Huacachina sandboarding, on real snow gear.

From there the buggy carries the group into the dunes, and you choose a snowboard or skis for the runs. The listing includes a 3-hour dune buggy ride, a certified instructor who speaks Spanish and English, and a follow cam that films your runs.

The light changes as the evening goes on. The last runs come as the sun drops toward the crests, and the outing ends on top of a dune with a bonfire, snacks and cocktails while the sky turns orange. It is the hour the dunes are famous for.

The Huacachina sand dunes are the attraction. PromPeru describes sandboarding here as riding down dunes up to 100 m high, and says the dunes are considered among the highest in the region. The lagoon and the desert around it form a Regional Conservation Area.

The name comes from the legends. In Quechua, Huacachina means weeping woman, and one story says the lagoon formed from the tears of a green-eyed woman mourning her beloved. In 2017 The Telegraph ranked the oasis among the world's 21 most stunning destinations.

Guests also praise the videos and photos the guides take of every run, the panoramic views over the dunes, and the end of the tour: the fire, the pisco and cocktails, the snacks and the sunset. More than one compares the buggy ride to a roller coaster.

The honest notes are about the buggy and the group. One guest found the driver too fast over the dunes, and another wrote that the group was larger than the listing's limit, spread over several buggies. Read those alongside the rest; they are the exceptions in a long run of glowing reviews.

Rain hardly exists here: the station records 10.6 mm of precipitation in a whole normal year. PromPeru names February and March as the best time to visit, when it is warmer, and calls the oasis a good destination all year.

For a sunset session, the season changes only what you wear. In the southern summer the evening on the dunes is warm; in the winter months, bring a fleece for the bonfire. The sand is rideable in every month of the year.

Peru's tourism board takes a clear line. PromPeru tells visitors to stay away from dune buggy services, because the activity is currently neither regulated nor officially supervised, and asks them to put their safety first. We repeat that advice here in full.

If you book, take it seriously. Wear the helmet and goggles in the kit, keep your arms inside, and say clearly if you want the driver to slow down. Our dune buggy guide sets out what the listings show about safety and what you can check yourself.

Two costs sit outside the price: accident insurance and the Huacachina conservation area tax. PromPeru lists the entrance rate for foreign visitors at PEN 8.10, so carry some soles in cash.

Pickup is included from your hotel in Huacachina or Ica, the 2 pickup options the listing names. If you arrive by bus in Ica the same afternoon, give yourself enough time to reach your hotel before pickup; the group meets 30 minutes before the start to fit the gear.

Save your own camera for the quiet moments. The sunset from the top of the dunes is one of the most photographed sights at Huacachina, and the light is soft and warm for the last hour. Shoot the bonfire against the evening sky, and the riders as silhouettes on the crest.

Wipe the lens often and never change a lens in the wind. A bandana over your mouth helps on the buggy, and the kit includes one along with goggles. After dark, look back down at the lights around the lagoon below.

Long trousers save your legs on a fall, and a light long-sleeved top protects you from the sun on the buggy. PromPeru's essentials for the area add warm-weather gear and a windbreaker jacket for the evening.

Leave valuables at the hotel. Sand gets into every open pocket, and a phone zipped into a pocket or a small bag is far safer than one in your hand. Bring a little cash for the entrance rate and a tip for an instructor who taught you to stand up.

The instructor speaks Spanish and English, and the group is limited to 10 participants. Guests who had never skied or snowboarded write that they learned quickly, and several say the groups were split by skill level.

Start on a gentle slope and move up to the bigger faces as you gain confidence. Falls are soft on sand, but tiring: getting back up on a steep slope takes effort, and your legs will feel the evening the next day.

For a free sunset, climb a dune on foot from the shore. Walking the dunes at sunrise or sunset shows the landscape at its best, and PromPeru suggests a picnic in the desert beside the oasis with your own basket. Sandboarding equipment is also for rent at the resort.

After dark the lights of the businesses around the lagoon come on and the mood turns festive. By day, Ica's wineries and the Paracas coast are within easy reach; our guides cover both.

Know the limits. By its own terms the outing is not for anyone with back trouble or limited mobility, for wheelchair users, for people with epilepsy or an existing medical condition, for babies under 1 year or for anyone over 70. And the buggy ride comes with PromPeru's advice against dune buggies.

If you only want a quick slide and the sunset, a shorter buggy tour with sledding costs less, starting from $23. If you want the boards to be the point of the evening, this is the version built for it.