eSIM for San Pedro de Atacama

Salt flat and sand dune complex 8 km west of San Pedro de Atacama, with a sunset tour that ends at a high dune overlooking the Licancabur volcano. The park closes at sunset, and the tour is the only practical way to visit without a 4x4. Mobile data works at the park entrance, drops to nothing inside the park, and returns at the entrance gate, so download the tour info from the agency in San Pedro first.

Field of geothermal geysers at 4,320 meters altitude, about 90 km north of San Pedro de Atacama. Tours leave around 4am to reach the field for sunrise, when the steam columns are highest. The high altitude affects most visitors, and the local 4G is unreliable at the geyser field, so the agencies in San Pedro deliver the tour info by WhatsApp the night before over the local 5G.

Salt lagoon 30 km south of San Pedro de Atacama, with two swimming pools of concentrated salt water where visitors can float like in the Dead Sea, plus two freshwater 'eyes' (ojos) that bubble up from underground aquifers. The afternoon tour is the most popular because of the pink color the lagoon takes in the late light. The data connection works at the parking lot and the changing area.

Pair of high-altitude volcanic lakes at 4,200 meters, surrounded by the Andean grassland and the snow-capped Andes peaks. The day tour combines both lagoons with the Salar de Atacama and the Toconao village, and the drive from San Pedro takes about 1.5 hours. Mobile data works in Toconao and at the park entrance, drops to nothing at the lagoons themselves, and returns at the entrance.

Pre-Columbian Atacameño fortress built in the 12th century on a hill overlooking the San Pedro river, with the original defensive walls and the lookout points still accessible via a short uphill trail. The site is a 10-minute bike ride from the plaza, and the trailhead has good 4G with one or two dead zones on the steeper sections of the climb.

Geothermal hot springs 30 km north of San Pedro de Atacama, with eight pools at 33 degrees Celsius set in a narrow canyon and surrounded by native vegetation. The site is a half-day excursion, with the entrance fee including a towel, a locker, and a small lunch. The data connection is good at the visitor center and the cafe, and the canyon walls block signal inside the pools.

Pacific coastline 350 km west of San Pedro, accessible by a long day tour that crosses the Atacama Desert through the Cordillera de la Costa. The Cobija beach is the most popular stop, with the historic coves used by the pre-Columbian Chinchorro culture. The data connection is good in Tocopilla and along the coastal road, and drops to 3G in the desert stretches inland.

Central plaza of San Pedro de Atacama, with the 17th-century church of San Pedro, the artisan market running every morning from 8am, and the tour agencies clustered on the Caracoles street just off the plaza. The plaza is the meeting point for every tour pickup, and the local 5G is reliable across the cafes, the market, and the ATM area on Toconao street.

Small but well-curated museum of meteorites found in the Atacama Desert, with samples of the Imilac meteorite (a pallasite from the early solar system) and the Mejillones meteorite, plus explanations of the impact craters in the region. The museum is on the way to the Valle de la Luna entrance, and the data connection is reliable on the inside over the local 4G.

Small village 35 km south of San Pedro de Atacama, founded in the 18th century by the Atacameño people and still inhabited today. The village is known for the historic church of San Lucas from 1750 with its cactus-wood bell tower, the hand-carved volcanic stone crafts, and the Bellavista wine cellars of the local Atacameño families. The 4G is reliable across the plaza and the main street.