What to do in San Pedro de Atacama with kids? San Pedro de Atacama, located in northern Chile, is a destination that attracts many tourists because of its stunning landscapes and beautiful nature. While it may not be the first place you think of for a family vacation, this region offers a surprising number of activities and experiences that are great for a visit with kids. In this blog, we will give you all the information you need if you are visiting San Pedro de Atacama with kids.
Best travel time San Pedro de Atacama with kids
You can basically visit San Pedro de Atacama with kids all year round. There is hardly any rain in this desert area, so you don’t have a rainy season. In the winter months (May through August), however, it can be chilly, especially in the evenings. Basically, therefore, you could say that the best travel time to explore this area is from September through April.
The busiest months in San Pedro de Atacama are in December and January, because of the vacation season and then the prices of accommodations can also be a lot higher. Then it would be better to go to this destination just before or just after these two months.
Transportation to and in San Pedro de Atacama
San Pedro de Atacama is located in northern Chile and you can reach this destination in several ways. You can take a luxury bus from several cities in Chile, and from the capital Santiago it is about a 24-hour bus ride. This is not the most ideal way to reach San Pedro de Atacama with kids.
Unfortunately, San Pedro de Atacama itself does not have an airport and the nearest airport is that of Calama. From the Calama airport it is just over an hour’s drive to San Pedro de Atacama. You can of course arrange transportation at the airport, but you can also rent a car and explore the area that way.
It’s best to grab a slightly better car than the cheapest cars then, since the roads are not equally good everywhere. You can rent a car at the Calama airport through the organization Sunny Cars. We usually rent our cars here, as they have a super nice all inclusive package with lots of insurance and you can often cancel up to a few hours in advance. To rent a car at Calama airport, take a look here.
In San Pedro de Atacama itself, you can walk around just fine. The village itself consists of only a few streets. If you want to explore the area you will need a car or you can book a tour. In San Pedro de Atacama there are many agencies where you can book tours.
How many days San Pedro de Atacama
You can perfectly well stay a few days in San Pedro de Atacama. Especially if you’re with kids, it’s also fine to spend the first day acclimatizing. San Pedro de Atacama is at 2450 meters altitude and some destinations in this list are at an even higher altitude. Therefore, it may take some time (especially with kids) to get used to this altitude.
Of course, you don’t want your kids to suffer from altitude sickness. Therefore, it’s fine to spend about 4 to 5 days in San Pedro de Atacama with the family. We have to say when we visited San Pedro de Atacama that we did not suffer from altitude sickness ourselves, but when we then traveled on to Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia, which is at 3650 meters, we did suffer from altitude sickness.
The advice for altitude sickness is to drink plenty of fluids the first few days and avoid strenuous exercise. The use of alcohol is also not recommended for the first few days if you suffer from altitude sickness. You have pills that you may be able to buy in advance against altitude sickness.
Sightseeing San Pedro de Atacama
#1 Valle de la Luna
A very special landscape you can visit in San Pedro de Atacama is Valle de la Luna. This is a kind of lunar landscape that you walk through and most tours go here in the afternoon. Valle de la Luna is at about the same elevation as the village of San Pedro de Atacama, so you don’t climb very much extra in elevation. So this can be a great first outing if you have just arrived in San Pedro de Atacama with the family.
You can walk through the desert here and certainly the later it gets in the day, the color of the sand also changes, allowing you to take beautiful pictures of the kids. Finally, you can then watch the sunset in this beautiful landscape. This is one of the most popular tours offered to travelers in the village and most agencies do the same tour and stop at roughly the same places. Be sure to negotiate the price well in advance. It can vary from agency to agency.
So you may encounter several other tour groups during this tour to Valle de la Luna. For more information about an organized tour to Valle de la Luna and where exactly you will go, click here. You can book a guide in English or Spanish.
If you have older kids, you may also choose to rent mountain bikes and bike to this area yourself. We did this ourselves without our daughter, but it is quite intensive. Make sure you take enough food and drinks with you, because there are almost no places to buy them along the way. Also keep in mind that you are at altitude and a bike ride is a lot heavier than normal.
#2 Salar de Atacama
You can also take the family to salt flats in San Pedro de Atacama. These are not as white as the salt flats in Uyuni, but have a somewhat darker color. If you do this through an organized tour, you often visit several lakes as well. There are several lakes around San Pedro de Atacama and you can book different tours to these different lakes as well.
As far as that goes, you can fill a whole week like this and go on a different tour every day. One of the most famous tours that go to different lakes in San Pedro is the tour to Laguna Cejar. In this lake you can swim and the nice thing about this lake is that you float. This is the same principle as what you have at the Dead Sea. This lake is also very salty. You can also spot flamingos with this tour. For more information about this tour, take a look here.
By the way, you can also tour to the salt flats of Uyuni in Bolivia from San Pedro de Atacama with kids as young as 6 years old. This can be a nice trip to Bolivia during your round trip through Chile. We found these salt flats in Uyuni very impressive. You can book a guided multi-day tour from San Pedro de Atacama. You have here tours of 3 and 4 days that you can book. You can do this either in San Pedro itself or online. An example of such an organized tour to these salt flats in Bolivia can be found here.
#3 El Tatio Geyser
The El Tatio geysers are best viewed as early as possible. Located at an altitude of 4,320 meters, this geothermal field is the largest geyser area in the southern hemisphere. There are more than 80 geysers in this area. So you go quite a bit of altitude at this destination, so of course keep this in mind with kids.
Most tours leave very early (around 4:30/five o’clock) so that they get to the geysers before sunrise. This is because that is when the geysers are most active. It is about a 1.5 to 2 hour drive to reach the geysers from San Pedro de Atacama. You can take beautiful photos here, as the geyser field is also beautifully nestled among the mountains.
If you leave from San Pedro de Atacama this early in the morning, it is still dark outside and be sure to look up. In fact, San Pedro de Atacama is also one of the best places in the world for stargazing. Again, by the way, you can book different tours in San Pedro de Atacama, where you can also look through different telescopes. If your kids are totally fond of the night sky, then such a tour could be a fun option.
During the route to the geysers, you can also encounter various animals such as Vicuñas. If you want to visit the geysers with an organized tour, check here. They offer tours for families with kids ages 7 and up. If you want to go here with a rental car, a 4×4 car is recommended though.
#4 Puritama Hot Springs
You can also spend a day relaxing with kids in the San Pedro de Atacama area at the Puritama Hot Spings. This complex is located in the middle of the desert and has several pools that all have a temperature of around 30 degrees. So your kids and you must love these kinds of hot baths or you shouldn’t go here.
Located just over a 30-minute drive away from San Pedro, these Hot Springs can be a relaxing option to take a break from this region. You can book into schedules here that are divided into morning or afternoon. Puritama Hot Spings is open every day of the week. For more information about these Hot Spings, take a look at the Puritama Hot Springs website.
Family-friendly restaurant San Pedro de Atacama
San Pedro de Atacama is a nice little village with a few streets. It is really a backpacker’s village and therefore there are plenty of nice restaurants where you can eat in San Pedro de Atacama with kids. We list some of these family-friendly restaurants below.
Rincón De Sal: This is a family-friendly restaurant in San Pedro de Atacama, serving delicious burgers and pizza. This restaurant also has plenty of tasty options for vegetarians. The online reviews are also tremendously good of this restaurant.
Pizzería El Charrúa: This is another restaurant in San Pedro where you can go for pizza with the family. They also have several vegetarian options at this restaurant.
Heladería Babalú: If you want to have a nice ice cream with kids in San Pedro de Atacama, you can go to this ice cream parlor. You can choose from many different flavors here. You have several branches of Heladería Babalú in San Pedro de Atacama.
Family-friendly hotel San Pedro de Atacama
You can stay in San Pedro de Atacama with kids just fine. You have several family-friendly accommodations you can go to. We list the best rated accommodations in the different price ranges. Click on the blue link for more information about the hotel.
Budget accommodation: HOSTAL SAIRI
Middle Class Accommodation: Ckoi Atacama Lodge
Luxury Accommodation: Casa Solcor Boutique Bed & Breakfast
For a list of all family-friendly accommodations, take a look here.
