camping. Owner proposed an other door without clearance restriction BUT your motorhome has to jump a 80cm bump, so impossible to enter, even if you succeed you are not on grass but dust and far from power....Only for small rigs and 4x4. Go to Guadalupe at the other end of the town, easy access and large flat areas. Overlanders should mention when there is restriction (high, large or any), thank you for the others...

April 4th, 2019 by b.chaski

Stayed here for two night. Probably the best place to stay in your van around Caraz and Huaraz (except free camps of course). Kitchen, and all the facilities.
15 soles pp

January 22nd, 2019 by destinovagabun2

This is a great park lace to stay before or free going to Laguna El Paron. Facilities are clean and very well maintained. They have an eco farm with lots of fruits and vegetables available, 15 soles per person, after checking in Manuel gave us as a welcome package a pint of blueberries and a pint of raspberries for free. Pet friendly, good WiFi. They even brew their own beer on site.

November 27th, 2018 by lucasetmargot

nice place, the garden is beautiful, there is a climbing wall, pizza oven, firepit. there is two kitchens but apparently one is when there are groups, so we had to use the little one on the reception/house of the gardener .. the owner is a bit lunatic and so can be friendly when he has time and not so when he is busy. but he is still helpful and know well what to do around. free laundry, and lot of space to dry them.
You can also leave your car there when hiking for 5 soles per day.

Price : 15 soles ppn

October 14th, 2018 by tiliky-trip.com

This is not a friendly place. it's just if people say hello. and they change the price once you have spent the night. the only good thing is that they can call you a good reliable taxi to get to the Laguna Paron.

c’est tout juste si les gens disent bonjour. et ils changent le prix une fois que vous avez passé la nuit. le seul point positif c’est qu’il peuvent vous appeler un bon taxi fiable pour monter à la laguna paron.

August 10th, 2018 by yuppieyen

Awesome place to stay, great facilities
Very relaxing; friendly family; good basecamp for hiking Santa Cruz trek; park your moto inside; refresh your stuff and yourself
A little bit far from downtown if you walk

February 25th, 2018 by PikiPiki Overland Blog

Really nice place! Owner Eric is a cool guy and speak English. He has small bungalows with their own kitchen and proper hot water showers. WiFi is sort of decent.
He says camping and vehicle storage is available. His place is good as a basecamp to explore the park and this area.
The lodge is walking distance to town or a motorcycle taxi cost 1sol p/p. There's some nice restaurants in town and the Mercado is a great place to visit

January 8th, 2018 by apuecolodge.com

We Have a bungalows and camping base for travellers