Atacama Desert Trek: 7-Day Private Hiking Tour from San Pedro
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Atacama Desert Trek: 7-Day Private Hiking Tour from San Pedro

Atacama
6 Nights·7 Days
Atacama DesertHiking & TrekkingComfort Adventures

Overview

Set out on an extraordinary Atacama Desert trek, a fully private journey created for active travelers looking for a true challenge. Over the days, you will walk roughly 65 km across the Earth’s driest landscape. This demanding expedition builds up your endurance as you climb from 3,250 m up to 4,267 m (13,999 ft) in the high Altiplano.

The route links the desert’s most striking sights, beginning with a sunset walk across the dunes of Moon Valley. You will traverse the multi-colored ridges of Rainbow Valley, admire the ancient Yerbas Buenas petroglyphs, and hike up to the high mountain village of Machuca. The trail continues to the geothermal field at El Tatio, the giant cardón cacti of the Guatin Valley, and the vast Salar de Atacama, home to flamingos and the brilliant waters of Laguna Miscanti and Laguna Miñiques.

Though the hikes are rigorous, you enjoy full comfort at the end of each trail day. Without any camping involved, you return every evening to the same hotel in San Pedro de Atacama, where a swimming pool, private rooms, and quiet gardens offer the ideal space to unwind and recharge.

  • Full itinerary: a sunset hike in Moon Valley; the Rainbow Valley trek to the Yerbas Buenas petroglyphs; the San Bartolo to Río Grande trail; the climb to Machuca, El Tatio, and the Guatin Valley; and the Atacama Salt Flat with the Miscanti and Miñiques lagoons.
  • Hike up to 4,267 m (13,999 ft) on the El Tatio day, after three days that build up from 3,288 m to 4,015 m.
  • Walk 22 km in 7 to 8 hours from the abandoned San Bartolo mines to Río Grande.
  • Spot flamingos on the lagoons of the Salar de Atacama, then see Laguna Miscanti against the volcanoes.
  • Sleep 6 nights in the same San Pedro hotel, with a pool and Wi-Fi; a support vehicle carries your extra gear on Days 2 to 6.
  • Activities led by an expert English-speaking guide, with 1 guide for every 6 guests.
  • All-inclusive experience: private airport transfers from Calama, 6 nights of accommodation, meals, all ground transport, and your trekking guide.

  • Please note: excursions depend on availability and on the indigenous communities opening their land on the day. The guide may change the order of the days or replace an activity for safety, weather, or operational reasons.

Itinerary

Day 1

Arrival in Calama / Transfer to San Pedro de Atacama / Moon Valley Hike at Sunset

  • ArrivalCalama Airport · Morning flight, last pickup 12:30 PM
  • TransferCalama → San Pedro de Atacama · Private vehicle
  • Moon Valley hikeSalt formations and dunes · Sunset viewpoint

The Atacama Desert trek starts at Calama Airport, where your guide meets you in the morning. The road to San Pedro de Atacama crosses the desert and passes the folded ridges of the Cordillera de la Sal.

After lunch and a briefing on the week, set out on the first walk: Moon Valley among salt formations and wide dunes. The hike ends at a viewpoint for sunset, when the ridges turn red and gold.

Return to San Pedro for dinner and your first night at the hotel.

Meals included: Lunch / Dinner

Silhouette of a person sitting on a railing under a vivid Milky Way galaxy during an atacama desert trek night sky experience, with dark tree outlines on the horizon
A group of five hikers with backpacks descends a rocky ridge on an atacama desert trek through Moon Valley, with vast ochre badlands and two snow-capped volcanic peaks rising on the horizon under a pale blue sky.
Three hikers with backpacks pick their way along a narrow salt-and-rock ridge on an atacama desert trek, with eroded ochre badlands, white salt flats, and snow-capped Andean volcanoes stretching to the horizon under a clear blue sky.

Day 2

Yerbas Buenas / Rainbow Valley Trek / Petroglyphs

  • Rainbow Valley trek14 km (8.7 mi) · 5–7h · −406 m · Highest point 3,525 m
  • RouteSmall canyons, a crossing of the San Pedro River, the Domeyko Range
  • Archaeological siteYerbas Buenas petroglyphs

After breakfast, a short drive takes you toward Yerbas Buenas, where the first full day of Atacama hiking begins. The trail winds through small canyons and crosses the San Pedro River before entering the Domeyko Range.

In Rainbow Valley, erosion has cut the hills into bands of copper, silver, green, and violet, each color from a different mineral. The day ends at the archaeological site of Yerbas Buenas, where petroglyphs carved into volcanic rock show animals, routes, and symbols left by the desert’s early inhabitants.

Meals included: Breakfast / Box lunch

A stone-marked foot trail leads through eroded red rock formations in the atacama desert trek, with a cone-shaped green-and-ochre mountain rising under a blue sky with wispy clouds
A lone hiker walks below towering red and copper eroded rock formations during an atacama desert trek, with sparse desert shrubs in the foreground and a clear blue sky above.
Ancient petroglyphs carved into a red volcanic rock face on the Atacama desert trek, with geometric symbols and human-like figures etched across the textured stone surface under a deep blue sky.

Day 3

San Bartolo Mines / Trek to Río Grande

  • Río Grande trek22 km (13.6 mi) · 7–8h · +394 m · Highest point 3,288 m
  • Río Grande village3,250 m above sea level
  • On the wayMining ruins, an old cemetery, and petroglyphs

An early start takes you to the abandoned San Bartolo mining area. The route passes old mining remains, a cemetery, and more petroglyphs, then climbs along the valley slopes into an emptier, more remote desert.

By late afternoon, reach Río Grande, a small Andean village at 3,250 m, with traditional houses and farming terraces. This is the longest day of the Atacama Desert trek.

Meals included: Breakfast / Box lunch

A whitewashed adobe bell tower with a straw-thatched roof and stone cross stands above a mud-brick perimeter wall on the atacama desert trek route, set against red-rock hillsides and a deep blue sky.
Three hikers with backpacks walk along a sandy trail beside ancient red stone walls during the Atacama Desert trek, with sparse desert scrub and rocky canyon slopes in the background.
A hiker with a backpack walks along a narrow rocky ridge on an atacama desert trek, with a green-floored canyon valley below and a line of snow-capped Andean volcanoes stretching across the blue horizon

Day 4

Río Grande to Machuca / Peñaliri Farms / Licancabur Views

  • Machuca trek15 km (9.3 mi) · 5–7h · +787 m · Highest point 4,015 m
  • Peñaliri sectorNative potatoes, corn, and onions grown at altitude
  • ViewsLicancabur Volcano on the final approach

From Río Grande, follow streams and narrow valleys, past llama herds and high farmland, then climb steep canyons to the wetlands around Machuca.

On the way, stop in the Peñaliri sector, where families grow native potatoes, corn, and onions adapted to the Altiplano climate. Licancabur Volcano fills the view on the last stretch. With 787 m of climbing to 4,015 m, this is the most demanding trekking day.

Meals included: Breakfast / Box lunch

A fluffy brown alpaca stands on a rocky, arid plateau during an atacama desert trek, with a second alpaca partially visible behind it and a sparse desert plain stretching to the horizon
A hiker with trekking poles and a backpack pushes through tall golden grasses on the atacama desert trek, with layered rust-red canyon walls and a clear blue sky rising behind
A symmetrical volcanic cone rises sharply above an arid plain on the atacama desert trek, with low scrub trees in the foreground and a second summit visible to the right under a blue sky with scattered clouds.
A small herd of llamas and sheep crossing a paved road on the atacama desert trek, with an open altiplano plain and distant mountains under a bright blue sky with white clouds
Three hikers with backpacks walk across a vast golden grassland on an atacama desert trek, with a large snow-streaked volcano rising under a deep blue sky

Day 5

El Tatio Geysers / Guatin Valley Hike

  • El TatioGeothermal field, visited after the sunrise crowds leave
  • Guatin Valley hike8 km (4.97 mi) · ~2h · +375 m · Highest point 4,267 m
  • RiversWhere the warm Puritama and the cold Purifica meet

Leave San Pedro early for the El Tatio geysers, timed to arrive after the sunrise crowds, so you explore the geothermal field in daylight and with more space.

The hike continues in the Guatin Valley, through a forest of giant cardón cacti, to the point where the warm Puritama River and the cold Purifica River join to form the Vilama River. The trail follows a rocky route past waterfalls and river crossings; a few steep sections need careful footing.

Meals included: Breakfast / Box lunch / Dinner

Three visitors silhouetted against billowing geothermal steam vents at El Tatio geysers, with a dark volcanic mountain ridge and deep blue sky behind them, on the Atacama desert trek
A small group of hikers with trekking poles descends a rocky, grass-tufted slope on an atacama desert trek, with snow-capped volcanic peaks rising across a wide altiplano valley under a clear blue sky.
A hiker with trekking poles and a sun hat stands at the base of a towering multi-armed cardón cactus during an atacama desert trek, with rocky slopes and arid mountains under a deep blue sky.

Day 6

Atacama Salt Flat / Miscanti and Miñiques Lagoons

  • Atacama Salt FlatShallow lagoons with flamingos and Altiplano birds
  • Miscanti and MiñiquesTurquoise lagoons below volcanic slopes
  • Final walk6.5 km (4 mi) · 1–2h · +94 m · Highest point 4,100 m

Drive south from San Pedro to the Salar de Atacama, the great salt flat, where shallow lagoons and wetlands feed flamingos and other Altiplano birds.

The road then climbs into the Andes to Laguna Miscanti and Laguna Miñiques, deep blue and turquoise against volcanic slopes and golden grasses. A short final walk closes the trekking part of the trip before your last evening in San Pedro.

Meals included: Breakfast / Box lunch / Dinner

A lone hiker stands on a salt crust ledge above a still lagoon during an atacama desert trek, their full reflection mirrored in the blue water with volcanic peaks rising across the flat desert plain behind them
A small group of trekkers silhouetted against a vast high-altitude plain on an atacama desert trek, with dramatic volcanic peaks and billowing storm clouds behind them
A calm turquoise lagoon sits in a high-altitude Atacama desert trek landscape, rimmed by white salt crust and surrounded by arid ochre hills under a deep blue sky.
A lone vicuña stands on a vast gravel plain during an atacama desert trek, with rounded rust-colored hills and a clear blue sky behind it.

Day 7

Free Morning in San Pedro de Atacama / Transfer to Calama

  • San Pedro de AtacamaFree morning: village, craft shops, church, and museum
  • TransferSan Pedro → Calama Airport · Private vehicle
  • DepartureBook a flight leaving after 5 PM

The last morning is yours. Walk the streets of San Pedro de Atacama, browse the handicraft shops, and visit the village’s historic church and its museum.

Later, the vehicle takes you across the desert to Calama Airport for your flight home or onward.

Meals included: Breakfast

Close-up of a rustic adobe church facade with crenellated parapet and a wooden cross against a deep blue sky, seen on an atacama desert trek

What is Included

  • Round-trip transfer (Calama Airport ⇌ San Pedro de Atacama) in a private vehicle
  • 6-night stay at a 3-star hotel in San Pedro de Atacama
  • All ground transport in the itinerary, in a vehicle for your group only (a minivan or a 4x4 for 2–4 guests)
  • Entrance fees
  • Support vehicle on Days 2 to 6 for part of your belongings
  • Meals as listed in the itinerary
  • Oxygen carried by the guides on the treks
  • Entrance fees
  • Guided tours (Moon Valley sunset hike, Rainbow Valley trek and the Yerbas Buenas petroglyphs, San Bartolo to Río Grande, Río Grande to Machuca, El Tatio and the Guatin Valley, the Atacama Salt Flat, and the Miscanti and Miñiques lagoons)
  • Expert English-speaking guide (1 guide per 6 guests)

Not included

  • Flight tickets
  • Travel insurance (mandatory)
  • Meals not listed in the itinerary
  • Tips for guides and staff
  • Soft drinks and alcoholic drinks
  • Laundry
  • Single room supplement
  • Visas and airport taxes
  • Medical and evacuation costs
  • Personal items

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From

$ 3,750/ per person