3 days in San Pedro de Atacama desert and Altiplano

San Pedro de Atacama desert & the Altiplano | Chile

Best things to do in San Pedro & best tours to visit the Altiplano

San Pedro de Atacama in Chile is one of the country’s most visited towns with more than 300,000 tourists a year. It is in fact, the main getaway to the Atacama desert and the starting (or ending) point of a 3 to 4-day trip onto Bolivia through the astonishing Uyuni salt flats.

San Pedro de Atacama is the best place to base yourself and discover landscapes and natural wonders you might never see elsewhere.

From holding a meteorite to going stargazing, braving minus degrees to see geysers and feeling breathless in front of surreal lagoons and snow-capped mountains, here is our itinerary for a successful 3-day tour of San Pedro de Atacama and its surroundings.

Visiting San Pedro de Atacama on a budget

Let’s face it, Chile isn’t a budget-friendly country to visit compared to cheap places such as Bolivia or Colombia. San Pedro de Atacama isn’t an exception and discovering its surroundings on a budget isn’t easy.

In fact, the best attractions are quite remote and if you don’t have/rent a car or join a tour, you are bound to miss spectacular places such as the highest geyser field on Earth or the bright colours of the Piedras Rojas and the Miscanti lagoon.

It is true these natural wonders can also be seen on the Bolivian side, but we think these are so unique and beautiful that it would be a shame to miss them. Unfortunately, many backpackers prefer to skip these places to focus only on the Moon Valley and Death Valley or the town itself.

Tips to keep it budget-friendly in San Pedro de Atacama

We are the first ones to try to save up on everything, and if you have followed us for a while you must know how we always try to do things on our own.

However, at this altitude, we didn’t feel like cycling in the middle of the Atacama desert, nor renting a car and taking the risk to drive lightheaded at 4,200 mals by -10°c…

No, sometimes you have to spend the money because what’s there to see, is the main reason you are travelling for! To help you keep your budget under control, here are a couple of tips:

• Stay in hostels and cook at least one meal with local products from the market (at your accommodation)
• Take a couple of hours to compare all the tour agencies (prices, program, security, etc.);
• Pick a few tours but pick them well;
• Pay your tour by credit card to void the ATM fees;
• Don’t go out or drink alcohol (best for the altitude sickness anyway!)

Rent a car in San Pedro de Atacama

If you are a group or can team up with other travellers, we would recommend renting a car (or even a campervan). This way you can visit the area in total freedom and save on tours (and accommodation). It is also the best way to avoid the crowd, visit places that aren’t part of tours or take your time at each attraction.

Where to stay in San Pedro de Atacama

On a budget

Mid-range and luxury stays

The 3-day itinerary we recommend

This itinerary takes into consideration the different elevations of the places to avoid altitude sickness and let you acclimatize correctly. We have done these activities and here is an example of what we would recommend if you only have 3 days in San Pedro de Atacama. Feel free to change it and add more days if you can!

• Day 1:
  • Arrive in the morning by night bus and check-in at your hostel
  • Walk around town and compare the tour agencies + book the tours
  • 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm: The Moon Valley
• Day 2:
  • 6:30 am to 2:00 pm: The Altiplano Lagunas
  • Afternoon: Visit the meteorite museum or take a free walking tour of the town
• Day 3:
  • 4:30 am to 12:00 pm: El Tatio Geysers field
  • Night bus to the Chilean coast or Argentina
  • or take a stargazing tour, sleep in San Pedro and start your 3 to 4-day tour to Bolivia the next morning
• Extra day?
  • Cejar Lagoon, cooking class, Salar de Tara, Domeyko Mountains, Puritama hot springs

San Pedro de Atacama, what to do in the town

San Pedro de Atacama is a small town of fewer than 4,000 people, built-in an oasis near the driest desert in the world outside Antarctica. Its centre is organised around a couple of unpaved streets where you’ll find the main accommodation, restaurants, bars, shops and tour agencies.

The rest of town is as you would imagine any other remote village to be, sleepy and without much touristic interest.

Despite the sheer number of visitors San Pedro hosts, the town has kept its red dusty roads and adobe houses. Ignore all of the advertising signs and you can easily imagine yourself in a western film, expecting cowboys and sheepherders to pass through.

Join a free walking tour

To learn more about the area, join a free walking tour (tips based) that is run twice a day by young volunteers.

The afternoon tour focus on the history of the town and the Atacama people who have lived in the area for more than 11,000 years. The morning one is more about the San Pedro de Atacama as of today.

The tour took about 2 hours and was really worth it if you have a couple of hours to spare or are tired of walking the same roads over and over!

The meteorite museum

The meteorite museum is the perfect place to learn more about the space objects found by local enthusiasts.

Situated in a large tent just outside of the town, the museum displays meteorites that have been found in the Atacama desert and provides plenty of information about their formation in space.

You’ll even have the chance to touch a real meteorite and learn how to identify one! Definitely worth an hour and the small entrance fee of CLP 2,500 per person.

You can also join an astronomical tour.

The Moon Valley | Valley de la Luna

• Best price found in San Pedro: 10,000 CLP (€14) per person
• Valley of the Moon at Sunset – pre-booking online: €30

Only 5 km away from San Pedro, the moon valley (Valle de la luna) is the closest part of the Atacama Desert that can be visited. This rough serrated landscape is made of rocky hills covered in salt and in the background, the horizon is dotted by fuming volcanoes culminating the crazy altitudes of more than 6,000 meters above sea level.

Most Valle de la Luna tours offer the same itinerary. First, the guide takes you along an easy trail up to a hill where you have an incredible view of the “Anfiteatro“. Then, you hop back in the minivan towards the “Tres Marias“ from where you are given the opportunity to walk back and take a glance from a different angle at this incredible lunar landscape.

The 3-hour tour ends at the “Coyote Mirador“ to watch the sunset with a small appetizer included.

Visit Valle de la Luna differently

You can also rent a bike to visit the Atacama desert on your own. It is cheap and also a good way to avoid the crowd as most of the tours start at the end of the day for the sunset.

Cost: CLP 5,000 to 10,000 depending on the agency. Ask your hostel if they offer that service too.

Be aware the weather can be hardcore in this part of the world and strong winds (or even rain) may oblige the rangers to close the park for a couple of days or advise against cycling around.

The Altiplano Lagunas and the Piedras Rojas

• Best prices found for this one-day tour to the 4 Lagunas and Piedras Rojas: 20,000 CLP (€28) + 5,500 CLP (€8) entrance fees
• 3 days combo with all the places described below – Pre-booking online: €160 – park entrance excluded

1. Laguna Tebinquiche and the Atacama Salt Lakes

The “Laguna Tebinquiche” is only a 30-min drive from San Pedro. Here you can get a proper look at the famous Chilean Flamingoes where they migrate every year to feed and breed. There is a small trail you can follow to get closer and get a beautiful view of the surrounding peaks reflecting into the lake.

As you walk around you will surely notice you are actually walking on salt. The Laguna Tebinquiche, as well as the Lagunas Cejar, Piedras, Chaxa and Barros negros, are all part of the Atacama Salt Flat!!

Each agency has its preference as to which Laguna to visit. They are more or less all the same, but some offer the possibility to take a plunge and float at the surface like in the dead sea. Check the Lagunas Cejar and Baltinache for that activity.

2. Lagunas Tuyajto, Miscanti and Miñiques

The Lagunas Miscanti and Miñisque are located at high altitudes, within the Flamingo National Park. They are probably the most beautiful lakes we have had the chance to see. They are both included in any “Altiplano” tours, but the Laguna Tuyajto is often left out despite being only a few minutes away by car. Make sure to check if your agency plans on stopping there, it is really amazing.

Still, today, as we look at photos we are blown away by the deep blue of the lake, the yellow bushes, the red soil and the highland volcanoes topped by snow. Not the type of landscape we get to see every day.

Be aware

– At this altitude (3,200 metres above the sea level), the level of oxygen is limited which can impact your body as it cannot work at much as usually. You will need to take it easy and drink a lot of water. Do not run and keep taking large breaths in and out.
– The lack of oxygen is amplifying by the low temperature and the very cold wind. Make sure to bring clothes for minus temperature and sharp wind.

3. Piedras Rojas

The Piedras Rojas (Red Rocks) is an amazing place where you feel so small, but it is truly beautiful.

During our visit, it was so cold that the greyish “laguna Salar de Tara”, rimmed by uneven red rocks, was covered by a thin layer of ice and snow.

Look out for the Vicuñas

On the way back to town, we stopped a couple of times to watch Vicuñas running around. They are one of the 4 types of camels that can be found in South America.

Contrary to the Guanaco, the other wild camel that lives at low altitudes, the vicuña wanders the highlands, always above 3,000m. It is an endangered species that was once hunted for its wool.

Impossible to domesticate unlike its cousins the llama or the alpaca, the vicuñas had been hunted for centuries before the Chilean government prohibited it.

Vicuña wool is considered the warmest, the finest and the most expensive wool in the world.

El Tatio Desert

• Best price found in San Pedro: 33,000 CLP (€46.20) + 5,000 CLP (€7) entrance fees
• Online booking of the El Tatio tour – €34 (entrance fee excluded)

On day 3, we left town at 4 am to see the sunrise at El Tatio Geyser. This Geyser is the world’s third-largest geyser field and the largest geothermal area in the southern hemisphere. This was certainly the coldest sunrise we have ever encountered…  At 4,280 masl, you can expect minus temperatures. That morning we were welcomed by a nice -11°c! But the strong wind made it feel a lot worse.

To warm ourselves up we undressed and took a plunge in the thermal river that was really warm and also a bit crowded. Bring your swimming gear. You can change on site.

Finally, the tour stops at the little village of Machuca, where you can visit a small church and try llama! We bought a skewer and really like this meat for breakfast. All the tours stop here more or less at the same time, so be ready to queue. 4,000 CLP (€4.20) per llama skewer.

Salar de Tara

• Best price found in San Pedro: 40,000 CLP (€56) – refunded due to cancellation of the tour

The “Salar de Tara” is a desert within Los Flamencos National Reserve. From there, you are near the tri-border where Chile, Argentina and Bolivia meet. Located at 4,300 masl, the Salar de Tara is promising incredible rock formations and unique landscapes.

We never made it…

At the end of our stay in San Pedro de Atacama, it started pouring rain… But, when it rains a 2,400 m, you can imagine that it snows at 4,000 m. In the morning we were told that the tour may not go ahead if the roads were closed by the police. However, at the checkpoint they let us go through. We had the green light, which meant the weather was supposed to be okay. Well, not really. After only 40 minutes of driving, rain and then snow started to fall.
As we drove further up, the snow became thicker and soon enough we couldn’t continue. Our guide asked the driver to turn the van back toward San Pedro de Atacama and the tour was cancelled. The story unfortunately doesn’t end here. As the driver began to reverse and turn, the van started sliding sideways down the hill.
With a ditch on one side and a large drop on the other the driver had no choice other than reversing slowly down until we could reach a flatter part of the road. It took some serious driving skills and around 40 minutes until the car could turn and drive normally!

Cejar Lagoon

Cejar Lagoon is a very beautiful Laguna close to San Pedro de Atacama. You are allowed to swim in the lagoon and because of its strong concentration of salt, you float like in the dead sea!

You can mix this outing with the Ojos del Salar and sunset at the Laguna Tebenquiche for less than €40. Check the tour here.

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About the Author

Jen is the Funder, Author & Photographer behind Talesfromthelens.com

Jen has lived for the past 15 years across Oceania and Ireland while also travelling in Latin America, North America, and Europe. She has visited more than 65 countries and set foot on every continent in the world! She is a coffee nerd, passionate about photography, wildlife, and outdoor activities.

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