Mamalluca Observatory
Mamalluca Observatory
4
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM, 3:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
3:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
3:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
3:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
3:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
3:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Saturday
11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
4:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Sunday
11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
4:00 PM - 7:00 PM
About
The Mamalluca Observatory ("mother who shelters" according to Quechua) is located 9 kms northwest of Vicuña, at 1,100 m.s.n.m. Is a must see in the region of Coquimbo, is the first tourist observatory in Chile, has a 12-inch telescope donated by AURA that has CCD detectors for electronic photography, as well as a computer for data transfer This observatory offers one of the most important attractions of the area, the cleanest skies in the world, perfect for watching the night sky and be amazed. Within the Mamalluca Observatory, there is a tour with a duration of approximately 2 hours, where guides specialized in the matter explain in details about the universe and answer the concerns giving a sample of quality and truthfulness to the visitors. There it is possible to observe the stars, the Moon, the planets like Saturn and its rings or Jupiter and its 16 moons, and the different constellations.
Suggested duration
1-2 hours
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
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4.0
701 reviews
Excellent
300
Very good
186
Average
120
Poor
46
Terrible
49
Fabian030
Berlin, Germany96 contributions
Jan 2020 • Couples
Well. First: you have to book a tour in the office in town (Vicuña), not only, or at the observatory itself. Then there are two tour options: 20:30 or 23.
We took the 20:30 on a Sunday. Again we got a “private” English tour as we were the only English only speaking people there. The Spanish tour group were around 30 people. The 23 tour was a loooot more packed with people, both speaking English and Spanish.
The tour itself was great. A guide too, you around to the telescopes, explained how they work, showed some stars, nebulas, and stuff, and explained how to pin poi;t or find a specific star. It was a very informative and interesting tour - and so far the only one we too, were we were able to look through the telescopes by ourselves. :)
Organization was a bit strange (waiting in a queue at the office, you get your tickets, but drive up to the observatory yourself...), but it was worth the effort. :) and pretty cheap with only 7000p p.p.
We took the 20:30 on a Sunday. Again we got a “private” English tour as we were the only English only speaking people there. The Spanish tour group were around 30 people. The 23 tour was a loooot more packed with people, both speaking English and Spanish.
The tour itself was great. A guide too, you around to the telescopes, explained how they work, showed some stars, nebulas, and stuff, and explained how to pin poi;t or find a specific star. It was a very informative and interesting tour - and so far the only one we too, were we were able to look through the telescopes by ourselves. :)
Organization was a bit strange (waiting in a queue at the office, you get your tickets, but drive up to the observatory yourself...), but it was worth the effort. :) and pretty cheap with only 7000p p.p.
Written January 24, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
frogANDpepper
Dublin73 contributions
I am backpacker, 37yrs old, 40+countries visited.
I visited Mamalluca observatory encouraged by good reviews on Internet. That was my second observatory, my first experience was in San Pedro de Atacama.
PRICE: 4.500 pesos for the entry, 3000 for return transport with a mini van arranged in a ticketing office in Vicuña (the lady in the ticketing office also reserves the transport).
WEATHER TIP: The observation of the stars depends strictly on the weather conditions, so before you make a reservation check weather forecast. Vicuna has normally clear sky in most of the days but you never know. We arrived to Vicuña on a cloudy day and we were told in a ticketing office that it's better to wait a few days so we went to Pisco de Elqui instead for two days. When we returned to Vicuna we were advised to buy a ticket at 8pm for the tour at 8.30pm if the sky is clear, which we did so.
TRANSPORT: I did not have any problems with the transport from Vicuna, minivans were punctual (by the way ticketing office was still open at that time) taking us from ticketing office (15 min drive) and taking you back straight after the tour to the center of Vicuña. You are back by 11.30pm.
PROGRAM:
** 9pm start of the tour, English/ Spanish groups to choose
** observation of Mars, Saturn, stars with the telescope inside the observatory with a dome roof and adjusted watching space and guide explanations
** observation of Milky Way, clusters with a telescope outside
** presentation in the observatory building: digital display of pictures of stars and planets and the moon, explanation of astronomy website 'stellarium'.
** finish about 11pm
***** there was no observation of the moon.
IMPRESSION:
- Too many people, lack of silence, there were 3 groups for about 15-20 people each including young Germans talking and laughing constantly - the guide should learn how to execute silence especially from people who do not appreciate opportunity;
- observation outside was at the same time for all groups which means that you hear other guides in the background and you can see other laser pointers in the sky...
- Guide's commentary was not structured well which was a shame cause he was very knowledgeable. It was more questions - answers type of a tour but he spoke very good English.
- Mars and Saturn was very small and the image was blured, we did not observe the moon and there was no option to choose the tour with the moon observation
- I had some questions to the guide at the end of the tour but I was rushed by a driver to finish which was not very nice.
OVERALL: I expected very good standard after reading reviews but after my experience in San Pedro de Atacama I found it disappointing, overrated with way too many tourists for a tour. For my partner it was the first observatory and he said he would not have visited it at all. I visited a private small observatory in San Pedro (10.30pm-12.30am) with just 5 people in total, we observed the planets and stars (the telescope view was much better then but I think it might depend on the timing) and then waited for the moon which was the most impressive. I liked digital presentation though, very interesting.
I visited Mamalluca observatory encouraged by good reviews on Internet. That was my second observatory, my first experience was in San Pedro de Atacama.
PRICE: 4.500 pesos for the entry, 3000 for return transport with a mini van arranged in a ticketing office in Vicuña (the lady in the ticketing office also reserves the transport).
WEATHER TIP: The observation of the stars depends strictly on the weather conditions, so before you make a reservation check weather forecast. Vicuna has normally clear sky in most of the days but you never know. We arrived to Vicuña on a cloudy day and we were told in a ticketing office that it's better to wait a few days so we went to Pisco de Elqui instead for two days. When we returned to Vicuna we were advised to buy a ticket at 8pm for the tour at 8.30pm if the sky is clear, which we did so.
TRANSPORT: I did not have any problems with the transport from Vicuna, minivans were punctual (by the way ticketing office was still open at that time) taking us from ticketing office (15 min drive) and taking you back straight after the tour to the center of Vicuña. You are back by 11.30pm.
PROGRAM:
** 9pm start of the tour, English/ Spanish groups to choose
** observation of Mars, Saturn, stars with the telescope inside the observatory with a dome roof and adjusted watching space and guide explanations
** observation of Milky Way, clusters with a telescope outside
** presentation in the observatory building: digital display of pictures of stars and planets and the moon, explanation of astronomy website 'stellarium'.
** finish about 11pm
***** there was no observation of the moon.
IMPRESSION:
- Too many people, lack of silence, there were 3 groups for about 15-20 people each including young Germans talking and laughing constantly - the guide should learn how to execute silence especially from people who do not appreciate opportunity;
- observation outside was at the same time for all groups which means that you hear other guides in the background and you can see other laser pointers in the sky...
- Guide's commentary was not structured well which was a shame cause he was very knowledgeable. It was more questions - answers type of a tour but he spoke very good English.
- Mars and Saturn was very small and the image was blured, we did not observe the moon and there was no option to choose the tour with the moon observation
- I had some questions to the guide at the end of the tour but I was rushed by a driver to finish which was not very nice.
OVERALL: I expected very good standard after reading reviews but after my experience in San Pedro de Atacama I found it disappointing, overrated with way too many tourists for a tour. For my partner it was the first observatory and he said he would not have visited it at all. I visited a private small observatory in San Pedro (10.30pm-12.30am) with just 5 people in total, we observed the planets and stars (the telescope view was much better then but I think it might depend on the timing) and then waited for the moon which was the most impressive. I liked digital presentation though, very interesting.
Written October 21, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jimmy H
New York City, NY12 contributions
Feb 2016 • Couples
We rented a car and we were staying in La Serena... I couldn't find any information about how to do the Mamalluca Observatory except for the tour sites - which was about $50 USD per person. I don't think there is an official website or contact location either.
In a last ditch effort, I decided to drive down to Vicuna and went straight to the information area in the town. They said to go to the Mamalluca Observatory office which is located a block away. There are 2 options at the office. Option 1: Drive yourself and pay for the entry (less than $10 USD) or Option 2: Take a bus ($15 USD).
The english guide Luis is amazing. He really went through everything about the stars and the solar systems in full detail. We were also the last group to leave and he didn't want to stop.
I'd recommend option 2 as driving looked pretty steep and the roads were dirt roads and in the evening it's pitch black.
In a last ditch effort, I decided to drive down to Vicuna and went straight to the information area in the town. They said to go to the Mamalluca Observatory office which is located a block away. There are 2 options at the office. Option 1: Drive yourself and pay for the entry (less than $10 USD) or Option 2: Take a bus ($15 USD).
The english guide Luis is amazing. He really went through everything about the stars and the solar systems in full detail. We were also the last group to leave and he didn't want to stop.
I'd recommend option 2 as driving looked pretty steep and the roads were dirt roads and in the evening it's pitch black.
Written February 17, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lynette K
Melbourne, Australia88 contributions
Dec 2018 • Couples
We went to the office a few days before the tour and registered a booking but were told not to pay until the evening of the tour. As instructed, we turned up at 8pm on the evening of the tour and paid $7,000 each. At that time we booked a spot in the transport which cost $3,000 each. Warning: be early for this option as there are only 13 seats available. Everyone else followed in a convoy on the unmade roads through the hills. We were part of the English tour. It was very laid back - our guide started by showing us something of his own choosing in the observatory and then let us pick some things we were interested in. Then we went outside and he showed us a lot of cool things by pointing a laser and using an outdoor telescope. The sky was amazing! My husband has a PhD in astrophysics and thought the guide was really knowledgable. It was a very good experience.
Written December 29, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rob
Dublin, Ireland2,955 contributions
Dec 2016 • Solo
Chile has some of the clearest best skies in the world hence there are a lot of observatories. This is 1 of the best for doing public shows. There are offices in La Serena and Vicuna. I booked it in Vicuna and it cost 10,000 for a tour. You can do an English or Spanish tour. You get picked up and driven to observatory. The Spanish seemed to start with a show but the English which I took goes straight into observatory and looked through the telescope. It's a 4 metre scope so we saw stars galaxies and clusters. After that we went outside and the guide pointed out some more stuff in the sky with a laser and we got to see through some other telescopes. A pretty good evening out. Bring some warm clothes as it can get chilly.
Written May 25, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Gracias Robert por los comentarios donde destacas las bondades de Chile y el Observatorio Mamalluca en la observación astronómica.
Saludos
Equipo Mamalluca
Written May 30, 2017
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
James B
Birmingham, UK50 contributions
Apr 2017 • Couples
Anyone with even a passing interest in stargazing and/or astronomy should do this tour!
It's purpose built to show people round which means the telescopes aren't industrial strength but it means the whole place is set up to show the public why Chile is the best place in the world to look at the stars.
Our guide had great English and knowledge of astronomy and used a laser pen to point to stars and constellations and tell us about them.
Then he fired up the main telescope and let us all see the moon, Jupiter and its moons and a star cluster magnified hundreds of times which was awesome.
The guide even took each of our smartphones and took a close up photo of the moon which was a great keepsake.
But for me just being outside in the dead of night in the middle of nowhere looking at the Milky Way on a crystal clear night was the highlight.
The tour ended with a a fascinating presentation with a film showing us how small and insignificant we are in the universe! It was truly humbling.
The only downside was the size of the group, about 20-30 people. We all struggled to fit in to the main telescope observatory and it meant looking at the telescope felt rushed so they could fit everyone in within the time.
Overall though a really memorable experience learning lots of new things about the night sky.
It's purpose built to show people round which means the telescopes aren't industrial strength but it means the whole place is set up to show the public why Chile is the best place in the world to look at the stars.
Our guide had great English and knowledge of astronomy and used a laser pen to point to stars and constellations and tell us about them.
Then he fired up the main telescope and let us all see the moon, Jupiter and its moons and a star cluster magnified hundreds of times which was awesome.
The guide even took each of our smartphones and took a close up photo of the moon which was a great keepsake.
But for me just being outside in the dead of night in the middle of nowhere looking at the Milky Way on a crystal clear night was the highlight.
The tour ended with a a fascinating presentation with a film showing us how small and insignificant we are in the universe! It was truly humbling.
The only downside was the size of the group, about 20-30 people. We all struggled to fit in to the main telescope observatory and it meant looking at the telescope felt rushed so they could fit everyone in within the time.
Overall though a really memorable experience learning lots of new things about the night sky.
Written April 8, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SavMichael
SavMichael33 contributions
Dec 2014 • Friends
The observatory office is located a block away from the square in Vicuna. Reservations can be made for the tours in advance. The tour is available in English and Spanish, but the English tour will probably have less people on the tour allowing you more time with the telescopes. If Luis is your guide, you will learn a lot about the stars that you never knew. It was a great experience.
Written December 25, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Esteban Araya
Santiago, Chile22 contributions
Jun 2018 • Couples
I went to observatory Mamalluca. the travel was realizated by Ecoturismo La Serena. They bought the tickets and they went to the hotel to picked up all the tourist. When you get there... is amazing, The place has tour guides who teach you about the stars, planets. You can use the telescopes to see the stars and planets. If you want to go, you need to be sure about the moon light.
Written September 25, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
viajera1968
Essex, CT70 contributions
Mar 2018 • Friends
Our visit to Valle del Elquí was unfortunately timed to the full moon. Mamalluca was one of the only observatories open. We went to reserve our tickets at the municipal building in Vicuña on the same day of the tour. We were told there was no English tours available, but we reserved anyway— we hoped we could understand a little. We arrived at our appointed time at municipal building that night and were able to pay directly to a driver there for a ride. It was quite the procedure with all the vans and private cars making the 20 minute ride up the dusty hill in a convoy. Once arrive we found that, indeed, there were enough of us for an English tour— and in spite of the full moon, there was enough to see in the southern skies to be interesting. Despite what I had read here, it was not a complete beginner’s tour. Our guide was lively and informative— and we came away with some fun excellent photos on our phones taken through the telescope. There are bathrooms, coffee and snacks available to buy though we had little time for that. Yes there are lots of people on these tours, but seemed to be well handled and organized.
Written March 18, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TomTerrific51
Arlington, VA95 contributions
Nov 2017 • Couples
We had a very entertaining and educational evening at this observatory. While it may be relatively small, relatively commercial, for us, it was an eye-opening experience to see the Saturn and Mercury planets through the telescope and to watch a video of the Earth, Milky Way galaxy and universe. We did an ENGLISH language tour and there were only about 16 of us (November) but with tourists from all over the world - UK, Serbia, Singapore, Australia, Finland, Turkey, USA (us and 4 young men), India and Dubai. The guide was affable, entertaining and spoke good ENGLISH. I highly recommend that you do NOT drive yourselves up to the observatory but pay the 12,000 PESOS (about $20 US) to ride a shuttle bus up and back to Vicuna town center. The road is narrow and at night, highly dangerous. GO! ENJOY!
Written November 29, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Csaavedrabs
Temuco, Chile7 contributions
Cuales serán los horarios de atención para fiestas patrias?
Tengo un niño de 3 y 8 años ...
Me recomiendan ir?
O es muy engorroso ir con niños?
Es recomendable ir en los primeros tours ya que son de noche y muchos niños suelen terminar con mucho sueño. No llevar zapatillas con luces.
Los Transfer para ir a mamalluca donde te recoje y dejan de vuelta?
hola, existe un servicio externo de transporte ida y vuelta.
Donde compro la entrada y con cuanto de anticipacion? Agradeceria su respuesta
Vanessa R
Valparaiso Region, Chile8 contributions
En la municipalidad, media hora antes que comience el tour (no la venden antes)
Vorrei visitare l' osservatorio mammaria perché qui a San Pedro de Atakama si visita l'ALMA solo di giorno...vorrei vedere il cielo notturno
carmendano
Santiago, Chile2 contributions
Una vez lo hice en mi auto pero en caravana. Eso me gusto. Como lo hago?
Diana Gpe. Preciado
Sonora, Mexico260 contributions
Hola Carmenfano, sigue utilizándose esa misma forma, la caravana sale desde la municipalidad de vicuña. Solo necesitas reservar una hora para ir al observatorio. Comunícate al número 51 267 0330 a mí me atendieron muy bien. Saludos!
Jor G
Santiago, Chile49 contributions
Hay que hacer reserva previa para ir? Tiene horario o días determinados? Alguien puede ayudarle?
Jor G
Santiago, Chile49 contributions
En realidad hace 2 días q llamo en diferentes horario 11:00 17:00 20:00 uno responde nadie. Vine por 5 días y imposible comunicarme.
Valeria Eunice P
48 contributions
Hola quisiera saber donde comprar o con quien contactarse para comprar el ticket de mamalluca ($7000) para el dia 24/06/17, quedo atenta, muchas gracias
Hola Valeria, en estas respuestas Tripadvisor no deja poner numeros telefonicos o correos electronicos. Puedes ver los contactos en el perfil del Observatorio en Tripadvisor o en nuestro fanpage de Facebook "Observatorio Mamalluca". Saludos
Diegoids
Valparaiso, Chile
¿a qué hora hay que subir al observatorio? ¿y hasta qué hora se pueden comprar las entradas en la muni?
Diego para visitar el Observatorio Mamalluca debes realizar una reserva y los ticket se compran media hora antes del comienzo del tour en nuestra oficina ubicada la esquina de San Martín con Gabriela Mistral al interior de la Municipalidad de Vicuña. En horario de verano los tours comienzan a las 20:30 hrs y en horario de invierno a las 18:30 hrs.
Saludos
Equipo Mamalluca.
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Mamalluca Observatory Information
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