Tatio Geysers Machuca Village & Rio Putana Wetlands: Small Group Tour from San Pedro de Atacama

Experience the breathtaking Tatio Geysers, Machuca Village, and Rio Putana Wetlands on this small group tour from San Pedro de Atacama. Witness the first lights of dawn at the highest geothermal field in the world, capture incredible photos, and enjoy breakfast. Explore the traditional town of Machuca and discover the rich biodiversity of the Rio Putana wetlands. Don’t miss this unforgettable journey!

Duration: 8 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • San Pedro de Atacama - Begin your adventure with an early morning pick-up from your hotel, heading to the Tatio Geysers. Prepare to witness one of nature’s most incredible spectacles!
    Due to the altitude, it is recommended to refrain from eating until reaching the Geysers.
  • Geyser del Tatio - Continue your journey by exploring the trails…
What's Included
  • Convenient hotel pick-up and downtown drop-off
  • Comfortable in-vehicle air conditioning
  • Complimentary breakfast
  • Expert bilingual driver-guide assistance
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Tatio Geyser Entrance Fee (included on our Private Tour)
Additional Information

Join this intimate small group tour from San Pedro de Atacama and explore one of the region’s highlights with fellow travelers, while avoiding large crowds:
Embark on a journey to explore the place where the Earth releases its ancient breath. Departing early, witness the first light of dawn at the Tatio Geysers, the highest geothermal field in the world….

Location
San Pedro de Atacama
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.5
(28 Ratings)
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1 star
Lanah102
Jun 14, 2025
Highly satisfied - Amazing. And very, very cold. Dress for 10 to 20 below 0, Celsius, or 4 to 14 Fahrenheit. The tour guide, Daniel, was very knowledgeable and took good care of us. Gave us tips on how to take an awesome picture.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lana_h
Jun 12, 2025
Excellent - Great experience. The geysers are glorious at sunrise. We were picked up from our hotel and the guide texted us the order of pickups for the morning and then texted us again when he was two minutes away so we didn’t have to stand in the cold. Word of warning, when they tell you to dress warmly for this trip, they really need to be more specific: dress for 10 to 20 below, Celsius, or 4 to 14 Fahrenheit. Yes, it’s that cold at 14,000 feet above sea level at sunrise! The tour guide, Daniel, was very knowledgeable and spoke excellent English. We learned a lot and with his help/instruction, took a fabulous photo.
Review provided by Viator
Jodi_t
Oct 17, 2024
Helpful, informative and a great trip. Highly recommend. - Alex and Polly were welcoming from the start. All the information you need is provided to you the night before so that you are able to dress accordingly. Alex knows the area very well and is very informative. The geysers and sunrise is incredible and the breakfast was a delicious break. Would thoroughly recommend.
Review provided by Viator
Suelyn24
May 1, 2024
One of the most sensational tours in Atacama - We really enjoyed this tour. One of the most impressive images we've ever seen. The assistance from the contracted company was essential to the success of the day.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ariane
Dec 23, 2023
I recommend! - Best tour we did in San Pedro. The place is wonderful, the guide was excellent, very friendly and attentive to everyone. The breakfast was very good.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Enrico
Apr 5, 2023
Sunrise at Tatio Geysers - It was a very good tour to the Tatio Geysers & Rio Putana wetlands. The guide was funny and very experienced! I recommend this tour!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Blayke
Jan 31, 2023
Worth the early morning - Wetland was our favorite. We could have stayed there all day. Alexi was so knowledgeable and friendly. It’s totally worth the 3am alarm!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sumit_d
Nov 18, 2023
Underwhelming Geysers - Machuca is a waste. Tour guide was knowledgeable, but like most of his passengers at 5 am, it seemed like he would’ve rather have stayed in bed a bit longer.
Review provided by Viator
681yanag
Dec 1, 2025
Our Guide “Punished” the Group and Skipped the Geyser - Very beautiful places, but the guide was way too strict and not flexible at all. He seemed tired of his job and had no desire to show tourists the beauty of his country. We saw only one part of geysers completely missing the rest. At the very beginning of the tour, the guide made it clear that we had to follow him at all times — no step left, no step right. We did follow his rules, but one girl from our group doesn’t speak English well and somehow got lost. After around 8–10 minutes we found her and brought her back to the car. Yes, it was her fault, but come on — it was not more than 10 minutes! The guide became angry and refused to show us the next geyser (the biggest one, called “Killer”), not even for a photo stop, saying that we had no time and driving straight to the breakfast point. Well… we were the first ones there. Other cars started arriving 20–30 minutes later. There was plenty of time for breakfast, so for me it was clear that the guide did this to “teach us” the importance of his rules. Honestly, this is so stupid. We are all people after all: we traveled so far, and he decided to lecture us instead of showing the geyser. He is not my father to teach me anything. For him it’s a daily routine, but for some of us it was the only chance to see the geysers. Also, the other people in the group (whom we didn’t even know) missed it as well, even though it wasn’t their fault at all. So if you book this tour, be prepared that other tourists may “ruin” your trip, and there’s nothing you can do. All this caused arguments between us and the other members of the group — all because of a stupid 10 minutes! He had more than enough time to show it to us, at least as a quick photo stop. He refused purely out of principle. If I were a guide, my priority would be to make sure people enjoy the tour and feel happy, but he seemed absolutely fine with people being disappointed and immediately arguing. But that’s not all. I had a bit of altitude sickness, and the guide never slowed down his pace. I felt completely fine walking a bit slower, but he didn’t pay attention at all. And later, when he accused us of not respecting his rules, I said that it was one person who was late, not the whole group. He then claimed that I broke the rules too! That made me so mad. I was on the bus on time — what was the problem? That I was following him from 3 meters behind because of sickness and taking a few pictures? Then we had a stop at a lake with beautiful flamingos. Unfortunately, the car stopped at a point where the shore was very far away, so it was difficult to capture the flamingos even with the iPhone zoom. The guide told us not to walk too far from that point. But just one minute of driving further, the lake is right by the road and you can stand just a meter away from the flamingos. I asked the guide if we could drive a bit closer for a better view, but he refused, saying: “Rent your own car and drive wherever you want.” So sweet, thanks… And finally — after the tour we found out that they had “warned” us on WhatsApp that we could be eliminated from El Tatio if we didn’t follow the rules. I can imagine how frustrated the guide was, but how were we even supposed to see this message if there is no phone signal there? Definitely wouldn’t recommend. I bet booking another even cheaper tour for like $50 would save you money and nerves. I wanted to take a private tour, but unfortunately it had a limit of 6 people, while we were 7. I regret choosing this tour. I think of course tour may be fine if you don’t mess up with the time (or get another guide) but messing up time is not about 20 minutes or sth like it, anyone can get lost or sick, we are all people and make mistakes. Also situation with flamingos shows that guide is not flexible AT ALL. I see no problem in that situation, he could easily drive us to better point like many other cars. It would take 1 minute. And yeah, tour finished 15 minutes before planned that confirms we had more than enough time to see geyser or at least stop by flamingos a bit closer. It is not about the time. It is about the approach. I travel a lot and have visited many countries, and I’ve had all kinds of experiences — but this is the first time I’ve encountered such an unpleasant and completely unempathetic guide. I love highlighting good people and great tours on my YouTube channel, but not this time. I’ll likely visit Chile again, and then I’ll go to El Tatio one more time — but with another tour company. But I guess it is not about the company… that is about the person. We were just very unlucky :(
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Carmelita_h
Feb 11, 2023
bad weather caused the tour to be canceled - bad weather caused the tour to be canceled. that was very disappointing. be sure to check the typical weather before traveling to the area.
Review provided by Viator
From $79
up to 14 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).