Chile/Bolivia Itinerary Help
 

Hi there,

I have 9 days planned for Chile and Bolivia in May and need some help. Please take a look at my itinerary and let me know if this sounds feasible!

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Day 1: arrive at Calama airport 12:30pm, go to San Pedro de Atacama and fit in a tour for Valle de la Luna

Day 2: hoping to catch a bus/jeep ride from San Pedro de Atacama to Uyuni, going direct without a tour

Day 3: Uyuni tour

Day 4: bus from Uyuni to Calama, then to San Pedro de Atacama

Day 5: Valle de la Muerte, maybe a bike tour/horseback riding, and then do a stargazing tour

Day 6: El Tatio in the morning and fly out to Santiago in the afternoon

Day 7: bus to Valparaiso

Day 8: Valparaiso, and then bus back to Santiago

Day 9: Santiago tour full day, fly out of Chile at night
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Anything else I should consider? Am I staying in San Pedro for too long/ not giving Santiago enough credit? Anything else I should try to fit into my schedule?

I am comfortable running with a tight/intense schedule (I don't get many vacation days and I want to enjoy/see as much as possible!!!). Please let me know if there are other things I should consider!

Thanks so much in advance.

I would also like to know if it is necessary to book hostels and accommodation in advance. Will San Pedro/Uyuni be crowded in May? I am female and will be traveling solo, so safety is my primary concern here. Thanks!

If you have a tight schedule you can't afford to lose a day because all the tours are full.

So book in advance, although it will cost more.

When we visited San Pedro a couple of years ago, I think in August, we found it very difficult to get a bus out to Calamari for our onward trip to Iquique. They do tend to get booked up in advance. We had to stay a day longer than we wanted in what is a very expensive town.

If safety is your primary concern AND you have a tight schedule then book in advance. You probably don't need a tour operator and should be able to book everything separately.

Not sure that it is possible to get to Salar de Uyuni without a tour and, even if you could, I would question both the safety aspect and the cost.