Atacama Stargazing Tour Under One of the World’s Clearest Skies
Description
Set beneath one of the clearest and darkest skies on Earth, this boutique stargazing experience invites you to discover the vast beauty of the Atacama Desert night. The activity combines guided astronomical observation and astrophotography, making it ideal for both beginners and curious travelers. Using high-quality telescopes, you’ll observe visible planets, stars, constellations, and deep-sky objects while receiving clear and engaging explanations adapted for all audiences. What makes this experience special is its two-stage format: first, an immersive observation session focused on understanding the southern night sky; followed by a relaxed moment under the stars with light snacks, Chilean wine, and hot beverages, while enjoying the astrophotography experience. Designed as a small-group, carefully curated activity, this tour offers a peaceful and memorable way to connect with the universe in one of the world’s most extraordinary natural settings.
Tour Options
Itinerary
We’ll depart from San Pedro de Atacama and travel a short distance into the desert, away from city lights, to reach a carefully selected observation site, ideal for stargazing under one of the clearest night skies on Earth.
Stage 1: Stargazing & Night Sky Observation (Approx. 1 hour) Begin your experience with a guided introduction to the southern night sky. Using high-quality telescopes, you’ll observe stars, planets, nebulae, and star clusters while learning about constellations and basic astronomy of the southern hemisphere. Thanks to the exceptional atmospheric conditions of the Atacama Desert, visibility is outstanding, allowing for clear and detailed observations in one of the best stargazing locations on Earth. Stage 2: Astrophotography Experience & Snacks (Approx. 1 hour) After the observation session, enjoy a relaxing moment under the stars while waiting for your astrophotography experience. During this time, you’ll be offered a light snack with Chilean wine, hot beverages, and local products, perfect for the desert night. Professional equipment is used to capture memorable night-sky photographs, giving you the opportunity to take home unique images of your experience beneath the Atacama sky.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We pickup all customers so you should be waiting at the Hotel Lobby
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- The full moon in a month changes the perfect vision of the heavens, it is recommended not to make reservations with a full moon also on those days. The observatory is closed
- consider the transfer time from the hotel to the Observatory and back
- ask first if the experience is available (subject to availability )
Reviews(4)
What can I say, I absolutely loved the experience. It was a cold night, but the warmth of our guides, the storytelling, the hot chocolate, the mulled wine and the brightest of stars, all seemed to have enveloped me in a hug, I don’t feel like solo traveller that evening. The beautiful pictures of me under the stars, is a memory that I’ll always cherish, thanks to the lovely photography, as a part of the experience. Highly recommend it!
Thank you so much for your beautiful review. We are truly delighted to hear that the experience made such a special impression on you. Stargazing in the Atacama Desert is already magical, but knowing that the warmth of our team, the stories, the hot chocolate, the mulled wine, and the incredible night sky helped make you feel welcomed and connected makes it even more meaningful to us. We are especially happy that the photographs captured such memorable moments for you. Those memories under one of the world's clearest skies are truly unique. Thank you for your recommendation, and we hope to welcome you again on another unforgettable adventure in Chile. Warm regards, Anclatour Chile Team
Bizarre and uncomfortable experience. I do NOT recommend. One day prior, the tour confirmed pickup via WhatsApp for 21:45. At the last minute, they changed pickup to 20:45, 1 hour early. I asked for 21:00 as I was still at dinner, and they said no. I thought this was reasonable of me to ask as I was rushing to be ready 45 minutes early at the last minute. They arrived at my hotel at 20:45 anyway and yelled at me to get in the van when I was clearly uncomfortable and had some questions about what was going on - no "thank you for rushing to be ready 1 hour early and accommodating the inconvenience" - they were acting like I did something wrong. We saw Saturn which was cool but there was absolutely zero mention of the indigenous community as indicated in the description, which was disappointing as I was genuinely interested in learning how they used astronomy in ancient times. Hard to enjoy the stars we did see when the tour got off to such a strange and aggressive start. I think maybe I booked a different tour originally that didn't fill up so they shoved me on a new one at the last minute. Either way, better to spend your money with someone that treats guests kindly
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We are truly sorry to read how uncomfortable this situation was for you, and we sincerely regret the stress caused at the beginning of the tour. Unfortunately, on that day there was a last-minute operational schedule adjustment made by the local provider, which was communicated late and clearly affected your experience. We completely understand how frustrating this must have been, especially while you were at dinner, and we apologize for how this was handled. Regarding the tone during the pickup, this is not the standard of service we expect or tolerate, and your feedback has been taken very seriously. We have already addressed this matter directly with the local operator to ensure it does not happen again. We also regret that the indigenous cultural component did not meet your expectations. This element is an important part of the experience, and your comment has been shared for immediate review and improvement. Thank you again for your honest feedback — it helps us improve and maintain the level of care and respect our guests deserve. Kind regards,
We enjoyed the tour very much! To see the miracle of the sky, thousands stars were breathtaking! The tour was very well organized!
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We’re thrilled to hear you enjoyed the stargazing experience and the breathtaking beauty of the Atacama sky. It truly is one of the most magical places on Earth, and we’re glad our team could make it a memorable and well-organized evening for you. We hope to welcome you again soon for another unforgettable experience in Chile! Warm regards,
It was a grest tour if you like stars ! The tour was well organized and everything was done with love . We highly recommended anyone!
Thank you so much for your lovely review! We’re delighted to hear you enjoyed this magical stargazing experience in the Atacama Desert. Our team truly puts a lot of love and care into every detail, so it means a lot to know you felt that. We really appreciate your recommendation and hope to welcome you again soon under the Atacama sky! Warm regards,
