Day 1. Arica – Lauca – Parinacota – Chungara – Putre National Park
Meeting with the passengers at the hotel. Departure of the Tour at 09:00 hrs. We will know the Valley of Lluta. We will appreciate the candelabra cactus and the magnetic zone, we will visit a pre-Inca fortress in Copaquilla, lunch in Zapahuira. We will visit a foothill town Socoroma 3000 meters above sea level. Putre viewpoint, to then begin to overcome the 4000 masl barrier in the Bofedal de las Cuevas where we will hike for 40 minutes. On the way we will see wild vicuñas, vizcachas and we will know bofedales, the base of the ecosystem in the altiplano (Mirador Bofedal de Parinacota). We will be able to admire a great variety of birds such as the pitios del norte, guallatas, coots, among others. We will admire the Chungara Lake and the Cotacotani Lagoons. Visit to the town of Parinacota. Return to Putre at approximately 6:00 p.m. Dinner and accommodation.
Day 2. Putre – Salar de Surire – Isluga Volcano National Park – Colchane
Departure from Putre at 08:00 hrs. approx. Breakfast Bofedal de las Cuevas (4310 masl). Later visiting Ancuta and Guallatire, two highland towns over 4000 meters above sea level at the foot of the active Guallatire volcano. Arriving at the Salar de Surire at 12:00 hrs. approx. We will visit Chilcaya making a walk of approximately one hour, to photograph the flora and fauna in this National Monument; then we go to the Polloquere Hot Springs at 4270 masl, picnic and bathing in this place. Departure towards Mulluri – Arabilla Viewpoint, Enquelga. We will visit the Isluga Volcano National Park, where we will see its church and abundance of bofedales. Arriving in Colchane at 7:00 p.m. approx. Dinner and accommodation.
Day 3. Colchane – Cariquima – Huara – Iquique
Breakfast at 08:00 a.m., we will visit the giant cacti of Río Grande, and then we will arrive at the town of Cariquima, famous for its skilled artisan weavers for centuries. We will go down towards the La Felicidad ravine and stop at the Victoria Viewpoint, a beautiful view of canyons and volcanic rocks. Visiting then the Chusmiza and Pachica Viewpoints, the latter on the edge of the Atacama Desert. Then we continue to Cerro Unitas to observe the largest Geoglyph in the area "El Gigante de Atacama". We will have lunch in Huara and then visit the Humberstone saltpeter mines, arriving in Iquique at 5:00 p.m. approx. Dinner and accommodation.
Day 4. Iquique – Pintados Geoglyphs – Quillagua – San Pedro de Atacama or Calama
From Iquique, after our breakfast we will leave towards the desert, to visit the Pintados Geoglyphs that contain approximately 400 figures in 66 panels that represent men, animals, birds and abstract drawings. We will leave from this place crossing the Pampa del Tamarugal National Reserve to later arrive at the small town of Quillagua, an oasis next to the Loa River with crops and a town, where a church and the railway station stand. Quillagua Customs. Lunch. To then cross the desert until you reach Calama or continue to San Pedro de Atacama (2438 MASL).
Day 5. San Pedro de Atacama – Salar de Atacama – Altiplanic Lagoons – San Pedro de Atacama
Breakfast at the Hotel. Departure from San Pedro de Atacama at 08:30 hrs. We will head south to the town of Toconao, an oasis on the edge of the Salar de Atacama. We will continue on our way to the town of Socaire (3218 masl), to go up to the Miscanti and Meñiques Altiplanic Lagoons located at 4350 masl within the Los Flamencos National Reserve, one of the 5 zones protected by CONAF. Return to Socaire for lunch. After lunch we will go down to the edge of the Salar de Atacama to visit the Lagunas de Chaxa, brackish lagoons where Chilean, Andean and James flamingos feed. Return to the hotel in San Pedro de Atacama. Dinner and accommodation.
Day 6. San Pedro de Atacama – Pukara de Quitor – Tulor – Valley of the Moon – San Pedro de Atacama
Breakfast at the Hotel. Departure from San Pedro de Atacama at 08:30 hrs. We will leave in the direction of Pukara de Quitor, an impressive Atacameño fortress from the 12th century. Later we will visit the village of Tulor, it is the oldest residential vestige in the salt flat (800 ac) it is made up of circular enclosures interconnected with each other. There is a replica of them in the surroundings, which allows us to contextualize this visit in situ. Visit the Padre Le Paige Museum, it is the most important in the north. Lunch in San Pedro de Atacama, in the afternoon excursion to the Valley of the Moon. Departure from San Pedro at 4:00 p.m. Approximately towards Valle de la Luna, a protected sector of the Los Flamencos National Reserve. It is a folding area of the Cordillera de la Sal that at sunset allows you to see shade and colors in the Atacama desert. We will walk through an area of caves from a large dune of 500 meters. To observe the sunset from that height. Return to the hotel in San Pedro. Dinner and accommodation.
Day 7. San Pedro de Atacama – Calama or Airport
Departure in the direction of Geisers del Tatio at 04:00 a.m., to arrive at this geothermal field, one of the most important in Chile, at 07:30 a.m. With the dawn we will witness the emanations of water, gases and steam, coming from mother earth; breakfast. On the way to Calama, we will pass through the picturesque towns of Caspana, Chiu – Chiu to have lunch in the town of Lasana. Transfer Airport or Calama.
The tour includes:
Accommodation:
1 night in a hotel/hostel in Putre (according to availability).
1 night at the Refuge in Colchane.
1 night in a hotel/hostel in Iquique.
3 nights in a hotel/hostel in San Pedro de Atacama.
Feeding:
6 breakfasts in Putre, Surire (CONAF), Colchane, Pica, San Pedro.
7 lunches (Ecotruly, picnic in Parinacota and Polloquere, Surire, Huara, Quillagua, Socaire, San Pedro de Atacama, Lasana).
3 dinners in a restaurant in Putre, Colchane, Iquique, with wine included.
Soft drinks and mineral water without gas.
Fruits, coffee, cookies.
Guide:
Experienced guide/driver in English.
Vehicle:
Minibus (van) with oxygen equipment.
Others:
Tickets to San Miguel de Azapa and Padre Le Paige Museum, Jurasi and Polloquere Hot Springs, Valley of the Moon, Miscanti and Meñiques Lagoons, Chaxa Lagoon.
Walks in Socoroma, Bofedal de las Cuevas, Cotacotani Lagoons, Salar de Surire, Chaxa Lagoon, Valley of the Moon.
Minimum number of passengers per vehicle: 01.
Maximum passengers per vehicle: 06.