Tour to the Uyuni Salt Flat, starting and ending in San Pedro de Atacama with transportation, accommodations in hostels and meals.
Start: Day 1 at 7:00 am at your hotel in San Pedro de Atacama.
End: Day 4 at 1:00 pm in bus station or downtown San Pedro de Atacama (this end time could be modified due to weather conditions or force majeure reasons, which is why we recommend you leaving San Pedro de Atacama the day after the end date of the tour).
Day 1: The pickup will be at your hotel and then we will head off to the border crossing between Chile and Bolivia in our shared transportation. Here we will go through customs and border procedures and then begin the tour in our private transportation that includes a visit to the Verde and Blanca Lagoons and the Polques Hot Springs. Then, we will continue on to the Sol de Mañana Geysers and the Colorada Lagoon before getting to our hostel.
Day 2: We will leave in the morning to discover a place called Italia Perdida. Here we will be able to see a number of volcanic rock formations in the middle of the Altiplano. We will also explore the Vinto Lagoon and we will make a stop to see the Anaconda Canyon at a lookout point from where you can see a river in the shape of this Amazonian reptile. After this, we will go to our hotel to have dinner and get some sleep.
Day 3: We will start the day very early in the morning to enter the Uyuni Salt Flat and get set up in a superb spot to see the sunrise. After giving a warm greeting to the sun, we will cross the endless white stretch of the salt flat until reaching Incahuasi Island. We will be able to explore the trails and climb up to the highest part of the island where we will have a 360° view of the salt flat. Then we will visit the Salt Museum and the Dakar Monument, and we will leave the salt flat to visit the town of Colchani. In addition we will pass by the Train Cemetery to go over the place and take pictures. We will pass through Uyuni before continuing on our trip to where we will spend the night.
Day 4: This day is dedicated solely to the return trip from Uyuni, which is why we will leave very early from the hotel to get on the road to the border. Here we will go through the corresponding procedures and then continue in shared transportation to San Pedro de Atacama, where we will end the tour.
*The pickup service included does not operate to nor from accommodations located outside the urban area of San Pedro de Atacama, accommodations located in ayllus near San Pedro de Atacama (Quitor, Yaye, Checar, Sequitor, Solor, and Coyo), nor accomodations in the town of Toconao.
Altiplano winter
From January to April, a weather phenomenon occurs that is known as Altiplano winter, which is the rainy season in the central Andes. Due to this, the described itinerary may be modified as follows:
Changes due to force majeure
These are referential itineraries. The route to get to the salt flat, the places visited, the indicated order and the end time will always be subject to change according to weather conditions, road conditions, unforeseen events and accommodations availability. The itinerary is confirmed in the briefing given by the supplier the day before the start of the activity. However, the itinerary still could be modified due to the occurrence of the aforementioned situations once the tour has already begun.
The vaccine against the yellow fever is demanded for all passengers who don't come back to San Pedro de Atacama and that hace to pay tourism visa in the border (passengers that present a travel document from a country of the group II).
Depending on the nationality of the passenger. Passengers from Chile and the rest of South America, and passengers from Western Europe do not need tourist visa, while passenger that come from United States, Central America, Asia, and Africa do need tourist visa that costs U$ 160. This visa is obtained directly in the border, where along with the payment of the visa in cash, you need to present your passport and other documents. In case you are a foreign person resident in Chile, besides your passport, you need your ID card with you so you can prove your residence with the police authorities in customs.
Yes, but only in English. The English-speaking driver service has an additional cost of US$ 150 per group. You can select it as an optional service during the booking process.
The activity is made on a minibus in Chile and on a 4x4 (Toyota Land Cruiser) in Bolivia, with capacity of maximum 6 people each.
Because of the hotel high demand in the area, we recommend you booking at least one or two months in advance.
Hostels have private double room, with private bathroom, hot shower and heating in common areas.
The tour is made in the Altiplano area, at an altitude above 9,842.5 ft. Just with this, our body is submitted to an abnormal stress, which can cause discomfort and risk in people with the conditions mentioned in the restriction’s section. Moreover, the tour does not have health insurance and there are not health centers to treat this kind of situations in a proper manner on the route.
The mirror effect occurs when there is water on the salt flat. This happens only in rainy periods (January and February) and after them (March).
The meals are varied, and includes tea, coffee, bread, cookies and fruit for breakfast, and meat, pasta, rice, soup and vegetables for lunch and dinner. In case you need a vegetarian menu, you must mark your preference during the booking process.
We recommend to bring at least Bs. 500 per person for expenses not included in the tour, as entrances to parks, border tax, access to toilets and water.
The accommodations have sockets type C, compatible with the types E and F. Anyway, our recommendation is that you carry an adapter to avoid any inconvenience.
Each passenger may carry at most one bag or suitcase of 15 kilos which will go above the 4x4. Because it will be outside the vehicle, it is recommended to take a bag rather than a suitcase, as suitcases are fragile and could be exposed to potential damage. If you do choose to bring a suitcase, it must a maximum size of a cabin suitcase (55 x 40 x 20 cm).
The tour has confirmed departures all days of the week, the whole year.
