Chile

Torres del Paine

Torres Del Paine National Park is a stunning jewel on the southern tip of South America, and (not surprisingly) was a highlight for us. The contrast between barren desert-like low lands, with jagged mountain peaks, constantly varied weather conditions, boulders, glaciers and raging rivers created an exciting energy and visual appeal around every corner. We would highly recommend planning some time in this beautiful part of the world.

One of the things we were MOST excited to do was to hike the famous W Trek inside the Torres Del Paine National Park. In order to get here however, we needed to rent a car in El Calafate, Argentina, and drive across the border into Chile. The rental car process was easy and the 5-ish hour drive into Chile was uneventful. Google maps was accurate and GPS worked the whole way (though cell/internet did not until we crossed into Chile). Many other travelers came to the park via Puerto Natales (1.5 hrs bus or car ride to the park).

Ultimately we ended up taking Hwy 40 S from just outside of El Calafate to 5S to Esperanza (a small travel stop with reliable gas stations and mini markets). We then took Hwy 7W to Estancia Tapi Aike and back onto 40S to Cancha Carrera and on to the border crossing. During our research, we read that some travelers took Hwy 40 straight from El Calafate directly to Tapi Aike (skipping Esperanza). However, where 40 splits from 5, it becomes a VERY rough road. We drove it for a few minutes to test it out, and wouldn’t recommend it unless you’re in a 4WD and ready for a BUMPY segment of road. Also, the Tapi Aike gas station may not hold as regular of hours as the stations in Esperanza, and we knew we would need gas to safely complete our trip, so we didn’t really want to skip Esperanza.

The border crossing was little more than 1 building on the Argentina side, and 1 building a few miles further on the Chile side. You need to stop at each building and go through the clearly marked queues to get your passport properly stamped. Each one took only 15-20 minutes and then we were on our way!

Click the tabs below to see our prep/planning for the park, as well as a daily diary of our hike:

Santiago

After kayaking in El Calafate, and hiking in both Torres Del Paine and in El Chalten, we were excited for a couple of slower days in Santiago. We stayed at the Sheraton Convention Center hotel, which was in a great, safe location across the bridge from the Providencia neighborhood restaurants. The hotel offered a wonderful poolside breakfast buffet with made-to-order omelets. It was next door to an ATM and Starbucks, both of which were convenient. We spent a couple days lounging by the pool and exploring the local restaurants. Aqui Esta Coco was an incredible dining experience (make a reservation!), and El Huerto was a wonderful vegetarian restaurant close-by.

We enjoyed a Free Walking Tour (our go-to method of learning about a city!), and paid for a private Casablanca Valley Wine Tour. Sadly we don’t think the company we did the Wine Tasting with is still in business, BUT, we loved the experience and there were plenty of providers out there. You can do a group or private trip, and the drive is about an hour from Santiago each way. Our guide picked us up at the hotel, and took us to 4 wineries based on our varietal preference. We visited Bodegas RE, Villard, Vinamar (for a delicious lunch overlooking the vineyards), and finally Veramonte before heading home. Each winery provided tastings and a couple had some small bites as well. They say the Casablanca Valley is similar to Napa Valley in California in terms of its distance from the equator, and from the nearest body of water - hence why the conditions are excellent for wine making.

Atacama Desert (San Pedro de Atacama)

The Atacama Desert is the driest non-polar desert in the world, and just a 2 hr flight north of Santiago. The Calama airport was easy to navigate and the pickup truck rental car we had reserved was right on-site. It was just over a 1hr drive to San Pedro de Atacama on a paved, well marked road. We loved our lodging at the Terrantai Lodge Hotel - it was right in town and offered a lovely happy hour daily, along with a wonderful breakfast. The staff there was exceptionally friendly and helpful, and best of all they had gated parking just 1/2 block away.

As we drove into town, we couldn’t help but think of the fictional Star Wars town of Tatooine…brown single story buildings, dirt roads, surrounded by desert all around. Funny enough, the dirt roads through town seem to be to maintain a certain ambiance, as the roads all around the outskirts of town are paved!

The town has a great number of well-reviewed restaurants to fit both quick/inexpensive as well as high-end food choices. We enjoyed the ambiance everywhere we ate!

We took advantage of having a rental car, and visited Valle de la Luna (1.5 hrs total including hiking + driving to the 3 Maria’s and back). For anybody interested in just seeing the sunset, that lookout point is only 5 minutes outside of town and is called Mirador de Kari or Piedra del Coyote. We also drove to Laguna Miscanti and Miniques (see the header photo above), which was about a 90 min drive each way, past the Tropic of Capricorn. On the way back, we stopped at Lake Tebinquinche which had a 4,000CLP cost for us both. We were hoping to see Flamingos here, but sadly there were none when we were there. Just 10 min from here is Laguna Cejar where it’s possible to swim in the salt lake - at the time for a cost of 10,000CLP - 15,000CLP depending on the time of day.

During one of our drives, we passed by a huge Salt Flat…as far as the eye could see was razor sharp, crystalized, chunky gray (dirt-covered) salt - so we stopped for a photo opportunity (see below).

Instead of swimming at Cejar, we choose to head a little further away to the Lagunas Escondido Baltinache. It was 10 minutes on the paved route 23 out of town, and then 40 minutes on a terribly bumpy route B241. These are a series of Salt Water Pools managed by the indigenous people of the Atacama. At the time we visited, there were 2 or 3 pools you could swim in, and several that were beautiful to look at, but not allowed for swimming. A wooden walkway let you safely walk between the parking lot & bathrooms/showers out to the pools. The water was quite cold, but the experience of floating effortlessly in a natural salt water pool was unforgettable. We could literally position our bodies upright in the water like a toothpick - not moving hands or legs, and float with our heads above water….quite a unique experience! Due to the heavy salt content, when we got out of the water, our skin was covered in flaky white salt. During our visit, the showers (water only, no soap) were available as part of the park entrance fee, however, we read recently that these facilities may have been shut down (Covid?!) so be sure to check and bring bottled water for rinsing off, if that’s still the case! We saw a dozen tour vans arriving as we were leaving at about 3:30pm, so try to arrive earlier if possible to beat the crowds.

In addition to the salt water pools, our favorite experience in Atacama was our stargazing tour which was called “Stargazing Atacama Desert” with Jorge. Check it out on their website: https://www.atacamadesertstargazing.com/#!/-stargazing-2/ or on Trip Advisor…Atacama Desert Stargazing at the time of publishing there are just shy of 800 reviews! The night of our tour it was completely cloudy and actually drizzled a little bit (highly unusual for the driest desert in the world, no?!), so our tour was cancelled and pushed to the next night.

The next night wasn’t looking much better, so we weren’t optimistic when our tour guide confirmed we were a “go”. We were picked up at 9pm at our hotel, along with several other tour attendees, and to our surprise, driven to Jorge’s private home just outside of town. Jorge had 8-10 professional telescopes set up in his fenced yard, and his wife had prepared several tables full of food and drinks! As we sat in camp chairs with blankets and hot drinks, Jorge started teaching us the basics of Astronomy.

We were feeling a little disgruntled since the skies were still completely cloudy but incredibly, just as he finished up his introduction, the clouds parted and gave way to beautiful clear skies. He told us he knew from the weather pattern that by about 10:45pm, the clouds should be cleared (though he had a plan B to pile us all in the Van with one of his more maneuverable telescopes and drive to a high point if needed!).

He showed us the major constellations using a laser pointer, and then multiple star clusters, nebulas and planets via different telescopes around the yard. The experience ended up being absolutely magical and we would consider this a must-do if you end up in San Pedro de Atacama.

Summary

We absolutely loved Chile - the people, the food, the adventure, the weather…you name it. We definitely hope to return one day, and would highly recommend it to friends! Punta Arenas is supposed to be amazing for penguin viewing, and from San Pedro de Atacama, it’s possible to do day trips to the Bolivian Salt Flats - something our fellow travelers all raved about. We’ve also heard wonderful things about Eco-Camp type lodges near the Futaleufu River - a little further north in Patagonia than Torres Del Paine where we visited. If you’re into white water rafting, this would be the place to go. If you have a chance to visit Chile, DO IT!

“Adventure is worthwhile.”

– Aesop