Torres del Paine and San Pedro de Atacama, a unique experience
11 Days / 10 Nights - Per person on a double basis - Code VIS003
Day 01: Santiago Airport - Santiago
Reception at Santiago airport. Transfer to Hotel. Lodging.
Day 02: Santiago Airport - Punta Arenas – Puerto Natales
(We recommend the first flight to reach Punta Arenas before noon). Reception at the Punta Arenas Airport. At 3:30 pm (approximately) city tour with Museum. Transfer to bus station in Punta Arenas to take a regular bus to Puerto Natales. Arrival in the city of Puerto Natales. Lodging.
Day 03: Punta Arenas - Torres del Paine National Park Excursion
Breakfast. At 07:30 hrs. departure from your hotel to begin the full day excursion to Torres del Paine National Park where we will have a panoramic view of Paine mountains as welcome. Also we will admire lakes such as Sarmiento, Nordenskjold and Pehoe. Its fauna will be present through guanacos and foxes, among others, and a wide variety we will be able to watch during the trip. A short trek will take us to a big waterfall called Salto Grande which is part of park hidrographical net. Later, returning to the main way, we will access to the CONAF central office, to continue to the Grey Lake, where, after a 30-minute walk through a thousand-year forest, we will get to its beach to admire several icebergs coming from the glacier. A box lunch is included. The end of this day will be dropping off in a Hosteria located in the Serrano River area, natura border of the park. Accommodation.
Day 04: Torres del Paine - Grey Lake Sailing
Breakfast. Transfer at 07:30 am from the Hosteria to Grey Lake area to start a sailing trip through the Grey Lake up to get to the wonderful walls of Grey Glacier. This tour takes 3 hours round trip and depends on climate conditions. It includes menu lunch in Hosteria Lago Grey. At 15:00 hrs, return to your Hosteria.
Notes: We recomend you to take the first navigation departing at 09:00 hrs. so you will be able to walk near Hosteria by your own during the afternoon.
Day 05: Torres del Paine - Sailing down Serrano River– Puerto Natales - Punta Arenas
Breakfast. At 09:00 you will start a sailing trip down Serrano River with zodiac boats with capacity for 10 people. It includes waterproof clothes. The route is 32 kms and it lasts 4 hours. It is possible to get a beautiful view of this area not so visited such as Tyndall and Geike Glaciers, leafy native forests and several places covered with snow. Ending this excursión you will arrive to Bernardo O’Higgins National Park where there is a walk to get closer Serrano Glacier. (1 hr.) At 2:00 pm app there is a connection with a bigger vessel to return to Puerto Natales. It includes box lunch. Once in Puerto Natales, there is a next bus departing to Punta Arenas. Transfer to your Hotel. Accommodation and lodging (dinner is not included).
Day 06: Punta Arenas - Santiago
Transfer to Punta Arenas Airport, flight to Santiago, transfer to Airport Hotel in Santiago, accomodation.
Day 07: Santiago – Calama – San Pedro de Atacama / Moon Valley
Transfer to airport, flight to Calama.
Reception and transfer from the Calama Airport to your hotel in San Pedro de Atacama. In the afternoon, departure from the hotel to the Moon Valley (04:00 pm in summer / 03:00 pm in winter / 02:00 pm from May 15 to August 13, 2016; summer season begins in September 1. Subject to confirmation).
19 km from San Pedro, in the Salt Mountain Range, is the Moon Valley, declared a nature sanctuary and monument and protected by the uniqueness of its beauty. It consists of a depression surrounded by small hills with impressively sharp peaks. The tour is an imaginary trip to landscapes that do not belong in our world, but to other planets. We will see Dinosaur Valley and Death Valley, where there is a spectacular panoramic view of the area. We continue to Moon Valley, where we will find geological formations that are the result of successive foldings of the earth's crust.
In the valley it is possible to appreciate the salt sculptures known as Las Tres Marias, formed by wind erosion.
Continuing with the tour we will walk through the interior of the caves that remain from the old deposits, to get closer to valley where is the Big Dune. After a break, we will climb this dune, which impresses with its size and is used for extreme sports as snowboarding
Towards dusk, a bold palette of golds and reds appear, touching the soul and sensibilities of the visitor.
Return to hotel. Lodging.
Day 08: San Pedro de Atacama - Atacama Salt Flat and Toconao town
In the afternoon (at 4:00 pm in summer/ 3:00 pm in winter / 2:30 pm from May 15 to August 13, 2016 ; summer season begin on October 1st. Subject to confirmation) departure to The Atacama salt. We travel to Toconao in the Atacama Salt Flat. Toconao is a small Atacama town, with a church and bell tower built out of only adobe and straw, and handicraft workshops full of items like alpaca wool and cactus crafts. The protected beauty of the National Reserves will captivate us. The park contains many species of flora and fauna, some in danger of extinction. The Atacama Salt Flat is part of the reserve, and a large number of flamingo colonies have chosen Chaxa Lake as their favorite place for nesting. The geomorphology of the Salt Flat makes for a unique landscape, and with its rugged surface and difficult access, it becomes the perfect location for many species of birds.
Return to hotel. Lodging at the selected hotel.
Day 09: San Pedro de Atacama - Quitor - Tulor
Breakfast in the hotel. At 09:00 hrs. departure from the hotel.
A landscape without history loses the richness that time and people have brought to it. Therefore, on this excursion, we invite you to discover the richness of the Atacama, or Likan Antai, culture. We will gather fascinating information about who lived in the area and how they did it, from pre-Columbian to colonial times. We will learn about the customs and traditions of the different cultures that lived in the area by visiting the most notable archaeological sites such as Tulor and Pukará de Quitor. The miraculously preserved village of Tulor is the oldest remaining ancient dwelling place in the Atacama Basin, and the first human settlement, called "Cuna de los Likan Antai (Cradle of the Likan Antai people)".Pukará de Quitor, a construction from the twelfth century, was a witness to decisive historic events that are part of the local culture. We ended our trip in San Pedro de Atacama, with a visit to the church before the return to hotels.
Lodging.
Day 10: San Pedro de Atacama - Tatio Geyser and Towns - Calama Airport - Santiago Airport - Santiago
Departure at 06:00 hrs. from the hotel
We leave at dawn from San Pedro de Atacama Hotel to go to the Tatio Geysers, a geothermal center with geysers that can only be seen very early in the morning. After seeing this spectacular sight in a magnificent natural setting, we eat breakfast. On the way back, we see the majestic Andes mountain range, whose peaks seem close enough to touch. We then arrive in Machuca, a small llama herder settlement. The village is filled with adobe houses with thatched roofs. Green wetlands lend a special charm.
Transfer to Calama Airport to take the flight to Santiago. Reception at Santiago Airport and transfer to selected hotel, lodging.
Day 11:Santiago - Santiago Airport
Breakfast in hotel and transfer to airport.
End of services.