Sami Atacama

We stayed here for 3 nights following our trip into the salt flats. The rooms are large and comfortable with a covered seating area outside. Large clean bathroom. We had a huge water bottle with tap in the room. Staff were extremely helpful and some spoke English which was so handy as embarrassingly I can't speak Spainish. If you need to pick up a Chilean sim, they sell them in the reception for around $2 US with 1gb of data. It can then be topped up. There is a lovely hot tub which can be booked in 1 1/2 hour sessions. No fridge in our room but there is a communal fridge for all to use. This hotel is about a 15 minute walk from the centre. It's a flat walk. However if you don't fancy that , don't worry. The hotel provides a free shuttle service, drop off and pick up pretty much all day. You just message on WhatsApp and they pick you up within about 5 to 10 mins. So don't worry about being slightly out of town. We booked a trip to El Tito geysers in the town and there was no issue picking us up from this location. A very relaxing stay with friendly helpful staff who are all the same family. Highly recommended.

We had an unfortunate experience with the lady running this hotel. We did not book online, as we wanted to see the rooms and property before committing. I communicated with her through WhatsApp to ask if we could come by. When we arrived I asked to see the room that was available, and she was very hesitant to allow me. She said normally she required guests to register and pay before they can see the room. When she did take me to see the room, I casually asked if there was hot water, she got angry and said these are the kinds of questions that will be answered after we have registered and paid. She wouldn’t let me see any other areas of the property and lectured me on how she doesn’t have time to show rooms to every guest who just shows up. This hotel was a top result when I searched on forms like Priceline. I imagine that most people book online and pay in advance. This hotel must be used to selling their rooms online, and doesn’t feel the need to practice good hospitality to prospective paying guests, as most guests have already paid before they show up. From what I did see, the rooms were dark, the property looked shabby, and there was loud music and guests in the pool area. I’m glad I went in person instead of booking online. We ended up staying a few nights at La Rukka and at Ittai Hotel. Both places had lovely hosts who were happy to show us the rooms and property, and answer any questions we had, including if there was hot water!