The Atacama Desert is the driest place on earth. In some parts of it, it has never rained in recorded history. The sky above it, at 2,500 metres above sea level and far from any source of light pollution, is one of the clearest in the world. And sitting within it, in the fertile microclimate of the Catarpe Valley beside the San Pedro River, is a lodge built from the same adobe and local materials as the ancient Andean cultures that have inhabited this landscape for millennia.
Nayara Alto Atacama does not try to distract you from where you are. Everything here is arranged to pull you deeper into it: the terracotta walls and algarrobo trees of the cactus gardens, the scent of Rica-Rica bushes on the desert air, the llama corral a short walk from the restaurant, the Andean vegetable gardens producing ingredients for the kitchen. The lodge occupies 3.5 hectares in the Catarpe Valley, 3km north of the village of San Pedro de Atacama, enclosed by the Salt Mountain Range on one side and the ochre ridgelines of the valley on the other. The light here moves through shades of gold, copper, and pink across the day, and the sky after dark requires no introduction.
The 42 adobe rooms and 10 Tilo suites are built in a style that borrows from the architecture of the surrounding altiplano communities: thick-walled, deep-roofed to filter the desert sun, furnished with handwoven throws, macrame hangings, and local crafts that situate you firmly in northern Chile rather than a generic luxury hotel. Catarpe rooms, at 50 square metres each, have large terraces facing either the lodge gardens, the Catarpe Valley, or the Salt Mountain Range, and the sound of the San Pedro River comes through the walls. The Tilo suites, at 70 square metres, look out over the oasis toward the Salt Mountain Range and the Andean peaks, and add an outdoor rain shower on a private patio, designed for washing under the night sky.
The all-inclusive programme covers accommodation, all meals, airport transfers, daily excursions, and access to the Puri Spa, which takes its name and philosophy from the Kunza word for water and draws on the four Andean elements of fire, water, earth, and air. Six outdoor swimming pools, indoor and outdoor hydro-massage baths, a sauna and steam bath, and a treatment menu that uses local ingredients including quinoa and Altiplanic mud make the spa its own reason to stay. The excursion programme is the other. Over 35 tours are available, led by indigenous guides with genuine knowledge of the landscape and its history: the Valle de la Luna at sunset, the Tatio Geysers at dawn, flamingo watching on the altiplano lakes, salt flat crossings, volcano treks, photography safaris, and stargazing on the lodge’s telescope platform. The Atacama is considered one of the world’s premier stargazing sites. The lodge makes full use of that fact.
Nayara Alto Atacama holds the ‘S’ certification for sustainable tourism awarded by the Chilean government, the only luxury hotel in San Pedro de Atacama to do so. The kitchen works with seasonal local ingredients transformed into dishes rooted in the culinary culture of northern Chile. There is no element of the property that feels imported or incongruous. The whole place has the quality of something that belongs precisely where it is.
The Details
- 42 Catarpe rooms (50m², king bed, terrace with valley or garden views) and 10 Tilo suites (70m², king bed, private patio with outdoor shower, views of the Salt Mountain Range and Andes)
- All-inclusive packages available: accommodation, all meals and drinks, airport transfers, daily excursions, and spa access
- Bed and breakfast packages also available
- Puri Spa: six outdoor pools, indoor and outdoor hydro-massage baths, sauna, steam bath, and treatment menu using local Andean ingredients
- Over 35 guided excursions including Valle de la Luna, Tatio Geysers, flamingo watching, volcano treks, salt flat crossings, and astronomical observatory stargazing
- On-site llama corral and Andean vegetable gardens
- Restaurant serving Chilean-inspired cuisine with seasonal local ingredients
- Only luxury hotel in San Pedro de Atacama to hold the Chilean government ‘S’ certification for sustainable tourism
- Member of Leading Hotels of the World; Conde Nast Traveller Readers’ Choice Top 15 Resorts in South America 2023
