Important: Wikitravel is exploring a license upgrade to CC by-sa 3.0, please give your consent or refusal here.

From Wikitravel

Plaza

San Pedro de Atatcama is a town in Northern Chile. It is a very popular destination among Chilean tourists and international visitors alike. Visitors come in large numbers to use the town as a stepping stone to the amazing landscapes around it. Prices in any of the laid back bars and restaurants compare with a normal western European city, compared with the relatively low cost of staples and services in most other Chilean towns, due to the high number of tourists.

[edit] Get in

There are several buses per day, operated by TurBus and other carriers, to Calama (1.5 hours, about 3 USD) and onwards to Antofagasta (4 hours, $6000). At the Calama airport, which offers service to/from Antofagasta and Santiago via LAN and Sky Airlines, you may rent a car, hire a Taxi, or buy a ticket for the shuttle bus (about 14.00 USD). Buses from Santiago de Chile, Arica and Iquique to Calama are offered by many bus operators. Only Tur Bus goes to San Pedro de Atacama. The direct one from Santiago to San Pedro de Atacama takes 24 hours and prices ranges from 33000 pesos to 68000 pesos. (Prices of July 14th 2008) Check their website. Another possibility is to get from Santiago by bus via Calama. Then hours of departures are more frequent and won't land you in the middle of the night in San Pedro...

To/from Uyuni, Bolivia, has several options:

• There are occasional direct transport at $15.000, 8 hours, -ask around at the agencies.
• Train or bus from Calama.
• Do a 3 days tour, see Get out-section below. San_Pedro_de_Atacama#Get_out

To Argentina :

• Bus gemini runs 3 times a week (Sunday, tuesday and fryday) to San Salvador de Jujuy for 28000 pesos but they fill up fast and even if you book as soon as you get to town you might get stuck in town for a couple days
• You can get a ride with the truck drivers going from the coast to Jujuy. Truck companies policies prohibit drivers from taking passengers but some, like Fabimar Trucks, will do it for around US$40. Show up early in the morning on the parking lot next to the customs, truck drivers spend the night there and leave as soon as the border is open. You need to find a ride before the border officer agrees to give you the exit stamp on your passport. Argentine formalities are done after the paso de jamma.

[edit] Get around

Once in the town, nearly all points of interest, restaurants, services, are within walking distance, with the exception of a few outlying hotels.

[edit][add listing] See

[edit][add listing] Do

Salar de Atacama

• Horseriding or cycling around San Pedro, but make sure you choose your ride leader from a stable and not one of the many agents in town. Follow old Inca trails, sandstone canyons, cycle out to the Valle de la Luna or the Valle de la Muerte.

• Dozens of identical firms will offer to whisk you off in a transit van or jeep to "take pictures" of the landscapes. Watch out for campsite owners trying to over charge you.

• Wake up early to visit El Tatio geysers - be warned, it is extremely cold - ice on the inside of the bus windows is neer a good sign - so wrap up warm. It is more than worth the cold however. If you are feeling brave you can also take a dip in the hot springs there, although they would have been more aptly named 'tepid springs' when I visited!

• Be sure to check out the book of complaints in the tourist office on the plaza before handing over cash to a travel agent.

[edit][add listing] Buy

There is a kind of city market just beside the police station in the main plaza where you have the church and Sernatur office. You can find almost anything on this market. If you are going to El Tatio and Lagunas Altiplanicas, you may want to buy some Coca tea to get yourself prepared for the altitude.

If you go all the way inside the market, you'll end up in a street, turn left and a few meters away you find the Turbus office where you can buy tickets to Calama and where buses pick up passengers.

[edit][add listing] Eat

• Solcor, Calle Calama (Across from Colque Tours). Perhaps the cheapest lunch in town, -moderate quality. Set lunch $1500.  edit

Aside from the many restaurants and bars catering to tourists, there is a line of small cafes behind the bus station/taxi area north of town, which seem to serve more local customers, and may be an interesting and cheap alternative to the relatively expensive fare near the town center. To reach this area, walk through the alleyway of the central covered market, and continue through the parking lot towards the small line of restaurants with simple outdoor covered seating. However, a good grasp of Spanish may be useful in feeling comfortable ordering and eating in this area.

[edit][add listing] Drink

[edit][add listing] Sleep

Be careful of giving your credit card details over the phone to ¨guarantee¨a reservation. Some hostels, including Hostal La Ruca, have been known to charge unauthorised amounts to credit cards.

• Hostal Terracota - Tocopilla 517: is a good place with affordable prices and friendly owner. All rooms have private bathrooms. Give it a try.

• Hotel Licancabur - address unknown: despite short but favorable Lonely Planet writeup, lack of amenities makes it unfavorable. Private rooms, some with private bathrooms. Hot water was rare, even when requested specifically; water altogether was sometimes inexplicably absent.

• Eden Atacameno Toconao. Pleasant courtyard with hammocks, free internet, usable if not fantastic kitchen, shared showers not great, but decent value for San Pedro. Accommodation in matrimonial, twin and triple rooms, with or without bathroom. Bedrooms slightly chilly at night in the winter.

• Residencial Casa Corvatsch, Calle Gustavo Le Paine. Free, slow Internet in the lobby. Outdoor, basic kitchen. No breakfast. Staff are extremely rude and unhelpful and enforce a number of strict rules including kitchen closing times at 830pm and internet shutdown at 7pm making the stay uncomfortable. Despite staying 3 nights they refuse to store luggage which is very unconvienient for those with evening buses. NOT recommended if you plan on visiting the geyers and leaving San Pedro on an afternoon or evening bus that same day due to refusal of ANY services or luggage storage upon arrival from the tour, expect to be promptly sent out into the street, luggage in hand. Television in communal reception only available to the child of the family. Dorm bed $5000.  edit

[edit] Contact

Internet Access - at least 5 or 6 internet access cafes can be found around the town center, and charge competitive rates for use. However, the town seems to be rather poorly linked to the national network, and past experience has shown that the connections speeds are often frustrating. One exception is the EntelChile office right on the town square, which to little surprise, has among the fastest and most reliable connections at only slightly more expensive (or equal) to other internet cafes.

[edit] Cope

• Exhange rates in San Pedro are mostly terrible, especially for Bolivian currency. Exchange no more than the very essential.
• There is one ATM just off the main square that works with Mastercard, and another far down Calle Caracoles that works with Visa. Both are slightly unreliable, though.

Be warned. Some residents don't take kindly to their town being taken over with tourists and will spike your drink with mescaline out of spite. If this happens just keep calm and wait for the drug to wear off. Keep warm and eat sugary foods if possible. The best prevention is to be respectful and not leave your drink unattended.

[edit] Get out

[edit] Day trips

Laguna Miscanti

Many day trips are offered by all of the local agencies. The activity office "Cosmo Andino" is one agent which offers well-run and very reliable trips on most of these activities, at a slightly higher price than most others. These locations are worth a visit, and it's hard to get there if you don't have your own car, so paying to go there in the mini-van is an option.

• Salar de Atacama - a salt plain with flamingos, rather crowded because all minivans seem to arrive at the same time
• Lagunas Altiplano - trip to two beautiful lakes in the altiplano at 4200m altitude
• El Tatio - This tour is a trip to see geyser fields northeast of the town, and often includes a simple breakfast at the geyser area, swimming in a thermal pool, and drives among wildlife (such as flamingos and llamas) and rustic areas on the return journey. One disadvantage is that tours invariably leave at very early hours, sometimes as early as 4:30am, in order to reach the thermal area around sunrise, reputed to be when the steam is most dramatic in contrast with the cold air. This entails an approximately 1.5 hour van ride in the early morning, which is sometimes less than enjoyable on bumpy dirt roads when one is still sleepy. The altitude of the geyser area is high and temperatures can be very cold in the morning, and it is suggested to bring aspirin to mitigate headaches, warm clothing covering the head, or evaluate the risks for those who may be susceptible. For those who have visited Yellowstone before, the area is similar but less dramatic and extensive, and may not seem quite worth the cost and inconvenience of such an early departure and long journey. A typical tour price as of October 2006 was approximately $40 per person.
• Valle de la Luna - most agencies offer trips beginning around 4pm until sunset, where you can spend a short time in this amazing area. The trip consists usually of a bus ride to several vantage points overlooking the dramatic landscape, perhaps a walk through some salt canyon areas and caves, and sometimes the very enjoyable experience of sliding down sand dunes. The tour usually finishes with sunset-watching over the dune in the national park, and travels back to San Pedro just after sunset. It is possible to rent a bike and cycle to the Valle, as it is only about 13 km from San Pedro, but be sure to have lighting with you to return safely after sunset. It is also possible to do a 50km bike tour from the village via a some of beautiful valleys to the Valle de la Luna. The typical tour price as of October 2006 was approximately $10 per person, not including park entrance fee of ~$4.

[edit] By car

Valle de la Luna

Alternatively, rent a car in Calama, the town one stop before San Pedro. With a 4x4 you can visit some very remote sites with live volcanoes, the salt plains, geysers and hot springs. Bring a spare.

Be advised that you may end up in real trouble if your car breaks in the middle of nowhere. It can turn into a death risk situation.

It is pretty easy to get lost in the desert. Renting a car and going around all by yourself is not for everyone.

[edit] Into Bolivia

El Tatio

A handful of agencies offer 3 days/2 nights tours to Uyuni. It does not really matter who you book with, as they mostly join forces (at least in low season) and fill up their Land Cruisers with people from other agencies. The going price (USD 100, April 2008) is some 40% higher here than in Uyuni, even though the itinerary is identical, only reversed. There is the advantage of there usually only being a few Land Cruisers at each site since you see things at different times of day to tours originating in Uyuni, where there can easily be a hundred tourists at each stop.

Accommodations are quite basic, with frequent lack of (hot) water and electricity. Meals are filling but hardly gourmet and vegetarians may find themselves a little lacking in protein - bring plenty of snacks as supplies en route are extremely limited. If your tour agency does not provide water, ignore them when they tell you it is easy to buy on the journey - in our experience it was not, you are best off bringing it all from San Pedro (at least 2l per person per day, although at that altitude more would be good).

A sleeping bag and plenty of warm clothing are essentials, it gets very very cold at night.

The first night is spent at Laguna Colorado, at 4370m, so it is advisable to at the least spend several nights in San Pedro to acclimatise before taking the trip. Even then, altitude sickness and acute mountain sickness are considerable risks - take the usual precautions, and if you have any reason to be particularly worried about altitude consider taking the tour from Bolivia instead, where you will have far more opportunity to acclimatise to high altitude beforehand.

It is essential to get a written itinerary from the agency, specifying all sights in the order they are to be visited, and also meals and accommodation (whether shared). Some costs may not be included: Bolivian immigration, entry fees for national parks and museums.