5-day route Iquique - San Pedro
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- 5 days
- 4 nights
- 11 places
From Iquique to San Pedro in five days, climbing from the coast to the desert: the nitrate works, Paranal Saturday and two long bus stretches counted for what they are.
This route is ordered by a day of the week and by altitude. Paranal receives public visits only on Saturdays, so day 1 has to be a Thursday: Iquique on Thursday, the bus to Antofagasta on Friday, Paranal on Saturday and, from Sunday, the road to San Pedro. If your week does not start on a Thursday, the whole route shifts or loses Paranal.
Altitude rises with the map. Iquique and Antofagasta are on the coast, Calama is above 2,200 m and San Pedro sleeps at a similar height. That is why the nights are Iquique, Antofagasta, Antofagasta and San Pedro, and the coast goes first. San Pedro's high excursions, such as El Tatio and the lagoons, go above 4,000 m and do not fit into the last day: they need days of their own in the town. What to bring for the altitude is for your doctor to decide, before you buy the ticket.
What to decide before leaving
The Paranal visit is registered online and has limited places. The observatory provides no transport, so you need a rental car or a transfer you arrange yourself, and it has to be settled before fixing the Saturday.
San Pedro sells almost all its tickets online, with no ticket office at the gate. With one morning in the town, the only thing this route asks for in advance is Tulor, which is requested by email.
Chuquicamata is not included. Its tour is requested by email from Codelco, is only run two days a week, and the days the route passes through Calama do not coincide with them. If you prefer the mine to Paranal, the week is built around the tour days, and Antofagasta stops justifying a night.
The two bus stretches
From Iquique to Antofagasta it is 416 km and from Antofagasta to Calama, 211. These are the days when moving is the main thing: count on arriving, dropping the bags and little else. Without Paranal, the day 2 bus continues to Calama on day 3 and the route gains a day on the altiplano.
Day 1
Iquique and the nitrate works, the coast first
The day below. Humberstone and Santa Laura are 48 km from the city and take most of the day; the centre and its museums are done on foot, before or after. A single ticket, the Humberstone one, is valid for both sites, and the water on the site is not drinkable: bring your own. The airport is 45 km from the city, to the south, so book the transfer before landing. If the flight arrives late, Humberstone moves to day 2 before the bus: confirm what afternoon departures there are.
Stop 1 · 1 night
Humberstone and Santa Laura nitrate offices
The two nitrate offices are the reason to come to Iquique. They are seen in a single outing, with a single ticket.
48 km east of the city. The Santa Laura ticket is bought at Humberstone and is valid for both sites.
Stop 2
Museo Corbeta Esmeralda
One of the two museums in the centre, for the afternoon left over after the nitrate works.
The two museums in the centre close on different days of the week: check before building the afternoon.
Stop 3
Museo Regional de Iquique
The second museum in the centre, on foot from the first.
Check the day before going: it is not open all week.
- Getting around
- Transfer booked from the airport to the centre; on foot around the centre. To Humberstone, 48 km to the east, by rental car. Without a car, ask in Iquique whether there is an agency or a transport service that goes, and confirm the return before leaving.
- Where to sleep
- Iquique
Days 2–3
From Iquique to Antofagasta, the bus day
A transfer day, and it counts as one. It is 416 km, with at least two departures a day, and each company sells its own separately, so confirm the last departure before buying and choose one that leaves you in Antofagasta with daylight to drop your bags and go out for a walk. Book today the car or the transfer for tomorrow: Paranal Saturday depends on it, and at the observatory nothing can be arranged at the last minute.
Stop 1
Bus from Iquique to Antofagasta
The north's long stretch: 416 km of desert between the two cities, and there is no better way to do it overland.
At least two departures a day. Each company sells its own ticket.
Stop 2 · 2 nights
Museo Ruinas de Huanchaca
The Huanchaca ruins, which are also a museum, for the last light of the day if the bus arrived early.
Closed one day a week and on several public holidays: check which before counting on it.
- Getting around
- Bus from Iquique to Antofagasta, from the rodoviario terminal to the bus terminal. From the terminal to the accommodation, by taxi.
- Where to sleep
- Antofagasta
Day 3
Paranal, the Saturday that orders the route
The day the week starts on a Thursday for. Paranal is 120 km south of Antofagasta, at 2,635 m: it is the first time the route really climbs, and you come back down to sleep. The visit has two shifts and limited places; the first forces a pre-dawn departure and the second leaves the morning free. Registration is online only and is done before leaving home. There is no bus or transfer from the observatory, and there is no fuel out there: fill the tank in the city. If the place does not come through, day 3 becomes the bus to Calama.
Paranal Observatory public visit
The desert observatory, on a guided visit that is only held on Saturdays. It is the reason Antofagasta has a second night.
Limited places, with online registration. Children under 4, people with pacemakers and pets are not admitted, and the tour may be cancelled for bad weather. If you travel with a child of that age, decide whether Paranal fits.
- Getting around
- Rental car, or a transfer you organise yourself, to the observatory. You do not go inside with the car: it is left in the car park and the tour continues on the visit's bus.
- Where to sleep
- Antofagasta, the same night
Day 4
Antofagasta, Calama and arriving in San Pedro
The second long bus stretch, plus the last hop: 211 km to Calama, which is already above 2,200 m, and 100 km on paved road to San Pedro. What has to be sorted before leaving is the second: confirm how you leave the Calama terminal for San Pedro and until what time there are departures, before buying the ticket from Antofagasta. Calama is a stopover, and Chuquicamata falls outside this week. You reach San Pedro with the day already spent: the afternoon is for finding your bearings and sleeping low.
Stop 1
Bus from Antofagasta to Calama
The second long stretch, 211 km, and the one that takes you above 2,200 m.
At least three departures a day; it arrives at Calama's new terminal.
Stop 2
Calama and route 23 to San Pedro
Calama is the gateway to San Pedro and not a place to stay. What matters is how you continue: it is 100 km on a paved road, done by bus, by transfer or in your own car.
Confirm where it leaves from and until what time there are departures. Transvip coordinates at its airport counter: ask whether it picks you up at the terminal.
Stop 3 · 1 night
Town of San Pedro de Atacama
The first day in San Pedro is for staying low, without going up on any high excursion. Arrive, walk around the town and sleep.
There is no fuel outside the town.
- Getting around
- Bus from Antofagasta to Calama, from the bus terminal to the new terminal. From Calama to San Pedro, along route 23, confirm whether there is a bus, transfer or taxi from the terminal: the Transvip transfer has its counter at the airport.
- Where to sleep
- San Pedro de Atacama
Day 5
San Pedro in the morning and a flight to Santiago
Departure day, and the flight rules. With an afternoon flight, the morning is enough for a short visit: the Aldea de Tulor, which is requested by email before leaving home. With a morning one, the day is only the transfer. El Tatio, the lagoons and the Valle de la Luna need days of their own in the town, and several of their tickets are bought online before arriving. The Valle de la Luna is bought a day ahead and has Tuesday closures: confirm the dates when you buy. Laguna Cejar sells a single ticket for its two lagoons, with an assigned day and time.
Stop 1
Aldea de Tulor
An ancient village visited with guides from the Coyo community. It is one of the visits done low down, without climbing.
Only with prior booking by email to comdecoyo@yahoo.com, and it is open Monday to Friday. It has no published fee: ask when you write, and how to get there.
Stop 2
El Loa Airport
Calama's airport, 6 km from the city, with direct flights to Santiago.
There are several departures a day. Before choosing the return time, confirm what the transfer's last departure is.
- Getting around
- Transvip transfer to Calama airport, booked beforehand and with the departure confirmed for the day of your flight. It is 100 km on paved road.
- Where to sleep
- Return flight to Santiago
Map
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