Season:
from February to May, from September to December
Price includes
: double room accommodations in hotels / inns (hosterias as per programme), double & single room accommodations in hotel in Salta as per programme, private ground transportation through out all the trip, local English/Spanish a guide, meals as noted (B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner), in-out airport transfers in Salta
Price does not include
: flights; meals not noted in itinerary; National Park entrance fees; insurance of any kind and everything else not mentioned in “What’s included”
TRIP HIGHLIGHTS!
• witness the rich history and flavor of the Northwest in its principal towns of Salta and San Salvador de Jujuy
• Lose yourself in the colourful display of stunning rock formations of the "El Cerro de los Siete Colores"
• Taste the delicious local delicacies, like the "Humita" or a "Tamal" and as dessert "Dulce de Cayote con Quesillo y Nueces", accompanied by an excellent "Torrontes" wine...
If there is something that calls the visitor's attention in this area, it is the variety of shapes and hues, the vivid colours of the earth, its deserts, valleys and mountains, the break of dawn, the sunsets, the pureness of the air, its enormous silences, the bonhomie of its people, and the traditional fiestas, unique to the region.
Our trip starts in Salta - in “aymarà indian language” means “very beautiful”. The city was so beautiful that the adjective ended up beign its name. From here we’ll travel along the Quebrada de Humahuaca, cerro de los siete colores, the old and historic towns of Iruya and Tilcara in Jujuy to arrive to the famous town of San Pedro de Atacama in the heart of the Atacama Dessert.
Daily program
Day 1. Flight Mendoza – Salta.
Accommodation: Hotel in Salta
Day 2. Salta
Airport transfer to the hotel in the center of Salta. Visit of the city and surroundings. Accommodation: Hotel in Salta - B
Day 3. SAlta - Iruya. Accommodation: Hosteria de Iruya. B
Day 4. Iruya - Tilcara. Accommodation: Hosteria in Tilcara. B
Day 5. Purmamarca- Cauchari - Jama - San Pedro de Atacama.
Across the inospitable altiplano we cross the Argentina/Chile frontier across the Passo di Jama (4600m). We’ll arrive in the afternoon to San Pedro de Atacama. Accommodation: Hotel in San Pedro. B
Day 6. Geyser and Valle de la Luna
All day excursion to the salted lakes of the Atacama Dessert. Accommodation: Hotel in San Pedro. B
Day 7. Lagunas Altiplanicas- Salar de Atacama Accommodation: Hotel in San Pedro. B
Day 8. Atacama - Jama Pass - San Antonio de los Cobres From Atacama we go across the Jama pass and arrive to San Antonio de Los Cobres at 3775 meters (12 500 feet). Here, the atmospheric pressure is so low that breathing in enough oxygen is a problem for most people not acclimatised to this altitude like the Quechua people who live here. As the name indicates, the town was founded to exploit nearby copper mines but these have run out now and the remaining residents have a hard time to make ends meet.
The Quechua have nominally adopted Christianity to survive the Spanish steam roller occupation but they have remained attached to their traditional beliefs and still worship Pachamama, the spirit of mother earth, source of all life, and Inti the sun whose heat makes Pachamama fertile. Accommodation: Hosteria
in San Antonio B
Day 9. San Antonio - Salta Accommodation: Hotel in Salta. B
