For centuries, Chiu Chiu has offered shade and rest to those who travel through the Atacama Desert. Called San Francisco de Chiu Chiu, this town located 30 km from Calama and at an altitude of 2,525 meters maintains its rhythms and forms thanks to the Atacameño communities that live there and that today combine agriculture with tourism.

What makes it famous, besides its surroundings, are its buildings. For example, the Church of San Francisco, dating from 1600, is known to be the oldest in Chile and was built with the techniques of the Atacameños themselves. Enter and marvel: it is made of adobe and cactus wood.

Chiu Chiu was one of the stops on the "Inca Trail" and remains charming until today. It receives many visits from those on their way to the Laguna Inca Coya, the pucará of Lasana or the feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Aiquina, a smaller version of La Tirana, but equally crowded with visitors.