For the traveler blasting along the Panamerican Highway between Chiclayo and Trujillo, Pacasmayo is the cement factory on route. There is so much more to Pacasmayo than smoking chimneys and dust of the factory - the seaside town of Pacasmayo is a perfect refuge from the crazy Panamerican Highway traffic.
Pacasmayo was a very important port a century ago with a train tracks running down to the pier. People from the northern highlands would take the train from Chilete on the Cajamarca road to Pacasmayo and then a boat to Lima. The train tracks have been taken up long ago, but the station and the pier remain.
So why stay in Pacasmayo? Tranquility is the immediate word that comes to mind. Sitting on the balcony of either of the two hotels (La Estacion and Pakatnamu) on the seafront with only the sound of the waves while the sun dips, is a perfect end to a day. Fitting Pacasmayo in to a northern Peru tour is easy and beneficial. You arrive in Trujillo on a evening flight. The next day you see the main attractions of Trujillo and leave the city via the way of El Brujo. Now instead of backtracking to Trujillo, carry on to Pacasmayo.
There are sites worth visiting in the Pacasmayo area too for the traveler with time. For surf lovers, the waves are some of the best and longest in Peru. Cañoncillo is a group of lakes in the desert. For the serious archaeology lover there is the Chimu site of Pakatnamu on a bluff and the Moche pyramid of Dos Cabezas.
