Between the Pacific Ocean and the Cordillera de los Andes, Atacama is an immense extension of land and mystery. Desert and oasis have been agents of repose and of change for the pre-Columbian Andean cultures of South America. The remains of their past are landmarks in the area; their present shares with other cultures in the maintenance of their traditions, giving life to small villages. Cordilleras, volcanoes, salt flats and hot springs add natural splendor to human culture. The Atacama culture had an important agricultural development and produced particularly beautiful textiles and metallurgy. Their lands were the commercial crossroads for the peoples of Bolivia, Argentina and the Pacific coast. In Atacama it is possible to appreciate multiple features of this history, expressed in archeological monuments, cemeteries, churches and villages. The traditions still live in religious festivities, in its crafts and in the local folklore. Atacama a Journey for the Soul The Atacama oases, in the middle of the driest desert in the world, have an altitudinal peculiarity: they are situated at 2,500 meters above sea level, making the Atacama not only the driest, but also the highest desert on earth. For this reason, the year-round climate is pleasant and the transparency of light, unique. The outlandish geography of volcanoes, salt flats and high altitude wetlands, has an unparalleled appeal. But the oasis of San Pedro is simply an introduction. It is the last area where human life is possible; where a visitor can still be harbored. Once you leave San Pedro towards the altiplanos and the volcanoes, you can truly perceive remoteness, where one experiences an entirely different world, an untamed place far from civilization as we know it. The program at explora en Atacama, based at Hotel de Larache in the oasis of San Pedro, puts visitors in the middle of a fantasy where exploration, the leaving and returning, acquires a shape of its own. The altiplano is more a metaphor than a geographical entity. More than a physical exploration, the trip through the altiplano is a spiritual exploration inside oneself in a unearthly world. The altiplano shows that behind the complexity of life there exists a simplicity that leads us to reconsider our place within the grand scheme of things. And that is what makes the trip to Atacama one of the most magnificent experiences that one can ever realize. Hotel de Larache In the case of explora en Atacama, the program is based at the Hotel de Larache, in the oasis of San Pedro. This property puts visitors in the middle of a fantasy where exploration, the leaving and returning, acquires a shape of its own. Close to San Pedro de Atacama village, the hotel is located in Ayllu (neighborhood) de Larache, on ample terrain of more than 17 hectares (42 acres). The Property grounds, formed by twenty small farming lots, are respected and maintained as a historical testimony by explora. Accommodations include all you need for relaxation and the best means for exploring the Atacama lands. [More] [Rates and Conditions] [Check Availabilty]
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