Small-Group Tour to Tatio Geysers Machuca Village & Rio Putana wetlands

Our Guide “Punished” the Group and Skipped the Geyser

Very beautiful places, but the guide was way too strict and not flexible at all. He seemed tired of his job and had no desire to show tourists the beauty of his country. We saw only one part of geysers completely missing the rest. At the very beginning of the tour, the guide made it clear that we had to follow him at all times — no step left, no step right. We did follow his rules, but one girl from our group doesn’t speak English well and somehow got lost. After around 8–10 minutes we found her and brought her back to the car. Yes, it was her fault, but come on — it was not more than 10 minutes! The guide became angry and refused to show us the next geyser (the biggest one, called “Killer”), not even for a photo stop, saying that we had no time and driving straight to the breakfast point. Well… we were the first ones there. Other cars started arriving 20–30 minutes later. There was plenty of time for breakfast, so for me it was clear that the guide did this to “teach us” the importance of his rules. Honestly, this is so stupid. We are all people after all: we traveled so far, and he decided to lecture us instead of showing the geyser. He is not my father to teach me anything. For him it’s a daily routine, but for some of us it was the only chance to see the geysers. Also, the other people in the group (whom we didn’t even know) missed it as well, even though it wasn’t their fault at all. So if you book this tour, be prepared that other tourists may “ruin” your trip, and there’s nothing you can do. All this caused arguments between us and the other members of the group — all because of a stupid 10 minutes! He had more than enough time to show it to us, at least as a quick photo stop. He refused purely out of principle. If I were a guide, my priority would be to make sure people enjoy the tour and feel happy, but he seemed absolutely fine with people being disappointed and immediately arguing. But that’s not all. I had a bit of altitude sickness, and the guide never slowed down his pace. I felt completely fine walking a bit slower, but he didn’t pay attention at all. And later, when he accused us of not respecting his rules, I said that it was one person who was late, not the whole group. He then claimed that I broke the rules too! That made me so mad. I was on the bus on time — what was the problem? That I was following him from 3 meters behind because of sickness and taking a few pictures? Then we had a stop at a lake with beautiful flamingos. Unfortunately, the car stopped at a point where the shore was very far away, so it was difficult to capture the flamingos even with the iPhone zoom. The guide told us not to walk too far from that point. But just one minute of driving further, the lake is right by the road and you can stand just a meter away from the flamingos. I asked the guide if we could drive a bit closer for a better view, but he refused, saying: “Rent your own car and drive wherever you want.” So sweet, thanks… And finally — after the tour we found out that they had “warned” us on WhatsApp that we could be eliminated from El Tatio if we didn’t follow the rules. I can imagine how frustrated the guide was, but how were we even supposed to see this message if there is no phone signal there? Definitely wouldn’t recommend. I bet booking another even cheaper tour for like $50 would save you money and nerves. I wanted to take a private tour, but unfortunately it had a limit of 6 people, while we were 7. I regret choosing this tour. I think of course tour may be fine if you don’t mess up with the time (or get another guide) but messing up time is not about 20 minutes or sth like it, anyone can get lost or sick, we are all people and make mistakes. Also situation with flamingos shows that guide is not flexible AT ALL. I see no problem in that situation, he could easily drive us to better point like many other cars. It would take 1 minute. And yeah, tour finished 15 minutes before planned that confirms we had more than enough time to see geyser or at least stop by flamingos a bit closer. It is not about the time. It is about the approach. I travel a lot and have visited many countries, and I’ve had all kinds of experiences — but this is the first time I’ve encountered such an unpleasant and completely unempathetic guide. I love highlighting good people and great tours on my YouTube channel, but not this time. I’ll likely visit Chile again, and then I’ll go to El Tatio one more time — but with another tour company. But I guess it is not about the company… that is about the person. We were just very unlucky :(

Response from the operator: Hello! We are very sorry to hear that your experience didn’t meet your expectations. We understand that the guide’s approach might have felt strict, but we’d like to explain that this type of tour involves risks and requires strict adherence to safety protocols to ensure everyone’s safety even if in site it might not seem like it. In this particular situation, prioritizing safety was necessary, especially after the incident with the guest who got delayed. We must emphasize that not respecting safety regulations can lead to incidents and fines, which is why it’s crucial to follow the rules. We regret that this situation impacted your visit to El Tatio, and we understand how frustrating it can be when things don’t go as expected. We appreciate your feedback and we will work towards ensuring a more flexible and empathetic approach in the future. We hope you could enjoy the rest of your trip in spite of this unfortunate situation. We hope your next visit to Chile is much more satisfying. Best regards

via Tripadvisor

Highly satisfied

Amazing. And very, very cold. Dress for 10 to 20 below 0, Celsius, or 4 to 14 Fahrenheit. The tour guide, Daniel, was very knowledgeable and took good care of us. Gave us tips on how to take an awesome picture.

Response from the operator: Hi Lanah! Thank you for your review. We're glad you enjoyed the experience despite the cold, and that you felt well guided and taken care of throughout the tour. Great to hear you also got some nice photo tips to capture the moment. Best regards

via Tripadvisor

Excellent

Great experience. The geysers are glorious at sunrise. We were picked up from our hotel and the guide texted us the order of pickups for the morning and then texted us again when he was two minutes away so we didn’t have to stand in the cold. Word of warning, when they tell you to dress warmly for this trip, they really need to be more specific: dress for 10 to 20 below, Celsius, or 4 to 14 Fahrenheit. Yes, it’s that cold at 14,000 feet above sea level at sunrise! The tour guide, Daniel, was very knowledgeable and spoke excellent English. We learned a lot and with his help/instruction, took a fabulous photo.

Response from the operator: Hi Lana! Thank you for your review. We're glad you enjoyed the geysers and had a smooth experience from hotel pickup to the tour itself. The early morning temperatures at that altitude can definitely be extreme, and your advice will be helpful for future travelers. Happy to know you learned a lot and captured great photos during the tour. Kind regards

via Viator

Helpful, informative and a great trip. Highly recommend.

Alex and Polly were welcoming from the start. All the information you need is provided to you the night before so that you are able to dress accordingly. Alex knows the area very well and is very informative. The geysers and sunrise is incredible and the breakfast was a delicious break. Would thoroughly recommend.

via Viator

Underwhelming Geysers

Machuca is a waste. Tour guide was knowledgeable, but like most of his passengers at 5 am, it seemed like he would’ve rather have stayed in bed a bit longer.

Response from the operator: Hi Sumit_D Thanks for your time and your feedback. We are really sorry to know you did not like Machuca Village. This is really personal as every destination offers different experiences. The pick up time for you tour is really early in order to see the Geysers phenomenon. This is the highlight in this tour. It saddens us to know you did not like them. Again it is totally personal. We look forward receiving you again in Argentina or Chile Best regards Ayelen

via Viator