We will head towards Toconao, an indigenous town 38 km away. of San Pedro de Atacama, whose inhabitants are mainly dedicated to agriculture, stone quarrying, the manufacture of liparite stone crafts and where beautiful and abundant orchards also stand out. Later, towards sunset, we will go to the largest salt flat in the country to marvel at its geography and a unique ecosystem where, among other birds, we will be able to spot flamingos.
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| SEMI-PRIVATE SERVICE: High quality standard services with a maximum of 10 passengers per group, most of them from hotels that work with us. Our bilingual guides (spanish – english) assure a personalized service. The days and hours of the excursions may vary depending on the season, climatic conditions and the groups that we form. The final itinerary will be confirmed upon arrival in San Pedro, but even during your stay it can vary depending on the mentioned conditions, we will be informing immediately about any change. | |||||||
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Toconao Orchards
To get to the town of Toconao we head south, 38 km from San Pedro de Atacama. There, we will be welcomed by a local guide, who will show us the different aspects of agriculture developed in the area, the water management system and the different crops developed in that area.
Atacama Salt Flat, Chaxa Lagoon, Flamingos
We head towards the Atacama Salt Flat, located close to the village of Toconao. Being Chile´s biggest salt flat it is also a huge and important deposit of minerals where we can find a multitude of mixed salts like potassium, borax and one of the biggest reserves of lithium on the planet. The salt flat extends in an enormous depression of more than 3.500 km2 at 2.300 m.a.s.l. where – between a rough and wrinkly surface of different forms and colors, small ridges and perfect hexagons – we can find solitary lagoons due to the fact that the basin receives water coming in the form of rivers and melted snow from the mountains without having an outlet. In these lagoons one can observe three varieties of Flamingo or Parina: Andean Flamingo, Puna (or James´s) Flamingo and Chilean Flamingo. In order to protect them, the National reserve Los Flamencos has been created, divided into several sectors, one of them being the core of the Atacama Salt Flat.
The Chaxa Lagoon, located in the Atacama Salt Flat, is one of the most visited places in the surroundings of San Pedro. It is an aquatic system that contains a big quantity of salt. At its borders a special flora develops which – adapted to the salty and desertic climate – adds a golden touch to the landscape, especially at sunrise and dawn, thanks to the effects of the sunlight. One of its main attractions is the possibility to observe colonies of flamingos that fly over the area at certain times of the day, beautifully displaying their colors. Here we will wait for the sunset, when the colors of the lagoon and its surroundings offer us a spectacular view.
The Chaxa Lagoon is co-administrated by Conaf (National Forest Corporation) and the indigenous community of Toconao.
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Additional information
| Duration | 5 hours |
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English
15:15-15:30 Pickup from your hotel
visit to the orchards of Toconao
Chaxa Lagoon
20:00-20:30 Hotel
English
What to bring?
- Comfortable clothing, walking shoes.
- Warm clothing for the coolest hour around sunset.
- Sunblock, hat, sunglasses, lip balm.
For more recommendations Click here
English
 | $61.500.-
The reservation must be confirmed at least 10 days in advance, paying the total value of the program. |
SEMI-PRIVATE SERVICE: High quality standard services with a maximum of 10 passengers per group (except Astronomy Tour, max 13 passengers), most of them from hotels that work with us. Our bilingual guides (spanish – english) assure a personalized service.
The days and hours of the excursions may vary depending on the season and climatic conditions. The final itinerary will be confirmed upon arrival in San Pedro, but even during your stay it can vary depending on the mentioned conditions, we will be informing immediately about any changes.
Our semi private services are in base of 2 people, which means that when is only one person and there are no more reservations for the same excursion it will have to pay the minimum per two. If at the moment of the excursion more passenger book the same tour, we will make the devolution of the additional, less a percent (5%) of administratives cost
This excursion can be booked in Private Service
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