El Tatio Geysers at Sunrise: Pickup Time, Cold and Altitude
4 min read
Book El Tatio late in your stay, take the warmest clothes you own, and read the age and health rules of the tour before you pay. The geyser field lies at 4,320 metres above sea level, and Chile’s national tourism board Sernatur names 5 am to 7:30 am as the best window, when the steam columns can reach about 10 metres. Temperatures are around 0 °C, so tours collect you in the dark.
What the official side says
Sernatur lists the general entrance fee at CLP 15,000 per person, paid at the entrance. It also states that pregnant women and people over 70 are not allowed in, advises against alcohol and red meat the night before, and warns that geyser water can exceed 85 °C, so stay on marked paths and follow your guide. The tour pages set their own age limits, and they differ from this: one tour is not suitable for travellers over 60, another for travellers over 80. Several tour pages add the same advice in their own words: do this tour after other, lower trips, because of the altitude.
Five sunrise tours compared
| Tour | Time | Language | Not suitable for, per the page | Park fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| El Tatio Geysers at Sunrise with breakfast | 6 hours | Spanish, English | Children under 9, over 60, heart problems, high blood pressure, altitude sickness | Page says to pay CLP 15,000 in advance at the agency, in cash |
| El Tatio and wetlands, 7 hours | 7 hours | English, Spanish | Pregnant women, mobility impairments, heart problems, high blood pressure, children under 2 (not recommended under 6) | Page says to pay in the park by cash or card |
| El Tatio guided minibus tour | 7 hours | English, Spanish | Children under 12, pregnant women, heart problems, wheelchair users, over 80 | Page lists the CLP 15,000 ticket and says to bring cash; ask whether it is in the price |
| El Tatio half-day tour | 6 hours | Spanish, English | Children under 11, pregnant women | The itinerary marks El Tatio as an extra fee, so the entrance is not in the price |
| El Tatio and wetlands from a meeting point | 7 hours | Spanish, English | Ask the operator | Entrance fee of CLP 15,000 listed as included |
Prices are €58.50 for the 6-hour sunrise tour, €72.20 for the 7-hour wetlands tour, €46.35 for the guided minibus tour, €44.57 for the half-day tour and €60.61 for the meeting-point tour.
Pickup, breakfast and cold
On the 6-hour sunrise tour the page gives pickup between 4:30 and 5:10 am, breakfast and temperatures of -10 to -5 degrees in the morning. It does not pick up in the outlying ayllus around San Pedro or in Toconao. The 7-hour wetlands tour also starts at 4:30 am and names the Putana and Machuca wetlands and a stop in Machuca village; the 6-hour tour names the Putana valley but no stop in Machuca; its page says drop-off is in the town centre. The tour from a meeting point starts at Caracoles 419 rather than at your hotel.
Wear layers with a T-shirt underneath, because the page describes a sharp swing in temperature between early morning and midday. Drones, alcohol and drugs are not allowed on the sunrise tour.
Which one to choose
For most travellers the sunrise tour with breakfast is the simple choice: it has 1,153 reviews and a fixed pickup window. The catch is the group of up to 50 people and the advance payment of the park fee at the agency, so ask how to pay when you book. If you want a stop in Machuca village, the 7-hour wetlands tour and the half-day tour both include one. Anyone with a heart condition, high blood pressure or a child under 12 should first read on the page who the tour is not suitable for, because the limits differ from tour to tour.
To see every option, open the geyser tours. For a lower-altitude trip earlier in your stay, the salt lagoons of Cejar are listed at 2,300 metres, and the high-altitude lagoon day trip is the one to keep for later.
