parque nacional lauca

Going to the park to see Lake Chungara and the volcanos at over 4,000 meters is worth the long, arduous trip--if you have the right tour guide. We were lucky to have Santiago Tamani, of Sol del Norte tours, an expert who takes good care of his group. He gave good tips on avoiding altitude sickness while also informing us about the ecology, flora, fauna and local cultures. The breakfast and lunch stops had clean bathrooms--hard to find elsewhere. The highway is not in good condition; heavy trucking between Bolivia and Arica clogs the route. We had a good driver too. The weather in the January-February summer is tricky, seasonal rains and cold temperatures down to freezing at this altitude so take rain gear and warm clothes even when Arica is balmy.

I loved Lauca and would recommend anyone to visit. It was not very easy to get there, basically the only affordable option was a 1-day trip from Arica which is many hours spent in a bus. It was worth it though! Beautiful altiplanos, vulcanoes, wild flamingos, vicunas, llamas, alpacas, vizcachas, etc.I would have loved to spend a few days there but without your own transport and tents etc that seems kind of difficult.

A beautiful park not to missed in Northern Chile. I was short on time so did the 1 day trip from Arica, all sorted out for me by Ross at Sunny Days hostel! I had heard this can be risky due to the sudden increase in altitude, however I had already spent time at high altitude so this wasn't a problem for me. One woman on our minibus was quite ill... so make sure you are acclimatized first if you do it in one day! (and have a light breakfast with coca tea!) It was a long day on a minibus, which I am normally not a big fan of, but the scenery outside was fantastic and there were plenty of stops. Chungara lake was a highlight and there is a wide range of wild animals. We had alpaca and vicuna crossing the road right in front of us! Also for the size and beauty of the park, only a limited number of tourists which was definitely a change.

We did a 3-day tour of Parque Lauca starting and ending in Arica and staying 2 nights in Putre. We had previously spent 4 days and nights in San Pedro de Atacama. The time spent at and above San Pedro’s 2400m probably helped acclimatize so that after a rather headachey first night we were fine at Putre’s 3500m and the highest point of the tour was 4600m. For us these 3 days were more enjoyable than the time spent in San Pedro because of the quietness, lack of other visitors to Parque Lauca and the richer wildlife. The infrastructure (toilets, changing facilities at hot springs, the tour company’s van, hotels, roads (miles and miles of washboard)) was poorer, but it is so much nicer it was well worth the hardship.

It was a wonderful day. The nationalpark lauca is very nice and offers some spectacular views. if you are in arica and you have a day left, you should go to lauca. You won't regret it...

We had a totally wonderful day tour to the National Park. The views were out of this world and the altitude did not cause us problems although several fellow travellers felt very sick.

I ted visited it when coming from Bolivia to Chile. The Park has an amazing landscape. You can see the Vulcano Parinacota and also others vulcanos in Bolivia including the Sajama. We camped in the Park camping area, that has almost no infraestructure but the best view ever!

We did this 1 day tour after visiting the Uyuni salt flats and San Pedro's Valle de la Luna. Although the landscape was nice, it was very much a less beautiful version of what we saw before.If you have visited Uyuni (and the closeby National Park) you will be disappointed.

Excellent landscape and wildlife photographic opportunities. Really helps to have a knowledgeable guide. This landscape really is unique, and one of the driest in the world (ultra-arid desert)

The park is beautiful, definitely worth the effort getting there. We spent 3 days exploring the park, lake Changara, Surire and Suriplaza. In the whole time we have not met any other tourists. You get the feeling to be close to the nature and having it all unspoiled and unexplored just to yourself. Both 3 places are different and worth to visit. We saw vicunas, guanacos, lamas, alpacas, viscachas, dear, flamingos and other birds. The scenery is simply breathtaking and more impressive than around San Pedro the Atacama. We took the La Paz bus from Arica and were dropped off at the turn off to Putre. From the turn off to Putre there are another 4km. There are direct buses from Arica to Putre, the company is La Paloma, but they leave from their agency and not from main Arica bus stop. Putre itself is a small village with few hotels/hostels, restaurants, the bank and ATM (they do not accept Visa cards). We stayed at Terrace Lodge at the edge of the town and were very happy with the accommodation. You can buy La Paz bus tickets from the Cali shop and hostel. They can also do the laundry for you. We took two tours with Augustin from Andean Tours and last tour with Flavio from Terrace Lodge. Both of them were very good. However we preferred Flavio as he has great English and can tell lots of interesting facts about the area.

It is totally worth it to take three days to visit this part of Chile and Orlando does a gret tour. We were a group of five - enough to keep the price down, bur not too many. Orlando used a small bus, so there was plenty of room. The first day was spent learning about the area, buying food in the market for our picnic lunches was a way to tears about the lock economy and agriculture. On day one we headed up to Putre with many stops for photos at natural sites, historic sites and scenic areas. We took short walks where possible. Both nights were spent in Putre where the hotel was clean and had wifi. The dinners at the nearby restaurant were not as good as the picnic, but did include wine, which we drank sparingly given the altitude. Day two was a lot of wildlife, vicunas, viscachas, llamas, alpacas, flamingos on the long drive to Salar de Sourire. We saw very few people along the way. Lunch was at a natural hot spring and included the fresh vegetables from the market. Stops for photos whenever we wanted and a couple of stops at tiny towns along the way. After another night in Putre, the next day was the drive through Lauca to Lake Chongaya. We had a clear day and could see the volcano and the lake. I did only two tours in Chile. This WAIS an area difficult to ge to without private transportation. It is worth seeing and Orlando at Raices Andinas does a great job showing it to you.

We didn't have more than one day to spend but it was excellent! We had a private tour, in a small van, yes it was more expensive, but so nice. The hotel was able to set it up within 36 hours. We also went on Monday and didn't see any other tourists. It really is an amazing place. It sounds like most people will feel some symptoms by the end of the day. It's worth every penny and minute up there!

A beautiful park with many wild animals and water fowl, lake Chungara is just stunning. Unfortunately only one day tours are offered and it's a long drive from Arica. Many people suffered from altitude sickness.

Highway 11, the road to Lauca National Park, is also the major road used by Bolivian truck drivers (24 hours) and tourists should avoid using the road at night. From Arica one travels through fertile Lluta valley which is surrounded by the Atacama desert, known as the driest desert in the world, as well as one of the oldest deserts in the world. NASA has tested instruments in this desert for missions to the planet Mars. After leaving the green valley, large areas of the desert completely barren. When the road enters the "altiplano" or "high plateau" lands, the climate changes. This region is still semi-arid, but has sufficient rainfall for sparse vegetation and a large variety of animals can survive there. Camelids, like Alpacas, Vicunas and Llamas are easily spotted and often right at the edge of the road. Especially around Lake Chungara there are plenty of animals, including flamingos, ibis, ducks, teals, condors and geese. Two species of fish inhabit the lake. The lake is surrounded by several snow and ice topped volcanoes and since the air is always clean and clear, the scenery is spectacular. Elevation of the lake is 4.500m, so some people experience hypoxia. It is important for tourists to make sure that tour companies carry oxygen equipment. People should also bring their own food because there are very few to no restaurants or stores along the road and in the park. Most of the road is in very good condition, but repair crews are always working on some rougher sections. Watch out for inconsiderate, pushy truckers, especially on the downhill direction back to Arica. (we were happy to have a very cautious driver)Local people proudly point out that Chungara is the highest salty lake in the world, but...it does belong to the thirty highest lakes in the world.

I went from Putre to Lauca and thought it was an excellent trip in regards to scenery and wild life.