How to get to north Chile, Roads and distances information

The north of Chile characterizes by being a desert zone, coastal surrounded by sand beaches, it has protected places and valleys. It is the perfect place to visit both by its archaeology and its ecological richness. Any season is good to visit the north. The climate is dry with high temperatures, it also has warm climate.

The north zone has four regions, which include the following cities:

- I Tarapacá Region; Iquique and Arica.
- II Antofagasta Region; Tocopilla and Calama.
- III Atacama Region; Copiapó.
- VI Coquimbo Region; La Serena and Coquimbo.

Travelling by the north of Chile you can do it by air and by land.

BY LAND

By land, most of the buses with international destinations arrive in Santiago. Inside the capital, there are several bus stations from there; you can travel by the north.

- Santiago Bus Station: B. O' Higgins Avenue 3848 Santiago, Telephone: 376 1755.
- Los Héroes Bus Station: Tucapel Jimenez 21, Santiago, Telephone: 420 0099.
- Alameda Bus Station: B. O' Higgins Avenue 3750Santiago, Telephone: 776 2424.

Taxis

In the town, you can take a taxi. Many of them are available all time; they have yellow roof and taximeters to calculate the tariffs. If you want to take a radio taxi, it is more expensive but it is safer too. (You should consult the yellow pages in the taxis item)

Bus Stations

In the north of Chile there are many bus stations where operate several companies that provides services to different cities. The service is good and the schedules are respected. Below, we show you the bus stations in the main cities.

Region / City	Bus Stations	Address	Telephone
I Arica	Arica	Diego Portales Avenue 948	(58) 241390
I Iquique	Santa Rosa	Pedro Prado Avenue 2360	(57) 437383
II Calama	Tur Bus	Balmaceda / Ramírez 1852	(55) 316699
II Antofagasta	Tur Bus	La Torre 2759	(55) 220240
III Copiapó	Copiapó	Chacabuco Street 112	(52) 212567
IV La Serena	La Serena	EL Santo Avenue Amunatequi corner	(51) 224573
IV Coquimbo	Rodoviario	Varila 1300	(51) 326651

Distances among cities

If you travel by car, consider the distances among the cities and take into account the necessary precautions (Carry auxiliary parts and extra gasoline). The following distances in kilometres are from Santiago to the north of Chile.

- Arica 2074.76 Km.

- Iquique 1860.55 Km.

- Tocopilla 1559.48 Km.

- Calama 1568.74 Km.

- Antofagasta 1371.48 Km.

- Atacama 1680.54 Km.

- Copiapó 807.15 Km.

- Coquimbo 462.62 Km.

- La Serena 472.96 Km.

* Remember that in Chile you should drive by the right way, on the highways the maximum allowed speed is 120 Km/h and on the rest of the ways 80Km. /h.

BY AIR

Several international airlines arrive at Codomoro Arturo Benítez, international airport in Santiago, located 20 Km. from the town. There are daily flights towards the rest of the cities.

Airports and Aerodromes

The north of Chile has many airports and aerodromes. For reference, below we show you the telephone numbers of each of them.

Arica - Challacuta airport, telephone: 211128-211116.
Iquique- Diego Aracena airport, telephone: (56-57) 426350-410787.
Calama – El Loa aerodrome, telephone: (56-55) 363004-342348.
Antofagasta – Cerro Moreno airport, telephone: (56-55) 269077.
Copiapó – Chamonante aerodrome, telephone: (56-52) 210334-214088.
La Serena – La Florida airport, telephone: (56-51) 271877-272662.

Tourist places

Travelling by the north you can visit the touristiest places in the regions.

I Tarapacá region

In Iquique, also called “the city of eternal spring”, you will know the Dragon Hill from there you can contemplate the beautiful city.
When you get Arica, don’t lost the opportunity to know the National Park Lauca, one of the highest parks; it has volcanoes, rivers, lakes, lagoons, snow, there live a large amount of animals. You can also know the National Reserve Las Vicuñas, rich in native fauna such as vicuñas, flamingos, quirquinchos, etc.

II Antofagasta region

This region has many historic places, deserts and beaches. In Antofagasta there are quiet beaches as La Playa Amarilla, Juan López and Mejillones. In Calama, the most visited and tourist place is “El Salar de Atacama”. “El Valle de la Luna”, the colour and the shapes of rocks in that place give the appearance of a moon landscape.

III Atacama region

It is a region with many attractions as deserts, beaches, and historic places. The Atacama Desert is the most important sea port of the north, its impressive “salar” is the result of the ground waters that evaporate producing crusts of salt.

In Copiapó you can visit the biggest volcano in the world “Ojos del Salado”. “El Nevado de Tres Cruces” is the biggest mountain of Chile, with permanent snow in its top. Both are a challenge for people who love sports like mountaineering, trekking or others. Near the mountains you can find The National Park “Nevado de Tres Cruces” that have the Santa Rosa and Rio Negro lagoons, it also have a diversity of high plateau birds like flamingos, ducks and vicuñas.
VI Coquimbo region

In Coquimbo region, La Serena, a seaside city and capital of the region, has sand coasts and beaches on the Pacific Ocean.
Another tourist place is “El Valle del Elqui”, it is the perfect place to relax and practice yoga since it has a landscape full of contrasts, vast meadows among high arid mountains.

Recommendations

* In desert places, it is advisable to wear cotton clothes, comfortable shoes, sunglasses and solar protector.

* Carry a first aid kit.

* It is advisable to check up your pressure before travelling to high zones.

* When you visit desert places carry warm clothing, woollen hat, thermal clothing since the nights can be extremely cold.

* If you are planning to carry out any sporting activities as mountaineering or sky you should bring all the equipment you need.

* If you want to camp you should do it in mountain tents.

* The high plateau zones are not appropriate for people with epileptic, cardiac and pulmonary deficiencies. (It is advisable to have a medical checkup.)

* At the beach, be careful with the waves and the water temperatures.

Updating, August 2008