Best Guide on Visiting the Atacama Desert

The Atacama Desert is one of the most awe-inspiring places I have ever been. Located in northern Chile, it is adventurous, beautiful, humbling, and one of the most amazing places I have ever been to. The desert is the highest and driest non-polar desert. Why does it still attract hundreds of thousands of travelers every year? There are numerous geological attractions, dark sky, and much more. This is the only travel guide you will need to visit Atacama Desert and San Pedro de Atacama. I did the research, so you don’t have to! 

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Getting to San Pedro de Atacama 

Everything there is to do is either in San Pedro de Atacama or leaves from there. Use the town as your home base for your visit. Even though San Pedro de Atacama is pretty much in the middle of nowhere, getting there is surprisingly easy.  

The nearest airport is in the city of Calama. There are multiple flights each day from Santiago. The flight takes just over two hours and offers some spectacular view of the Andes Mountains if you have a daytime flight. 

Pro tip: Sit on the right side of the airplane on the way there, and the left side while returning to Santiago for the best views. 

From Calama Airport, you will have to take a transfer to your hotel in San Pedro de Atacama. These are shared transfers in a Mercedes Sprinter, or similar van. The drive takes 90-120 minutes, depending on how far down the list your hotel drop off is. The vans do not have restrooms, so be mindful of that. Be sure to book the transfer before arriving as they do fill up. 

Hotels in San Pedro de Atacama 

When I was researching hotels, I was shocked by the number of hotels and the price range. There are a ton of hotels and hostels from 1-5 stars. Picking one depends on where exactly you want to stay. 

Explora Atacama 

The only 5-star hotel in San Pedro de Atacama is the Explora Atacama. It is all-inclusive, including tours and activities, and a lot more expensive than any other accommodation. It is on the outskirts of town, so you won’t get the most authentic experience. On the other hand, you won’t have to worry about booking activities and tours. If that’s your speed, I won’t stop you but please use my affiliate link to book here. 

Terrantai Lodge 

We stayed at the Terrantai Lodge and loved it. The hotel is moderately priced and very well located. The rooms were what I would expect at a 3-star hotel, but the service and amenities were wonderful. The amenities, just to mention a few, are breakfast, wine tasting, and tea. 

I noticed a lot of other sites recommend staying a fair distance from Caracoles, the main street. Not to be mean, but I don’t know why. There aren’t any nightclubs and only a few bars. I found the town to be much quieter than I expected. I didn’t hear any noise while we were in our hotel room; however, I went during the Chilean winter, so it may not have been as crowded. 

Activities and Tours in the Atacama Desert 

There is surprisingly a lot to do and see in the Atacama Desert. All of them are at a wide range of altitudes. For reference, the town of San Pedro de Atacama is at roughly 7,900 feet above sea level. When we were planning what to do and when, we went back and forth on allowing extra time to get acclimated. Ultimately, we realized having the extra time would be good, and were glad we decided on this!  

Day 1– Arrival and Astronomy Tour 

We arrived in San Pedro de Atacama in the early afternoon. Most people rush off to see Valle de la Luna (Valley of the Moon). Instead, we walked around town and found some food for dinner. After dinner, we did an astronomy tour with SpaceObs – notorious for being the best company for astronomy tours. They do tours in French, Spanish, English, and sometimes Portuguese. Obviously, we did the tour in English. We were amazed at the number of stars that could be seen and learned a lot. 

Chile, more specifically the Atacama Desert, has the vast majority of the world’s telescopes and observatories. Deserts don’t reflect light, there is no light pollution, and there isn’t a lot of atmospheric interference because of the altitude. SpaceObs has one of the largest privately-owned telescopes in the Western Hemisphere!  

Day 2 – Valle de la Luna (Valley of the Moon) 

On our second day, we again took our time in the morning. It was only our third full day in Chile, and we didn’t know how tired we would be after traveling and staying up for the astronomy tour. This also gave us more time to eat Chilean food! 

In the mid-afternoon, we took a group tour to the Valley of the Moon. It started at the tour company which was conveniently located across the street from our hotel. 

The tour started with a short 30-minute drive to Tres Madres and included some history of the native people. We learned that a lot of the area, including parts of San Pedro de Atacama, is burial grounds. Dancing is actually against the law as it is considered dancing on the graves of peoples’ ancestors!  

From there we took a hike through the desert, including up and down a sand dune. The landscape is unlike anything else I’ve seen. I get why it is called Valle de la Luna. I wish I had a little more time to frame some pictures better, but I am still happy with what I got.  

Our last stop on the tour was at an overlook to watch the sunset. Every other tour group was there too. Unfortunately, I felt that the sunset was underwhelming, but the view was pretty cool. 

Day 3 – Flamingos, Hot Spring Lagoons, and Salt Flats 

This was our longest day of adventuring, but it was our favorite. We got picked up from our hotel at 6 AM. It was cold and still dark. At the time, we didn’t know why the early pickup was necessary even though there was a lot planed.  

As we got to the first stop, our tour guide explained why. We got to the national park where the flamingos are right when it opens at 7:00. It was important that we were the first group. The flamingos don’t like people and noise. Thankfully, our group was very quiet. Only five minutes later and we would have been in the middle of other groups. Almost on cue, the flamingos flew away to be further from the newcomers. It was so cool to see wild flamingos! 

After that, we went to the sign for the Tropic of Capricorn where our tour guide cooked up a hot breakfast. Notice I wrote ‘the sign for…”? I thought the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn had a correlation of the angle of the Sun on the Summer and Winter Solstices, thus wouldn’t move. Well, the first part of that is true. Apparently, according to the tour guide, an earthquake in 2007 was so big that it moved the Tropic of Capricorn several miles away. I haven’t found anything to substantiate the claim, but I wouldn’t say I’m an expert on the matter. Breakfast was better than expected, and we saw a few desert foxes while we ate. 

Our next stop was at two hot spring lagoons – Lagunas Minieques and Miscanti. Swimming in there is no longer allowed, but the weather made up for it. There was barely a cloud in the sky, which apparently isn’t common during the winter months. We took a relatively short hike to see both lagoons. They are at an elevation of 13,520 feet and we were starting to feel the lack of air. 

As if that wasn’t enough, we went to Piedras Rojas (Red Rocks) – a large salt flat with, as you guessed it, red rocks. Our tour guide led us on a fairly flat 45 minute hike. My pictures really don’t do it justice – it was very wide and looked like we were on Mars. Piedras Rojas is at roughly the same altitude as the lagoons, and I was definitely feeling like I wasn’t getting enough air. It was also cold and very windy, which didn’t help the matter. I can only imagine what might have happened if we didn’t build in time to get acclimated. 

This tour was definitely a long day. At some point, we stopped for lunch which consisted of salad and fresh fruit. We didn’t get dropped off until approximately 8 PM but we had an amazing time. 

Day 4 – Geisers del Tatio (Tatio Geysers) 

I was really looking forward to seeing the Tatio Geysers. At least that was my feeling until a couple of days before this. Ther were a couple of reasons my excitement waned. The first was the pick up time. We got picked up from our hotel at 4 AM! Hardly anyone stayed awake during the drive. The other reason was the weather. We were told it can get very cold there. The day before it was roughly 15’ F. The day we went the driver said it was –15′ C. My quick conversion told me that is a mere 5’ F! At least it wasn’t windy. 

The Tatio Geysers are the third largest geyser field in the world. We got to walk quite close to more than several of them. They were all steamy. I was expecting at least one to erupt like videos of Old Faithful I’ve seen. Instead, they mostly just spurtled although the columns of steam were quite high. It was still super cool to see! 

Why do Tatio Geyser tours leave so early? 

After our walk, we went to a spot that overlooks a lot of the geyser field for breakfast. As the sun rose over the mountains, we watched the sunlight shine on the geysers. I was shocked at how much smaller they got when the sunlight hits them. We were told they go to sleep, but I wasn’t expecting that much of a difference! If we were any later, then we wouldn’t have gotten the same experience. 

Booking Atacama Desert Tours 

It seemed like on every block in San Pedro de Atacama there was a different tour company. Sure, there were a lot of restaurants, souvenir stores, and some other shops. But it seemed like there was no shortage of tour companies. It may be possible to arrive in San Pedro de Atacama with no tours booked. I wouldn’t recommend it. Tours can fill up, so you may not be able to do a specific tour on the day you wanted to take it, especially if your time is limited. 

We booked most of our tours with Whipala Expedition via Viator. It was happenstance that they were almost all with the same tour company. Everything about Whipala was great. They were very nice and the tours were fun. However, no tour company is perfect. I asked an employee at Terrantai Lodge. They told me they don’t recommend one over another as they have heard good and bad things about every company. 

Restaurants in San Pedro de Atacama 

I think one of the most surprising things about San Pedro de Atacama was the food. Despite it seeming like a very touristy town (and in many ways it is), the food was amazing and very reasonably priced. Our most expensive meal was only $35 per person, not including drinks and tip!  Here’s all of the restaurants I recommend. 

Las Delicias de Carmen 

Las Delicias de Carmen serves authentic Altiplanic and Chilean dishes. I got a traditional soup with meats, a native hominy-like grain, corn, potato and onion. It is very similar to caldo de res. It was so good that I could have eaten it every day. 

Pulperia Atacama 

I was more than a bit skeptical when we were recommended to go to an Italian restaurant in the middle of a desert in South America. We read a couple reviews and decided to try it. It was a short walk from the hotel and we were able to get a table right away. After only a short glance at the menu, we knew we were in for a treat! I nearly had to wipe my eyes to make sure I wasn’t seeing anything. The restaurant makes their own pasta! 

La Picada del Indio 

La Picada del Indio is across the street from Terrantai Lodge. I usually try to avoid restaurants so close to a hotel, but this one did not disappoint. They have a daily menu that comes with an appetizer, entree, and a side. Everything on the daily menu was CLP 8500 which is a little more than $9.20.  

Baltinache 

Baltinache is one of the more expensive restaurants in San Pedro de Atacama. When we went it was CLP 34,000 (~$37). Even though it is a nicer restaurant, there is no dress code. Reservations are required via WhatsApp at +56 9 7821 4807. There is a fixed three-course menu (appetizer, main course, and dessert); each person chooses one from two options for each course. My partner ordered butternut squash soup, and shrimp risotto. I got a pesto caprese, and red meat for my main course. We each got a rich chocolate mousse with blueberry compote.  

I couldn’t fully understand what our server was saying about my entree — I just know I wasn’t familiar with the meat I got. Sensing my confusion, our server described it as kind of like lamb. After dinner, I figured out what it was. It was a short time after eating that I learned you shouldn’t always look up what you’re eating. I was served guanaco (prounounced: wanAko). It looks like a cross between a deer and a llama, and very very cute. I felt bad, but it was delicious and very similar to lamb! I’m sorry!

Definitely try to go to Baltinache. I really cannot recommend it more. It should be at the very top of your list.

Drink Lemonade 

I very rarely will tell someone to order lemonade when they go somewhere. What people get to drink is none of my business. The lemonade San Pedro de Atacama (and possibly elsewhere) is unlike the lemonade you’ll get in the States. It is freshly made to order. Each restaurant makes it slightly different, but it is much more like a thick agua fresca typically with a lime or mint garnish. I got it at Pulperia Atacama and was completely hooked! 

Other Need to Know Things About San Pedro de Atacama 

We had such an amazing time in San Pedro de Atacama and the Atacama Desert. There are a couple of things to know before going. There are very few paved roads in San Pedro de Atacama. Things will get dusty… very dusty. No matter how much and how well we brushed our shoes off, there was still a layer of dust on them. In fact, mine still have some desert dust on them months later. Plan ahead for this — it’s just part of the experience. Bring laundry bags to keep dirty clothes away from clean clothes.  

Another thing about San Pedro de Atacama, and other nearby towns, is that toilet paper is not flushable. Bathrooms are furnished with a small trash can near the toilet to put used TP in. All of the hotels I listed above have housekeeping that will empty the trash can, but there are some in San Pedro de Atacama that requires guests to empty it. No thank you on that one! 

My Overall Thoughts 

The Atacama Desert is an absolutely amazing place. It is so diverse that I almost felt like I was in a completely different place every day. I wish I could say everyone should go. However, it is a fairly physically demanding destination. Aside from the altitude, there is a lot of walking without an ample number of places to sit and take a break.  

It is also somewhat of a “one and done” destination. That being said, it was one of my favorite things to do when I was in Chile, but I don’t feel the need to go again. I am also glad we went during the winter seasons. Even though parts of my trip were cold, it gets very hot during the summer, and I didn’t see a lot of places with air conditioners. 

If you feel like you are able to go, then you definitely should put the Atacama Desert on your “must see” list. You won’t regret it!