Chile

After rain, the Andes can appear so close that they seem to stand at the ends of the avenues. On other days the mountains disappear behind haze and the city’s own rhythm takes over: the metro beneath Alameda, fruit stalls in La Vega, lunches at Portal Fernández Concha and people moving between offices, universities and parks. Santiago provides a clear introduction to Chile and grows more interesting as you move between the historic centre, markets, cultural districts and modern neighbourhoods towards the Andes. Colonial streets and republican buildings stand beside commerce and dense everyday life. Lastarria and Bellas Artes gather museums, bookshops and restaurants; Bellavista adds street art and nightlife; farther east, high-rises, broad avenues, parks and business districts change the urban landscape again. Its location also makes the capital a base for Maipo wineries, Cajón del Maipo and the road towards the coast. Santiago is best understood when the mountains remain a backdrop rather than its only explanation.

Valparaíso begins down by the port but only makes sense when you turn towards the hills. Houses, stairs and passageways climb through a natural amphitheatre, and the old funiculars connect the flat lower city with cerros such as Alegre and Concepción. The city’s colours are weathered in some places and freshly painted in others. Murals stand beside rusting metal, abandoned façades and small hotels created from older homes. This is not a polished colonial city, but a living port with visible cracks between trade, culture and everyday life. During the nineteenth century Valparaíso was a major hub on Pacific shipping routes. When the Panama Canal changed those routes, the city lost some of its economic weight, but its cosmopolitan legacy remains visible in architecture, associations and its sense of identity. Today the historic port city is a World Heritage site while fires, earthquakes and deferred maintenance continue to test it.

Morning fog still hangs over Casablanca when the first winery visits begin. A few hours east, the sun warms Maipo’s gravelly soils, while farther south old, gnarled País and Cinsault vines remain in Maule and Itata. Chilean wine country is not one valley but a long sequence of microclimates between the Pacific and the Andes. The coast favours Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir; warmer central valleys built their reputation on Cabernet Sauvignon and Carménère; in the south, older vineyards and simpler methods long overlooked by export markets are being rediscovered. For travellers, distances are manageable but should not be underestimated. One valley per day leaves time for two or three wineries, a proper lunch and the most important part of a wine journey: understanding how place changes what is in the glass.

Portillo sits high in the Andes above the intense blue of Laguna del Inca. The hotel’s yellow façade stands alone between the mountain slopes, and the entire stay revolves around skiing, meals and evenings in which the same guests meet again and again. There is no surrounding ski town, and that isolation is a major part of Portillo’s identity.

The terrain is open, high and strongly weather-dependent. Runs for different levels sit alongside steeper lines, traverses and classic off-piste terrain that require suitable snow, experience and local knowledge. Portillo has a long international ski tradition and hosted the Alpine World Ski Championships in 1966.

Accommodation is often sold as a complete stay with full board and a social hotel programme. It suits travellers looking for a pure ski week rather than shopping, nightlife and a large choice of restaurants. Three- or four-night stays may be available under particular programmes, but the classic Portillo experience is built around a full week.

Valle Nevado sits high above Santiago in an open Andean landscape where pistes spread across broad treeless slopes. The resort was designed for ski holidays, with hotels, restaurants, ski school and lifts concentrated within the same mountain environment.

The ski area suits several levels and is particularly appreciated for long open descents, snowboarding and accommodation close to the lifts. Off-piste and heliskiing are available under suitable conditions, but everything beyond marked pistes depends on snow, wind, avalanche assessment and current operations.

Proximity to Santiago makes Valle Nevado easy to combine with the city and wine regions, although the road up is steep and weather-sensitive. Three or four nights provide a concentrated ski stay, while a full week suits travellers who want to use the resort’s wider range of terrain and leave daily transfers behind.

La Parva sits high above Santiago with buildings spread across the mountainside and the valley far below. At weekends the slopes fill with families, club skiers and people who know the mountain well. The resort is less internationally focused than some of its neighbours and has a distinctly Chilean everyday character.

The terrain is best suited to intermediate and advanced skiers. Broad pistes, longer traverses and open slopes provide variety, while beginner areas and ski school allow families with different ability levels to travel together. Off-piste skiing and links towards neighbouring areas depend on snow, operations and current ticket arrangements.

La Parva works both for day trips from Santiago and for stays on the mountain. An overnight stay reduces the influence of the road and gives access to early mornings on the slopes, although services are more limited than in a full-scale ski village. Three or four nights suit a concentrated ski stay.

Torres del Paine rises from the Patagonian steppe in a mass of granite walls, horns and towers. The lakes shift between turquoise, grey and deep blue, glaciers fill the upper valleys and the wind can go from calm to fierce in a short time.

The national park is famous for the W Trek and O Circuit, but a multi-day hike is not required to experience the landscape. Base Torres, French Valley and Grey can be reached on longer day hikes, while roads, boats and viewpoints make large parts of the park accessible to travellers who do not want to carry luggage between refugios.

Guanacos, foxes, condors and rheas belong to the open country. Pumas live in the park and can be sought on specialist wildlife tours, but sightings can never be guaranteed. With four or five nights in or around the park, there is time to experience several areas without pushing every day to the limit. More time is needed for the W, O or a combination with Punta Arenas, the fjords and Argentine Patagonia.

The tide rises beneath Castro’s palafitos and leaves their wooden stilts exposed a few hours later. Farther across the island, wooden churches stand in small communities where boats, agriculture and religious festivals still help organise daily life. Chiloé is an island world with its own architecture, food culture and storytelling tradition.

Sixteen churches across the archipelago form a UNESCO World Heritage site. They were built by local craftspeople using timber traditions developed through encounters between Jesuit and Franciscan missions, Indigenous knowledge and the islands’ maritime culture. Castro, Dalcahue, Achao and smaller communities provide different routes into the same wider cultural landscape.

The sea is present in food, work and mythology. Curanto brings shellfish, meat, potatoes and dough together over hot stones, while stories of the Caleuche and Trauco remain part of island identity. Four or five nights provide enough time for churches, coast, national park and the long distances between Chiloé’s communities.

The moai of Ahu Tongariki stand with their backs to the Pacific as morning light reaches their faces. Inland lies Rano Raraku, the quarry where hundreds of moai remain standing or lying in different stages of production. Rapa Nui is one of the world’s most concentrated archaeological landscapes, but the island is also home to a living Polynesian community.

Moai were raised on ceremonial platforms, ahu, and represented ancestors who remained present for their kin and lands. Orongo and Rano Kau tell the story of a later religious and political period associated with the birdman tradition. Anakena brings together beach, settlement history and several restored monuments.

Hanga Roa is the island’s only substantial town and the base for restaurants, harbour, museum and everyday life. Visits to the national park follow local access rules and require the appropriate ticket and accredited guiding where stipulated. Four full days provide a good foundation; five or six allow archaeology, walking and contemporary culture to develop at their own pace.