Copiapó has its own airport (Desierto de Atacama, BHC), about 45 kilometres west near Caldera, with regular flights to Santiago on LATAM and Sky Airline. The flight from Santiago takes about two hours. The road from Santiago is long — about 800 kilometres north on the Pan-American Highway (Ruta 5) — but manageable in a day if you start early. Long-distance buses run from Santiago's Terminal de Buses Alameda, with several companies making the overnight journey in about 10 hours.