The Atacama Desert is genuinely one of my favourite places in the world. The nature is so insane. When I reached the Atacama region, I really felt like I’ve landed on the moon or Mars. It was so unreal and there are barely words to describe this beautiful region.
While you can do many activities and tours in San Pedro Atacama, I’ve listed my favorite 5 for you guys that I really recommend. I came to the realization that I had to make choices those few days, because the tours were overprized, and I wasn’t planning on renting a car.
Full discloser: 2 out of 5 tours I didn’t do. The reason for this was again, budget, but also the wrong season. Winter had arrived and a few tours were not available unfortunately. So, I recommend planning your trip to Chile in the summer.
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1. Valle de la Luna – Moon Valley
Valle de la Luna is just 30 minutes of San Pedro de Atacama. As soon you enter the valley it is easy to understand where the name comes from. You can see large white rocks on the floor and giant red cliffs on both sides. In between of this spectacular view there is one road where you can drive your car or bike.
Our first stop was at Cuevas de Sal, a place made out of soft salt and sandstone rock. Because this rock is made out of salt and sandstone, it literally washes away when it rains. This means that the scenery changes every year.
From Cuevas de Sal we drove through the middle of the Valle de la Luna to a place called the Amphitheatre. This is a huge red rock that ‘sticks out’ from the earth and looked like you just landed on Mars. Which is without a doubt one of the best views I’ve ever seen.
We finished the tour by watching the sunset from the Coyote viewpoint, which is on the way to Calama, not far from San Pedro. The cliffs were a bit busy because everyone finishes their tour there. I was a bit disappointed to leave the cliffs directly after the sun went down, this way we couldn’t adore the best part of the sunset. Nevertheless, it was worth the view anyway.
You can easily book a tour to Valle de la Luna online. (This one is somehow more cheap than all the tour agencies offer in town). You can check out more Atacama desert tours where you can combine different tours if you have little time in Atacama.
Are you a more active person? You can also visit Valle de la Luna and do some active canyoning and trekking.
- The tour to Valley de la Luna costs around 35.000 CLP + 10.000 CLP entrance. (46 USD)
- The approximate duration of the tour is 4 hours, between 2 – 6 PM.
- Includes transfer, guide and wine and snacks.
- I booked this tour through Casa Voyage Hostel.
In general a lot of people visit Valle de la Luna by bike. It’s cheap, easy and only a 30 min ride from town. I choose the comfort of a tour because it was freezing cold and of course and also because I’m the laziest person ever. People are always shocked when I tell them that I’m from the Netherlands and never ride a bike. Sorry for not being active daily, people.
2. Valle del Arcoíris – The Rainbow Valley
Valle del Arcoíris and the Petroglyphs are perhaps the least visited place in the Atacama Desert. The more reason why I particularly highly recommend this place.
After a one-hour ride van San Pedro de Atacama and a delicious breakfast, your first stop will be the Petroglyphs. Here you can find a series of rocky house carvings that have left relief images of guanacos, foxes, men and cross-legged shaman.
It’s the best site for seeing cave paintings in the whole region and it’s not hard to see how these carvings have been so well-preserved. It’s worth considering the indigenous groups who survived in such a hostile place when you’re admiring these incredible etchings.
After the Petroglyphs you will visit Valle del Arcoíris. Here you can see multicoloured rocks that weave through a series of hills through the river basin of Río Grande. They are hued in mint green (this is copper), red (clay and iron) and splashes of white (calcium carbonate).
This extraordinary geological formation was created by the high temperatures and the pressure suffered by the rocks at the time when volcanic lava was still radiant.
We barely saw other tourists during this visit, which made it even more special. If you want to find things to do in the Atacama Desert far away from the gringo trail, then a trip to Valle del Arcoíris is definitely recommended.
- The tour to Valle del Arcoíris costs 35.000 CLP + 10.000 CLP entrance. (46 USD)
- The approximate duration of the tour is 5 hours, between 8 AM – 1 PM.
- Includes transfer, guide and breakfast.
- I booked this tour through Casa Voyage Hostel. You can also easily book a tour to Valle del Arcoíris online.
3. Laguna Escondidas – The Escondidas Lagoons of Baltinache
This is the one tour that I didn’t do because of winter. I saw these lagoons many times on Instagram and of course I wanted the perfect Instagram shot in the water. But it was way too cold to swim, so for me it would be kind of a waste of money to only see the lagoons and not swim.
But I promised myself to go back, because there is many more that I’ve missed and want to see.
The lagoons are located almost 60 km from San Pedro de Atacama. The lagoons consist of a system of seven lagoons connected underground, which are located in the middle of a salt flat, so they have a very high salt level. On the premises, there is a path that can be followed to visit all the lagoons. However, only the first and last lagoon are enabled for bathing.
There are a few tips that I want to give you guys that I found on my research when planning to visit and are very important to know:
- The lagoons can be visited on your own, but there is no public transport to the lagoons. You need a car. However, the way to get to the lagoons is not in good condition, so I would recommend renting a 4×4 vehicles. Being an experienced driver is also important.
- The easiest way is to book a tour, BUT with a tour you will only be able to stay 1 hour in the lagoons, which is not enough time to get to know the place well.
- Because of COVID the showers are not available. Bring a bottle of water to rinse yourself. The salty water is going to eat your skin if you don’t.
- The lagoons are open between 9 AM and 5 PM. Make sure you bring a towel and swim clothes.
- The tour to Laguna Escondidas costs 35.000 CLP + 10.000 CLP entrance. (46 USD)
- The approximate duration of the tour is 4 hours, between 8 AM – 1 PM.
- Includes transfer and a guide.
- You can easily book a tour online to Laguna Escondidas online.
4. Tour Astronomico – Astronomic tour
The tour begins with enjoying the night with a glass of wine, some snacks and music around the fireplace. After a nice relaxtation the group will be split in half to make astro pictures one by one or with couples. These pictures are included in the price. You can download the pictures approximately 3 weeks after the tour. The tour guide will send you a link.
After the photoshoot in the freezing cold the tour guide will give a geographical explanation of the sky and its constellations, and then continue with the observations such as the craters of the Moon, the rings of Saturn, the clusters of stars, galaxies and other wonders of the Universe.
This tour allows anyone, even if they do not know anything about the subject, to know, while observing through telescopes, the rest of the unexplored places in the Universe.
I learned a lot about the constellations, such as reading the map of the sky and recognizing the main stars. They have a laser pointer with impressive power (it looked as if it touched the same stars), with which they pointed out every point in the constellation that we were talking about at each stage of the tour.
Tip: wear warm clothes.
- The Astronomico tour costs 27.000 CLP. (28 USD)
- The approximate duration of the tour is 4 hours, between 8 PM – 12 AM.
- Includes transfer, guide, pictures, wine and snacks.
- I booked this tour through Casa Voyage Hostel. You can also easily book the Astronomico tour online.
5. Piedras Rojas – Red Stones
Piedras Rojas is a long drive from San Pedro de Atacama and will take you a whole day to visit.
Surrounded by a ring of volcanoes, Las Piedras Rojas are an expanse of red-hued rocks that look like a set of huge natural cobblestones.
You can walk on top of this weird natural formation while watching the gentle lapping of the neighbouring saline lake and the blinding white of the Salar de Talar, a much smaller and cleaner salt flat.
- The tour to Piedras Rojas costs around 75.000 CLP. (76 USD)
- The approximate duration of the tour is 10 hours, between 8 AM – 6 PM
- Includes transfer, guide and breakfast and lunch.
- Unfortunaly this tour was not available on the days that I was in San Pedro de Atacama. You can also easily book the Piedras Rojas online.
Practical tips
How to get to San Pedro de Atacama?
The easiest and fastest way to travel to San Pedro de Atacama is by plane. The closest airport to Atacama is located in Calama, which is around 100 km (1,5-2 hours by bus) from San Pedro.
If you are coming from Bolivia or Argentina, the best way is to travel by bus. There a buses from Salta, Argentina and La Paz, Bolivia that will take you straight to Calama. However, keep in mind that these buses can take up around 30 hours. Not a trip that everyone wants to do.
When you arrive at the airport of Calama, many agencies offer transfer to Atacama. The prices are overall the same. If you want to have everything planned beforehand, it’s also possible to book your ticket in advance on Redbus or Busbud.
Where to stay?
Accommodation in San Pedro de Atacama is very expensive, even by Chilean standards. If you have the time and don’t carry a lot of luggage, you can walk around town and compare prices. If not, Hostelworld has a lot of cheap option when you don’t mind sharing a room.
However, there are many great accommodations in Atacama within everyone’s budget.
Hostal Montepardo is the perfect place if you want to have your own space and comfort. This cute, pink place is a 10-min walk from town has an outdoor terrace and a view over the Licancabur Volcana. The room includes breakfast
Price: 116 USD.
Rafa’s house offers a bit of everything. Dorms, private rooms and familyrooms. This cozy place feels more like home than a hotel. It’s very central and most of the tim sold out.
Price: 19-70 USD
Casa Voyage is cozy hostel that is a 10-min walk out of town. They offer both private and shared rooms. They have a patio and a fireplace where you can hang out.
Price: 21-88 USD.
Where to book the tours to the Atacama desert?
When you arrive in Atacama, walk down town and you will see many tour companies that basically sell the same tours for the same price. Some are cheaper, some are more expensive. You can ask what the differences are.
If you have little time in Atacama, I recommend booking your tours online. For example, there are tour companies who offer 4 tours in 3 days. Perfect if you don’t have the time to plan and compare everything yourself.
How to prepare your trip to San Pedro de Atacama?
Many of the excursions and tours include visiting places that are 3,500 above sea level. This means that you mayexperience altitude sickness. It is important that you drink lots of water to keep the body well hydrated. Let your body get used to the heights and the altitude. If you are not feeling well: always tell your tour guide or someone at the accommodation you are staying at.
The Atacama desert is easily top 3 most beautiful places on earth I’ve ever been. I highly recommend making a detour to this amazing place. You can read more South America blogs here.
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