7-Day Best of Salta & Atacama - Humahuaca, Salt Flats, Moon Valley, Tatio Geyser

Welcome to Salta! Upon arrival you will be driven to your hotel. Enjoy the rest of the day to explore the city. Salta is the selected jumping-off point for travelers seeking to explore the North of Argentina. From here, you can visit the most outstanding natural monuments of the area: the Humahuaca Gorge, or the Seven Colours Hill in Jujuy, a bordering province which is also famous worldwide. (Bear in mind that this is a stress-free hub: la siesta (mid-day nap) is kind of a religious ritual for locals, which means that between 1 pm and 5 pm shops are usually closed).

Today you’ll travel to the clouds—no exaggeration! We’ll pick you up at your hotel to start a two day trip to Purmamarca and the Great Salt Flats, a white solid ocean, 13000 feet above sea level! On this full day trip we’ll travel along the same route of the famous Train to the Clouds, zigzagging on lonely roads between the blue sky and the high desert plains. On our way, we will visit historic ruins and small scattered villages.

Our first destination is the small town of Campo Quijano, best known as the Gateway to the Puna.

Later, we will visit the impressive Quebrada del Toro, a natural wonder where human-sized cactus stand in a backdrop of eroded peaks which emerge from the golden sand like giant fingers. Here we’ll stop for a refreshing coffee break.

We’ll keep on traveling to Santa Rosa de Tastil, a pre-Incan city of the XIII century, and right after, to San Antonio de los Cobres, the HQ of the Pachamama (Mother Earth) Celebration. The “salty” cherry on top will be the surreal landscape of the Great Salt Flats. The natural light and reflections provide perfect opportunities for endless photo fun. Test your creativity! And be careful of where you put your feet: there are artificial water pools in the area.

At the end of your adventure in the Great Salt Flats we’ll take you to your hotel in Purmamarca, located at the base of Jujuy’s famed Seven Color Hill.

We’ll pick you up early in the morning and take you on an adventure to the Humahuaca Gorge, declared a UNESCO Heritage Site. Humahuaca Gorge is home to a bunch of natural amazing monuments like the Seven Color Hill, the Pucará de Tilcara (a ramshackled yet well restored native fortress), the Paleta del Pintor (Painter Palette) at Maimará village, an impressive multi-colored mountain range. You’ll see some peculiar paintings of the colonial period (called Pinturas Cuzqueñas) at the little Uquía Church, and finally, pass by the famous Tropic of Capricorn milestone to reach the picturesque Humahuaca. Wander among their traditional houses and streets, and get a feel for the old-world languor that still survives in this setting. At the end of the day, we’ll drive you back to your hotel in Purmamarca.

In the morning, you will have the private transfer from the hotel to the bus stop in Purmamarca. You will board a public bus to San Pedro de Atacama, the gateway to the orange-tinted sands of the notoriously driest desert in the world. You’ll cross the Andes Range through the “Paso de Jama”, one of the highest international passes in the world, and ride 200 km away (125 miles) until finally arriving in San Pedro de Atacama. The scenic route we take will be 9 - 10 hours in which you’ll enjoy stunning Altiplano scenery. It is important to point out that today you are leaving Argentina and crossing an international border. Please, keep your passport handy!

In this village situated on a plateau between the mountains (at 2500 m.a.s.l.), adobe houses painted white, small restaurants in dirt streets adorned with lanterns, and snow-capped peaks watch over the village in the distance. Upon arrival, you will go to your hotel by your own means.

After a long journey and good rest, enjoy your first morning at leisure in San Pedro de Atacama and get ready for your afternoon visit. Sugerences: Stroll through the handicraft market to see the exquisite ceramic pieces, a speciality of the Atacameños.

In the afternoon, you will visit a National Reserve located in one of the world’s driest and most hostile zones of the world: The Atacama Desert (shared service). The world-famous Moon Valley houses a set of landscapes of incomparable beauty that resembles a fragment of the lunar landscape, to which it owes its name. Note: This tour starts and ends at our local operator’s office in the downtown area of San Pedro de Atacama

After an early morning pick-up at your hotel (shared service), experience one of the most astonishing phenomena produced by nature! Visit the beautiful geothermal field (entrance fee not included), a manifestation of the inner heat of the Earth and take the most amazing photographs walking across the trails. At dawn, with temperatures below zero, an impressive show may be appreciated, generated by the violent steam flows that rise up to 10 Mts. Enjoy and take the best pictures! Soon after that, you will enjoy a picnic-style breakfast. On your scenic drive back to San Pedro, you will also pass by Machuca village and Putana River bofedal (wetlands).It is not advisable to eat anything until you reach the Geysers.

You will be dropped off at noon at San Pedro de Atacama downtown and you will have the rest of the day at leisure to have lunch, relax and if you like joining an afternoon excursion.

Notes: Schedules and the order of the visited attractions are estimated and may vary due to conditions of an operational nature such as bad weather, traffic, etc.