Centro turístico Laguna Chaxa — Attraction in San Pedro de Atacama

Okay, so first of all, it is a beautiful place. Lots of flamingos and great landscape. That is all for the good part. For the bad part : You have to pay a higher price if you are a foreigner (8 000 pesos against 5 000 if you are Chilean). I do not understand how that is considered to be fair. A woman at the entrance asked for our passports and lots of information to register ourselves. She told us that we could pay with a debit card but, of course, the receptionist told us otherwise and we had to pay with cash. The only infrastructure you pay for is a building with two or three tables, toilets and a small walking path delimited with rocks, that is something like 100 meters (328 ft) long. No telescopes to see the birds, no exposition, hardly an informative panel that is way too ruined to read anything.

We are very disappointed, after seeing some amazing places for free all around San Pedro de Atacama, of having to pay the equivalent of 10 USD each, almost twice the price locals pay, for a 100 meters trail (that's 1 USD per 10 meters). By the way, you can also see lots of flamingos for free at the Mirador Quebrada Quepiaco, a very beautiful place not...

The correct coordinates are -23.28, -68.07 — DO NOT BLINDLY FOLLOW GPS. There are two gates on opposite ends of the lagoon, and one is currently closed. Many apps (Google Maps, Waze, etc.) will route you to the wrong, closed gate. Use the coordinates above or, if coming from San Pedro, take the right fork at the sign for Salar de Atacama, which connects to the B-355 road.

The salt flat is vast, with a meandering path that passes through sections featuring informative signs about the local geology and wildlife. The visitor center also has a small but well-done indoor museum in both English and Spanish. Add in the sweeping views of Lascar Volcano behind flamingos, and the visit is not only scenic but also a worthwhile...

People come to Chaxa mostly to see the flamingos, here in our non flat salt flat, you can see half of the flamingo species in the world. We have the Andean flamingo, the Chilean flamingo and the James's flamingo. Listed in most seen order. Now you must take care that most flamingos migrate to higher salt flats during summer, which is high season, Chaxa is the lowest at 2300 meters over sea level. Year round you will see the Andean flamingo (and maybe the Chilean). Sunsets are great here. There are 4 tables if you want to set up for it, and the staff here are very knowledgeable. (remember the wind picks up in the afternoon so it might get chilly) The entrance fee...