Leaving from Arequipa, we wanted to get to Arica, Chile, just across the border from Tacna, Peru.  This meant first taking a bus from Arequipa to Tacna.  When we arrived in Tacna, we walked “across the street” to the international bus terminal.  From there we would join a “collectivo” which would take us across the border, making the stops to get us stamped out of Peru and then into Chile.

In general, a collectivo is some type of vehicle that collects passengers until it’s full before leaving.  In this case, the collectivo was a passenger car with 5 passengers.  Once we had our 5, the driver took our passports and had our Chile tourist cards prepared.

Following the relatively uneventful border crossing, the driver delivered us to the international bus terminal in Arica.  The trip from Tacna, Peru, to Arica, Chile, is about 40 miles, took a little over an hour and cost us about $11.