Northern Chile is among the driest parts of the world. It includes the regions of Arica-Parinacota, Tarapacá, Antofagasta, Atacama and Coquimbo。

城市

Coquimbo's plaza

• 1 安托法加斯塔 — a relaxed mining city with lots of leisure activities and a large car industry
• 2 阿里卡 — the "city of the eternal spring" offers beautiful beaches, and a very dry, mild climate
• 3 卡拉马 — "copper capital" of the country with the giant mine of Chuquicamata nearby
• 4 卡尔德拉 — gateway to Bahía Inglesa, a picturesque and lovely beach to just enjoy the sun
• 5 科皮亚波 — gateway to Bahía Inglesa and Desierto Florido
• 6 科金博 — includes the Union Flag of the UK in its coat of arms
• 7 伊基克 — a seaside city with long beaches and a picturesque city centre
• 8 拉塞雷纳 — gateway to the Pisco Valley
• 9 皮斯科埃尔基 — famous for the national schnapps produced here, Pisco
• 10 乔罗斯角 — gateway to the National Humboldt Penguin Reserve to see Humboldt penguins, bottlenose dolphins, sea lions, sea otters, and many types of seabirds
• 11 普特雷 — gateway to Lauca National Park
• 12 圣佩德罗·德·阿塔卡马 — gateway to popular attractions such as Salar de Atacama, El Tatio Geysers and Valle de la Luna
• 13 比库尼亚 — supposed to be best stargazing in the world, but nowadays just a regular town on the way to Pisco Eqlui

其他目的地

• 1 劳卡国家公园 – in the Andes with large volcanic mountains, and its neighbour Las Vicuñas National Reserve just south.
• 2 卢亚伊亚科国家公园 – home to Llullaillaco Volcano.
• 3 月亮谷 – an impressive dry desert landscape.

了解

Northern Chile has been thriving on the mining industry since the middle of the 19th century. It started with saltpetre which came to an abrupt end at the beginning of the 20th century when the synthetic production of nitrates was invented. The remains of the old production sites are still impressive and provide an insight into the hard life of the workers. Nowadays copper has taken over the role of Chile's main export good and is mined in giant open pits. Furthermore some minerals like lithium are produced in the salt lakes.

Many visitors come to see the spectacular landscape of the Andean Highlands. Snow-covered mountains more than 6,000 m high contrasting with blue lakes, mountains showing all shades of red and brown due to their volcanic origin, and a number of geothermal areas with hot springs and geysers are among the natural attractions of the region.

On the more relaxing side, Arica and Iquique offer long sandy beaches at the Pacific coast.

抵达

乘飞机

Airports in this area with several flights daily from Santiago

• Andrés Sabella Gálvez International Airport (ANF ^IATA) in Antofagasta – also connections to/from Peru
• Chacalluta International Airport (ARI ^IATA) in Arica – also connections to/from Bolivia
• El Loa Airport (CJC ^IATA) in Calama
• Diego Aracena International Airport (IQQ ^IATA) in Iquique – also connections to/from Bolivia
• La Florida Airport (LSC ^IATA) in La Serena

乘汽车

The national highway #5 (Panamericana) is the main artery of the region connecting central Chile with Antofagasta, Iquique, Arica and Peru. Access from Bolivia (La Paz and Oruro) is via highway #11 passing Lauca National Park and Putre towards Arica. The alternate route from Oruro via Colchane and highway #15 towards Iquique is less used and thus in better condition (at least on the Chilean side). Access from northwestern Argentina (Salta) goes along Chilean highways #23 or #27 to San Pedro de Atacama and Calama.

四处逛逛

乘汽车

The highways outside of the highlands are generally in good condition as are the main highways through the highlands to the neighbouring countries. Other roads in the highlands can be very rough. Before moving along such roads individually it is best to enquire locally about road and weather conditions.

Renting a truck or 4WD in Antofagasta or Calama is a great idea if you are 3-5 people and want to explore the region around on your own. This will save you a lot of money on expensive tours in San Pedro de Atacama, and rental cars are much cheaper in Antofagasta or Calama. But due to the rough terrain, it is strongly recommended to get a 4WD or truck, instead of a regular, unless you plan to stay on proper roads.

乘巴士

Buses connect all cities and also provide connections to neighbouring countries. There are no longer any passenger trains in Northern Chile.

看

• 1 阿塔卡马沙漠. The driest place in the world.  
• 2 英格兰湾 (about 20 minutes away by collectivo (1,000 pesos) or hitchhiking away from Caldera). A picturesque and lovely yet windy beach if you just want to enjoy the view, sun and maybe a beer at one of the bars facing the sea. (updated Apr 2018)

  

  Bahía Inglesa

• 3 黑石 (3 km south from Bahía Inglesa along the beach). A set of pitch black rocks in between sand of shells along the beach, where you can find many pecten shells of up to 10 cm in diameter. (updated Apr 2018)

• 4 沙漠之花 (Flowering desert). A desert area and nature reserve that becomes a beautiful and impressive field of flowers once a year when the rain has fallen. (updated Apr 2018)

  

  Desierto Florido

• 5 阿塔卡马巨人 (The Tarapacá Giant) (15 km east of national highway #5 (Panamericana) along national highway #15 towards Colchane; the intersection of the dirt road is signposted). The largest geoglyph in the region. A remarkable planning effort considering that it is hundreds of years old. You get the best overall picture when looking on Google Earth though; therefore you could stop there if you are driving along these roads any way but it's doubtful whether it really pays to come here from a long distance. Free.  
• 6 拉波尔塔达 (15 km north of 安托法加斯塔, use your bus when coming into Antofagasta to get off at the junction towards the sight, after or before Antofagasta depending on where you come from; otherwise, local bus 103 goes closest to the sight from Antofagasta center. Or any bus heading for 梅希洛内斯 will let you off at the road cross nearby, from where it is a 3-km walk to see the natural stone arch in the sea.). The yellowish rock gate stands in the sea at along a picturesque and wild cliff coast. If you bring a mattress and sleeping bag, there are many dry places to camp and stay over night. (updated Apr 2018)

  

  La Portada

• 7 沙漠之手 (75 km south of the city). A sculpture of giant hand rising from the sand. (updated Jul 2023)
• 8 翁贝斯通煤矿 (Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works) (50 km east of Iquique in the 阿塔卡马沙漠 along highway A-16 at the intersection with national highway 5 (Panamericana)). 09:00-19:00. This UNESCO site is an old residential and production site from the days of the saltpetre era. Few residential houses are furnished, but most of the site is still in remarkable condition due to the dry atmosphere. Allow 1-2 hr to stroll around the huge area. 3,000 pesos.  
• 9 手指古生物公园 (beyond Rocas Negras), ☏ +56 976160891. Tu-Su 11:00-19:00. In the hot middle of nowhere about 1 km from the beach, an outdoor museum for fossils of penquins, sharks, crocodiles, whales and much more. (updated Apr 2018)

活动

• 2 伊斯拉达马斯 (在名为乔罗斯的沿海村庄向北120公里). 在那里你可以游泳、沿着小径散步到观景点，或者去潜水和浮潜。值得一看的是企鹅和海狮。海豚也经常出没在该地区。返回大陆后，可以在蓬塔德乔罗斯过夜，那里的小屋和露营地将让你享受温暖的海滨夜晚。 (最后编辑于 2023年7月)
• 3 弗雷·豪尔赫国家公园 (Bosque de Fray Jorge National Park) (您可以从南面进入弗雷·豪尔赫国家公园，沿着北泛美公路行驶至241.7英里处，然后向西行驶一条长13.6英里的辅路，直至公园主门。这是一条土路，但全年路况良好。). 1月-2月：每天 09:00-17:00；其他时间：09:00-16:00. 弗雷·豪尔赫国家公园占地数英亩，海拔高达2188米，位于沿海地区，距离最美丽的地方有数英里远，那里是水生植物径的河口。游览的最佳时间是周末，从10月下旬到11月，整个开花期。游览至少需要4小时。 有野餐区和露营地，每晚8000比索，5人小屋25000比索。不允许携带宠物。请带一件外套，因为森林很冷。门票1600比索，儿童600比索.  
• 4 奥霍斯·德尔·萨拉多火山. 这座海拔6893米的休眠火山是智利的最高点，亚洲以外的第二高峰，也是世界上最高的火山。它坐落在阿根廷边境，在阿根廷一侧有一个几乎一样高的第二个山峰。在山顶下方约500米处，可以看到一个湖泊，据信是世界上最高的湖泊。奥霍斯·德尔·萨拉多火山的斜坡非常平缓，周围干燥的阿塔卡马沙漠意味着通常很少有冰雪。这使得该火山成为创造汽车世界高度记录的热门地点，汽车甚至卡车曾被开到6000米以上的高度。更重要的是，它可能是可以通过徒步到达的世界上最高的地方（距离附近的公路30公里，外加2400米的爬升；只有最后一部分到山顶是有点挑战性的攀爬）。如此高的地方，高原反应肯定是一个风险——不要爬升太快！由于高海拔低湿度环境的整体极端性，独自进行8-15天的探险是相当困难的。各种旅行社提供支持服务（如餐饮和交通），每人的价格似乎从2000-2500比索起。  

注意安全

请注意，您很容易就能在普通道路上达到 4,000 米（13,000 英尺）以上的高度。通过循序渐进地提高高度来适应。如果您参加从阿里卡到劳卡国家公园的一日游，您很可能会患上高山反应，必须认真对待。

在山区，手机信号通常仅限于城镇附近。如果您走的是连接城镇或热门旅游景点以外的土路，带上卫星电话可能是一个好主意。加油站很少，请确保您了解您的选择。