Salinas Grandes: Argentina’s Salt Flats

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Most people travel to Argentina to visit the bustling Latin city of Buenos Aires or to hike in the beautiful mountains and glacial fjords of Patagonia. So many visitors leave out the Salta and Jujuy provinces of Northwest Argentina when planning their Argentina itinerary. You can easily spend a week exploring the city of Salta and the surrounding area, which is part of the Puna region. The Puna region is an arid, mountainous part of NW Argentina and a little of northern Chile.

You can rent a car or join one of the many Salta tours. With the altitude and curvy roads I recommend staying in Salta and taking day trips from Salta with a tour company. While gaining more information about the places you visit, you can also sit back and relax. While the excursions are long, you will be able to see a lot of the area without having to change accommodations. One of the best Salta day trips is a visit to the Salinas Grandes, Argentina’s salt flats, in the Quebrada de Humahuaca.

Before My Salinas Grandes Tour from Salta

I seem to have this habit of wanting to do activities, booking them and then being terrified to follow through on them. Remember my first white water rafting trip in Chile? The day trip to the Salinas Grandes (salt flats) was one of those times. People might be surprised by this because it isn’t a typical adventurous activity like rafting or glacier hiking. 

What made me want to change my mind about this trip was the altitude. It was my first time going above 2,500 meters, the point where you can start feeling altitude sickness. This Salinas Grandes Salta tour goes to altitudes over 4,000 meters. But like any of my other adventures, I felt the fear and did it anyway! Oh and gathered lots of information so I could properly freak myself out (see my tips on avoiding altitude sickness below). 

Salinas Grandes Tour

My Salinas Grandes tour from Salta started bright and early. I can’t really say bright, because it was so early that it was still dark out! After we picked up all the tour participants in Salta we drove for about two hours north. We made a pit stop at a touristy place. It was like a gas station, but without any gas…..and with authentic crafts from the local people for sale.

Quebrada de Humahuaca

After our quick break we drove through the mountain valley known as la Quebrada de Humahuaca in the Jujuy province. The dramatic mountain scenery is fantastic. The Seven Colors Hill is one of the most beautiful stops on the drive. The valley isn’t heavily populated, but there are several little villages where the descendants of indigenous Andean families live. Purmamarca is one of the villages that we visited at the end of the tour.

Coca

As we began to gain altitude our guide introduced coca leaves to us. Coca is a plant that has been used by indigenous people in the Northwest region of Argentina for centuries. Although it is used to make cocaine, it does not hurt you. It is actually helpful to your health. Many drivers use it to help aid their digestion. The mild stimulant helps reduces fatigue, pain, hunger and thirst.

The small green coca leaves are placed on the side your mouth between your cheek and your teeth. Typically you put about 10 – 15 leaves in your mouth at a time and leave them in for at least 30 minutes. Instead of taking them out, people add more as time goes on. You can also drink coca tea or use candies that are made from coca. Personally I liked the candies to suck on the best. It feels odd putting leaves in your mouth! Whatever you use start taking it before you reach higher altitudes.

Coca leaves are legal to both buy and sell in Northwest Argentina. You can buy them in Salta or on stops on the tour. Our guide shared his leaves with us. I did use them. I must have looked doubtful because some fellow passengers shared their candies with me too!

Some people are probably excited to try coca, because it is illegal in most parts of the world. Others, like me, might be a little hesitant. I do believe they helped with the altitude and made me less hungry and tired. On a 12 – 14 hour tour that does come in handy!

Highest Point

Then it was time to go up, up, up! The crazy zig-zag road of the Cuesta de Lipán is not for the faint of heart. The steep hair-pin turns are not recommended for anyone who gets car sick. The views are pretty exciting though. Many compare Northwest Argentina to Southwest USA. I have never been to the SW USA before so I have never experienced anything like it!

When we reached the highest point (4170 meters) we were told it might feel a little funny walking out of the van and to take it slow. Picture your favorite space movie, when the humans walk on the moon or some other planet for the first time. Got that picture in your head? That is exactly how I felt exiting the van. I felt as if I was landing on another planet and not sure how my body would react. Just like the first explorers in outer space, I took slow steps. 

In reality, it was kind of anti-climatic. The air felt a little different, but other than that if I wasn’t thinking about it so much I probably wouldn’t have noticed. It may have been the coca was helping too.

Salinas Grandes – Salt Flats

Then it was time for the most exciting part of the tour, the Salinas Grandes! Argentina’s salt flats aren’t as big as Bolivia’s, but they are still impressive. They cover about 3,200 square miles in both Salta and Jujuy provinces at 3450 meters. The sparkling white salt that looks like it stretches on and on is in contrast to the vibrant blue sky.

What is there to do at the Salinas Grandes? Take photos of course! It is so much fun to take perspective photos. I was traveling alone, but made friends with other people on the tour so we could all help each other. It’s best if you come up with some cool photo ideas (post about Bolivia’s Salt Flats, but the photo ideas still work) ahead of time. Also it is harder than it looks. The sun is glaringly bright (wear protection), but that means it is hard to get the photos lined up just right.

Purmamarca

Luckily the coca leaves lessen your appetite, because it was almost 2pm by the time we arrived in the town of Purmamarca for lunch. We were given a couple of hours to eat lunch and do what we wanted in the town at our leisure. Our guide made a reservation for us at La Diablada. I was trying to avoid eating meat to lessen the chance of altitude sickness, but I couldn’t pass on trying the traditional dish of the Puna region…..llama!

After lunch we had the option to take a short hike on the surrounding mountains with our guide. Usually I would be all for that, but as it was my first time eating llama, I didn’t know how a stomach full of llama would do on a hike in high altitude. I skipped the hike and wandered around the town and the artisan market stalls instead. The village surrounded by mountains and full of adobe houses contrasted well with the colorful items for sale.

How to Avoid Altitude Sickness

When I am worried about something I do a lot of research…for better or worse! I’ve gotten better about not checking WebMD though. Anyway, here is everything I found about altitude sickness. Clearly I am not a doctor, but I did avoid altitude sickness on the Salinas Grandes tour so it is up to you if you take my advice or not! 

• The best advice I received was that altitude sickness is 40% in your head. I nodded vigorously when I heard that news, because when I signed up for this tour when I was in Buenos Aires (at 25 meters) I already started to feel sick…true story! 
• Don’t eat meat or big meals the day of your tour and the day before. I know you are in Argentina and all you want to do is eat steak, but hold off until Buenos Aires! 
• Don’t drink alcohol the day of or before either.
• With the lack of bathroom opportunities you may be tempted to drink less, but make sure to stay hydrated. Coca will dehydrate you.
• Use coca leaves or the candy version (more information above)
• Take it slow & breathe

Salinas Grandes Tour Information

Booking

Schedule your tour ahead of time so you don’t waste any time booking it once you are in Salta. Almost all of the Salta tour companies run a similar tour. I went with Nordic Travel. You can read the pros and the cons of the company below.

There are many instances where I recommend a particular company. As you may have noticed, with this post there was no mention of the company until this point. That is because I felt like the tour itself and the locations to visit, were more important than the company you choose.

Nordic Travel Review

I didn’t book my tour ahead of time like I should have. On my first day in Salta I went to the Nordic Travel office and was able to book the Salinas Grandes tour for the next day. On my receipt my pick-up time was between 6:30 – 7:30am. The agent crossed it out and told me that I did not need to be ready until 6:50am.  I’m rather fond of sleep so I wasn’t outside of my hostel until 6:50am as I was told. Perhaps I should have been earlier, perhaps the guy shouldn’t have changed my pick-up time to 6:50am but long story short, I missed my tour!

As most of the tours in Salta leave early and the things to do in Salta don’t open until later I was frustrated that I got out of bed for no reason! My hostel worker helped me reschedule for the next day. The following day I was outside at 6:30am and my pick-up wasn’t until 7:15am, go figure! I was annoyed with the pick-up process and the drop-off process. Meeting at a central location would be much more efficient. I would choose an hour of sleep over a 10 minute walk any day.

Other than that I have no complaints about the actual tour. Many companies claim to have an English speaking guide, but most of them have a native Spanish speaker that knows a little English. My guide, Jeremy, was great. If you decide to go with Nordic Travel and don’t speak English I would ask for him. He is Canadian and therefore speaks fluent English that is easy to understand. There is a separate driver and guide so the driving is done really carefully and the explanations are interesting.

Toilets

It depends on the particular tour you take, but we stopped after about two hours of driving for a bathroom break. Then it was another couple of hours until we reached the salt flats. You need to pay to use the toilets there. They are port-a-pottie style toilets. Then it is less than an hour’s drive to Purmamarca. There are pay toilets in the town, but you can also use the toilets at the restaurant where you eat. We made one more stop at a gas station on the way back to Salta.

The other stops like the viewpoint to see the seven colors hill and the highest point do not have any toilets.

Food

With pick-ups between 6:30am – 7:30am and lunch not until almost 2pm, it is a long morning. Most likely you will stop in the morning for a bathroom break where you can buy some snacks, but just to be on the safe side bring some food with you. I bought some trail mix from a street vender in the main plaza in Salta. It was the perfect snack to have along.

More Day Trips from Salta

• Cachi: The day trip to the village of Cachi is a scenic one. It’s a great day trip to relax and enjoy the dramatic landscapes of the province.
• Cafayate: Wine lovers, this tour is for you! Enjoy the scenery as you head to one of Argentina’s wine regions.
• Rafting & Canopy: I loved going rafting and zip-lining (canopy) outside of Salta because it is an adventurous activity day with a beautiful backdrop.
• Rainforest Hiking: Hike through the rainforest near Salta. It’s a great opportunity to potentially see some of the wildlife in the area.
• Humahuaca: This tour is similar to the Salinas Grandes tour described in this post, in the sense that it covers similar ground. It does not go to the salt flats and instead visits additional towns in the Quebrada de Humahuaca.

More About Argentina

• 13 Things to Know About Argentina
• Buenos Aires: Where to Stay
• Buenos Aires: Tango – where to dance Tango and where to watch Tango
• Buenos Aires: Fútbol – how to get tickets to a Boca Juniors game
• Buenos Aires: Steak – the best places to eat steak in Palermo
• Buenos Aires: Restaurants – where to eat in Palermo
• Buenos Aires: MALBA – The Latin American Art Museum of Buenos Aires
• Buenos Aires: Evita Museum – museum dedicated to the life of Eva Perón
• Buenos Aires: Medical Care – where to go in Buenos Aires for medical care (plus pharmacies!)
• Tigre: A Day trip to Tigre from Buenos Aires
• Salta: What to Do in Salta – in Northwest Argentina
• Salta Day Trips: Rafting & Zip-lining, Cachi

 

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