Arica, the coast before the altiplano

What it is

Arica sits at the far north of Chile, a Pacific port at sea level, and a traveller has two reasons to come. One is the Chinchorro culture, a society of fishers and gatherers who artificially mummified their dead, and whose mummies are seen here, on the site where they were found. The other is that the altiplano starts from Arica, and the city is where you sleep low before climbing.

It is a two-night destination: one for the museums and the Morro, one for the beach, with the climb into the mountains as a separate decision. What is worth knowing before you arrive is which museum closes on which day, and which of the attractions in the guidebooks cannot be visited today.

The Chinchorro culture

The set "Settlement and Artificial Mummification of the Chinchorro Culture" has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2021, in three components: the Faldeos del Morro and the Colón 10 Museum, in Arica, and the mouth of the Camarones river, in the neighbouring commune. The Chinchorro lived on this coast between about 7,400 and 2,840 years ago, and practised the oldest artificial mummification known. It is Chile's seventh site on the list.

For a traveller this comes down to two visits that complement each other. The Colón 10 Museum is the site itself; the Azapa Museum holds the collection.

Colón 10 Site Museum

The Colón 10 Site Museum is in the old town, in an early twentieth-century house turned into an exhibition room. The mummies lie in situ, as they were found: a collective cemetery about 4,000 years old, with the bodies laid out, without grave goods, and some with a clay mask. The adobe wall of the first building can be seen to the left of the entrance. The find came in 2004, during a rescue excavation, when the owner of the house told the Azapa museum through the Carabineros.

There are audio guides, a restroom, accessible routes and services in other languages. You walk there from the centre, which makes it the best first stop of the day. It closes one day a week and on a few fixed holidays: check the calendar before counting on it.

San Miguel de Azapa Archaeological Museum

The Azapa Museum is the university museum of the Universidad de Tarapacá, founded in 1967, and it holds the big collection: the Arica Prehispánica, Chinchorro and Ayllu rooms, with the mummies, textiles, basketry and an exhibit on growing the Azapa olive. The tour covers about ten thousand years and includes the Tiwanaku and Inca cultures.

It is in the Azapa valley, at kilometre 12, twelve kilometres from the centre. You get there by taxi or colectivo from the centre of Arica, though no fare or line is published. One museum rule to keep in mind: the uncovered faces of the mummies are not shown, and flash photography is forbidden.

If the day only has room for one of the two, the order is Colón 10 first, because it is in the centre, and Azapa when you have a free morning with transport.

The Morro

The Morro is a coastal hill of about 130 metres, a National Historic Monument, and its summit is the city's lookout. At the top are the Historical and Arms Museum, a small plaza with monuments and the Christ of Concord. You go up by car from Sotomayor street, or on foot along the path that starts at the end of Colón street, a few steps from Colón 10.

It suits the end of the day, with the bay below. There is parking, guided visits and an accessible restroom.

The beaches

In Arica you swim where there are lifeguards. The Port Captaincy cleared three beaches for last season, El Laucho, La Lisera and Chinchorro, and the municipality opens the season by decree each summer. This year's season is confirmed with the municipality, because what has been published covers the previous one.

The flags are green, yellow and red. With a swell alert you do not enter the sea, go to the rocky stretches or use beaches that are not cleared. In an emergency, the Maritime Authority's number is 137.

What is closed

The Anzota Caves are not open: the road is blocked because of the risk of landslides and nobody knows when they will reopen. They are twelve kilometres from the centre and have no public transport, so there is nothing to do there for now. Leave them out of the plan, even if the guidebooks still list them.

The Quebrada de Cardones Natural Monument, on the road to the altiplano, is 65 km from Arica along the 11-CH. It has no visitor service or infrastructure, and only takes groups arranged in advance.

Climbing to the altiplano

Arica is at 2 m, and Lake Chungará at 4,500. That gap shapes the trip: the city is where you sleep low, and the high ground is left for after two nights. There is a full-day tour to Lake Chungará from Arica, with a driver-guide and hotel pickup, that passes the Quebrada de Cardones, Putre and the Cotacotani lagoons. It only runs if a minimum number of passengers gathers, so book with room to spare and ask whether a group already exists for your date.

It is a way to see the altiplano without changing beds. Whoever wants more than a glimpse sleeps in Putre, 149 km along the same road, and the guide to Putre tells what is up there.

Where it is and how to get there

From Santiago there is a direct flight to Arica. Chacalluta airport is 18 km from the centre and connects with the city by taxi, private transfer or rental car.

To Putre you climb along route 11-CH to the east, and there is no petrol station on the road or inside the parks: leave with a full tank. Without a car, ask at Arica's bus terminal whether there is a service to Putre and which days it runs.

Money and services

Fill up in Arica: on the way to the altiplano there is no petrol station, neither on the road nor inside the parks. Colón 10 and the Morro have restrooms and accessible routes, and Colón 10 offers audio guides.

When to go

The beach has its season with lifeguards, opened each summer by municipal decree. The museums run all year with their closing days. For the altiplano, ask the tour operator which dates it runs.

How to split the days

Two nights are enough. The first day is for museums: Colón 10 in the morning, the Morro at the end of the afternoon, and lunch in the old town between. The second splits between Azapa, in the valley, and a beach with lifeguards. If the trip continues to the altiplano, the order is coast first and altitude after, never the other way round.

The three museums close one day a week: count that day when you plan the two you have.

Itineraries

The five-day route through Arica and the Parinacota altiplano puts the two low nights in the city and then climbs towards Putre, Lauca and Surire.

Where to sleep

Sleep in the centre: Colón 10, the start of the Morro path and the old town are all on foot. For the altiplano, the night up high is in Putre.