Tour package

Shared tour from San Pedro de Atacama to the Salar de Uyuni, 3 Days

Tour 3 days, shared tour, from San Pedro de Atacama/to Uyuni (or return to Calama)

Description

This shared tour in small international group (max. 4 person travelling together) takes you on an impressive offroad adventure from northern Chile to southern Bolivia, and will allow you to experience the natural wonders of this stunning region. From the famous Atacama Desert you will go on an adventurous four-wheel drive tour to explore the colorful highland lakes, populated by hundreds of flamingos, up north to the unique nature attraction: The «Salar de Uyuni».
We also want to highlight the creativity of our programs (including community tourism activities, and the visit of touristy unknown cornes of the salar), the quality of our service and, thanks to our partnership with the Tayka hotel – desert lodges – the best hosting on this offroad route. We work with the best drivers and the best vehicles, with standard equipment including oxygen, and for any emergency satellite communication.

Program (short):

Day 1: San Pedro de Atacama – Hito Cajon – Ojito de Perdiz (- / L / D)
Day 2: Ojito de Perdiz – Tahua (B / L / D)
Day 3: Tahua – Uyuni (here ends the shared tour SP-UYU) – Overnight in Uyuni (B / L / -)
Day 4: Uyuni – Calama (- / – / -)

Day By Day

First day
In the morning transfer from San Pedro de Atacama in Chile to the Bolivian border at Hito Cajon. You will be pick up by our Bolivian driver and guide at the Bolivian / Chilean border so-called Hito Cajon. Not far from the frontier, within the Bolivian territory, is already waiting for you the first highlight of the Nature Reserve Eduardo Avaroa; the turquoise shiny «Laguna Verde» located at the foot of the majestic volcano «Licancabur». After a stop you will travel through the Bolivian desert into the valley «Valle de las Damas del Desierto» or also know by the tourists as the «Salvador Dali desert» called over the rocks formed by the wind erosion and weather, unique in their shape and placed scattered in this vast desert. Subsequently, you will pass the ¨Salar de Chalviri¨ to reach the hot springs of Polques in which you will enjoy a relaxing bath surrounded by majestic landscapes. After this relaxing activity you will arrive to the geyser «Sol de Mañana», a spectacle of hissing steam columns, located at almost 5,000 meters above sea level. In the heart of Eduardo Avaroa Nature Reserve you will reach with the absolute highlight of this southern desert region; the ¨Laguna Colorada¨, with legions of flamingos waiting to be photographed. Then you will visit the «Arbol de Piedra», a stone figure created by wind erosion finally reaching the Siloli desert from where you sighted your hotel located right in the middle of a desert-style landscape. Overnight in the Hotel Tayka del Desierto (- / BxL / D).

Second day
The bouquet of colorful highland lagoons are waiting for you today!. The colorful mountain lakes: Cañapa, Hedionda, Chiarkota, Honda and Ramaditas where you can spot a large number of flamingos or other birds of the area will give the opportunity to take amazing photographs!. On the shore of these lakes you will enjoy the view of the currently active Ollague volcano whose peaks are often covered with a snow cap in the desert sky. For lunch we will stop in San Pedro de Quemes at the Hotel Tayka de Piedra. After a short walk through the ¨Pueblo Quemado¨ (burnt village) we will finally enter to the biggest highlight of your tour in Bolivia: the ¨Salar de Uyuni¨, the largest salt desert in the planet with approximately 12,000 km². You will cross the salt lake from north to south, passing the Campanas islands enjoying «white» landscapes with salt crystals that provide optical illusions. Here at the foot of the Tunupa volcano you will find a place not visit by the conventional tourism despite the incomparable beauty of its landscape. There is a visit to the ruins know as the «Pucara de Ch’jini» which have several hundred years of history and are testimony of an ancient fortress with residential buildings, storage reservoir, guard posts, etc., you will then reach the «Cathedral» trough the light climbing of a narrow to enjoy an exposed lookouts who opens an unforgettable view of the salt lake. You will finally arrive to the village of Tahua where the Hotel Tayka de Sal is located (B / L / D)

Third day
Who does not want to miss a very special spectacle, get up early in the morning to admire the unique sunrise over the Salar! You will return to the hotel for breakfast. Enjoying the view at the flanks of the Tunupa volcano you will ascend to visit the cave and the mummies of Coquesa. From here the Salar lies literally at your feet. And because it is so beautiful and hardly to describe, today you will also have the opportunity again to enjoy the landscape of the Salar itself, crossing the Salar de Uyuni from north to east. Here you will visit the Incahuasi Island which is located in Salt Lake and is completely covered by a forest of giant cacti. A short trail takes you across the island where you can admire the centuries-old cactus that rise up to 12 meters into the blue sky. From the peak of the island you have a 360 ° viewpoint of the entire Salt flat.In the afternoon you will leave the Salar at Colchani where you will come near to the shore where the salt mounds are piled up to dry and are a sample of the method of salt processing in this region. You will visit one local family that’s runs a micro enterprise based on the salt to know, how the local ecomony works, based on a cooperative local model. At your arrival to Uyuni you will enjoy a short tour to the train cemetery. Arrival to Uyuni. (B / L / -)
END OF SERVICES IN UYUNI (3D/2N tour SPA-UYU)
Fourth day
Overnight in Uyuni. (B / L / -)
Transfer in the early morning at 04:00 am from the hotel to the bus station. Bus trip from Uyuni to Calama. (the Border crossing process in Avaroa / Ollague can take some times up to 2 hours). Arrival to Calama in the afternoon around 15:00 (- / – / -) .

Services

List of hotels:
1N: Hotel Tayka del Desierto, Ojo de Perdiz
1N: Hotel Tayka de Sal, Tahua
1N: Hotel Tambo Aymara, Uyuni (incl. in our tour SP-CALAMA, 4D/3N)
Meals included:
2x Breakfast
3x Lunch
2x Dinner

Services included:
– Logistical support and on call emergency services are available 24hs.
– Transfer from San Pedro de Atacama to the chilenean-bolivian border at Hito Cajon (driver only)
– Driverguide in Spanish language highly specialized for travel in the region (from Hito Cajon to Uyuni
– Shared Transportation in 4WD (max. 4 passengers per car), equipped with satellite communication
– 2 o 3 nights in a double room according to the program selection with destination Uyuni or Calama
– Meals as described in the itinerary (B= Breakfast, L= Lunch, D= Dinner).
– Local taxes
– Statutory taxes and fees
Not included:
– Beverages
– Entrance fees
– Guide in another language other than Spanish
– Travel insurance, tips or other expenses of personal nature
– All services not mentioned in the program