Highlights of Chile

Welcome to Chile’s capital, Santiago, which is built in a valley with the backdrop of the snow-capped Andes mountains and the ocean. The city was founded in 1541 by the Spanish and the old colonial centre of the city is the Plaza de Armas filled with historical buildings.

On arrival in Santiago, you will be met and transferred to your hotel. This afternoon you will have a city tour including the Pre Columbian Museum, a trip to the top of Cerro San Cristobal hill for incredible views over the city and a wine tasting experience.

Today your guide will meet you for a day exploring the coast. You will visit Isla Negra, the home of the Nobel prize-winning poet Pablo Neruda and then to Valparaiso for a city tour. Valparaiso is known for its colorful buildings and steep funiculars as well as the home of many artists, writers and musicians. The historic quarter of the city is a UNESCO World Heritage site for its well-preserved architecture. You will return to Santiago in the late afternoon.

This morning your guide will meet you for a day of wine tasting and sightseeing in the Chilean wine region. You will travel to the renowned Colchagua Valley where you will visit two wine estates for tastings.  The majority of wine produced in the area is red, particularly popular is Carménère, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot. There will be a tour of the vineyard followed by lunch. After lunch, your guide will drive you back to Santiago for the night.

You will check out of your hotel this morning and your driver will transfer you to the airport for your flight south to Punta Arenas. You will be met on arrival and transferred to Torres Del Paine National Park where you will spend the next four nights.

Located in Chile’s Patagonia region it is one of the most popular National Parks in the country. Torres Del Paine is dominated by the Paine mountain range and the Patagonian ice field, creating spectacular landscapes.

Each day you will be able to choose from a wide range of activities in the park so you can appreciate its beauty, there are 16 hikes, 6 horseback excursions and boating trips to choose from.

Torres Del Paine has magnificent scenery and there are miles and miles of scenic trails for hiking that wind through dense forest, passing jewel-hued lakes, rushing rivers, and glistening blue glaciers. Lago Grey is one of its most famous land marks with its spectacular glacier, the ice carved valley of Valle Francés is a must for hikers and the distinctive three granite peaks of the Paine Massif are a real highlight.

Today you will leave Torres Del Paine and return to the airport at Punta Arenas for your flight back to Santiago. You will overnight in Santiago and we recommend you head out for dinner in the Old Town to soak up the atmosphere.

This morning you will be met by your driver who will transfer you to the airport for your flight north to Calama. You will be met and transferred to your hotel in the Atacama Desert where you will spend the next 4 nights.

The Atacama Desert is one of the world’s best destinations for stargazing due to its clear skies. During the day there is plenty to see too, the dry, isolated terrain boasts stunning, ever-changing hues in an array of reds, yellows, greens, and blues that stretch for 600 miles in the northern region of Chile. At Calle de la Luna, the ‘Valley of the Moon’ there are soaring sand dunes and rock formations that mimic the moon’s surface as the result of centuries of winds and floods.

There are so many ways to explore this unique landscape. You can join tours that are hikes, horse riding, bike riding or car. The landscape is so varied that you can hike up mountains, visit geysers and hot springs, walk up sand dunes, bike ride to archaeological sites, explore the Andes Mountains and horse ride through landscapes reminiscent of the surface of Mars. Each day you can choose which activities you would like to join which will be guided by an experienced tour leader.

Today you will return to Calama Airport to fly to Santiago and catch your onward connecting flight.