Experience – Atacama, Chile: Moon Valley (Valle de la Luna)
- Address: Valle de la Luna (Moon Valley), San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. (Google Maps)
- Hours: Monday – Sunday 7am – 6pm
- Recommended Time:Â 2 – 4 hours
- How to Arrive:Â By car, biking
- Distance from Atacama: 6 km / 3.7 miles
- Ideal Month(s): All Year
Moon Valley (Valle de la Luna) is an outer-worldly landscape that is a part of the Cordillera de la Sal (Salt Mountain Range) belonging to the Los Flamencos National Reserve. It has various stone and sand formations which have been carved by wind and water. The valley has an impressive range of color and texture, looking somewhat similar to the surface of the moon. The area is a small depression of salt ground, 1,650 feet (500 m) in diameter, that exhibits odd sculptural shapes. These are the result of a sequence of transformations on the earth’s crust caused by the folding of the watery ground underneath the salt lake. In the surroundings you can visit the Salt Sculptures known as Las Tres MarÃas and enjoy one of the most amazing and colorful sunsets in Northern Chile.
Due of its lack of humidity, there is no life in Moon Valley (Valle de la Luna), which has turned it into one of the most inhospitable places on earth. The Atacama desert is considered one of the driest places on earth, as some areas have not received a single drop of rain in hundreds of years.
