Antofagasta's greatest value as a destination is as a launching point for the Atacama and the surrounding region. Several worthwhile excursions are within reach on a day or overnight trip.
Humberstone and Santa Laura — Two nitrate mining ghost towns about 180 kilometres north of Antofagasta (and 45 km east of Iquique), now preserved as a UNESCO World Heritage site. The ruins of the company town infrastructure — theatre, church, swimming pool, workers' housing — give an uncommonly clear picture of the controlled economy that the nitrate companies imposed on their workers in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Most visitors combine them with a stop in Iquique.
Calama and Chuquicamata — Calama is 215 kilometres northeast of Antofagasta via the Panamericana. On the outskirts of Calama, the Chuquicamata copper mine is one of the largest open-pit mines on earth — nearly 5 kilometres across and almost a kilometre deep. Codelco runs daily public tours of the mine by advance booking.
San Pedro de Atacama — The main tourist hub of the Atacama desert sits about 270 kilometres northeast of Antofagasta at 2,400 metres elevation. From here you can reach the Valle de la Luna, the geysers of El Tatio, flamingo-filled altiplano lakes, and the stark salt flat of the Salar de Atacama. Budget at least two days to see the main sites; a full week is better.
El Tatio Geysers — The world's highest geyser field at 4,300 metres, about 90 kilometres north of San Pedro de Atacama. The geysers are most active at dawn, so the standard tour leaves San Pedro at 4am. The landscape of bubbling mud pools and steam columns against the sunrise is spectacular; be prepared for freezing temperatures at that altitude and hour.