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Across Patagonia January 8, 2015 to January 19, 2015
Chilean Patagonia offers all the dramatic landscape one would expect from the world’s ultimate land’s end. Here the South American continent falls away in a dazzling explosion of islands, glaciers, icebergs and mountains. Southern Patagonia hosts the incomparable Torres del Paine National Park. Isolated from the rest of Chile by fierce storms and impassible mountains, Torres del Paine is the crown jewel of the Chilean National Park system. The park is internationally known for its trekking and hiking opportunities and your lodge located inside the park is the ideal base for exploration. In addition to exploring Patagonia you also get the chance to discover the charming city of Santiago and the nearby wine areas that create the renowned Chilean wines.
12 Days: $3,295 per person inclusive of superior accommodations, 21meals: 9 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 6 dinners, in depth sightseeing on foot, by vehicle and on horseback, skilled guides and tour leader throughout. International airfare is additional and estimated at $1,706 departing from Miami. We are happy to assist in making the reservations. An optional single supplement of $1,103 is available for those not wishing to take advantage of our roommate matching guarantee.
- Private visits to premier Chilean wine estates
- Walking the shoreline of Lake Llanquihue, Chile’s largest lake
- Lunch at a working estancia in Southern Patagonia
- A four day stay in the heart of Torres del Paine National Park with a wide variety of excursions included
GUARANTEED DEPARTURE
Day 1: Thursday, January 8, 2015 Depart USA
This evening you meet your fellow travelers in Miami and board your aircraft for the overnight flight to Santiago
Day 2: Friday, January 9, 2015 Arrival in Santiago
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Upon your arrival in Santiago you will be met by your guide and taken to your hotel which is centrally located. Take time to explore. Tonight you will enjoy a welcome dinner at a restaurant near your hotel. Dinner |
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Day 3: Saturday, January 10, 2015 Highlights of Santiago
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In the morning your guide will be waiting to take you on a private tour of the downtown areas of Santiago. You will visit places of interest since the city was founded by the Spaniards and also spend time at a museum dedicated to the culture prior to the Spanish arrival. You will drive downtown along Parque Forestal and up Santa Lucia hill, a public park located in front of the National Library. You will then head to Plaza de Armas which is bordered by the Cathedral, City Hall, the Central Post office and the National Historical Museum. Continue your tour with a visit to the Pre-Columbian Art Museum showing the evolution of the indigenous people Mayas, Incas, Aztecs, and Moche etc. before the arrival of the Spanish. Drive to the civic area to see La Moneda Presidential Palace, Cousino Palace and the Basilica de los Sacramentinos a replica of Sacre Coeur in Paris. As you arrive at Almeda Bernardo O’Higgins avenue, the city’s main street you drive uptown for lunch. After lunch the rest of the day is at leisure. Breakfast & Lunch
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Day 4: Sunday, January 11, 2015 The Vineyards of the Maipo Valley |
After breakfast you will meet your guide for a trip to the Maipo Valley one of the most established wine growing regions in Chile with a terroir well suited to the creation of elegant red wines. You leave Santiago and travel south on the Pan-American Highway to Buin, an agricultural town, close to the Maipo River. From here you will travel east to the Alto Jahuel village in the mountains. Passing through extensive vineyards, will reach the houses and the storing facilities of the Santa Rita estate. The oldest of these were built in the 18th century, but there are also modern facilities for their wine production. You will visit the vineyards, bottling plant and cellars. A visit to a winery cannot be completed without a taste of what they produce. You will have the chance to taste several different kinds of wines and to have an expert description of each one of them. You then have lunch at Dona Paula restaurant on the estate. Afterwards you drive towards Cousino Macul winery. The meeting point is at the shop where you will be welcomed by a bilingual guide who will tell about the history of the Cousino family and the winery and then lead you to see some of the older bits and pieces of bottling equipment no longer in use. After that you will be taken through the vinification facilities and shown how Cousino Macul wines are produced. A walk through the site, surrounded by shady trees, brings you to one of the oldest and finest wine cellars in Chile: Built in 1872 by French architects, it lies eighteen feet underground. The family's own wine collection is kept in an area behind this cellar, with bottles going back as far as 1927. The visit ends at the Wine Shop where all the Cousino Macul wines range and souvenirs are available. Return to your hotel in Santiago. Breakfast & Lunch
Day 5: Monday, January 12, 2015 Santiago to Puerto Varas
You have some free time for shopping and then late morning you are taken to the airport for the flight to Puerto Montt. Upon landing at the airport in Puerto Montt you will be met and escorted to the town of Puerto Varas known as the “City of Roses” and overlooking Lake Llanquihue, Chile’s largest lake. Your hotel also overlooks the lake so you can take some time to enjoy a walk allowing the lakeshore enjoying panoramic views of the Osorno and Calbuco volcanoes before dinner at the hotel. Breakfast & Dinner
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Day 6: Tuesday, January 13, 2015 A Trip to Reloncavi Fjord
Today you will drive south along the Bay of Reloncavi following the shoreline and passing by several fishing villages where you stop to see the locals gathering shellfish from the bay. Arriving in La Arena you board a ferry for the thirty minute ride across Reloncavi Fjord. After disembarking on the southern side of the fjord you will visit two villages, Puelo and Cochamo where you can enjoy your picnic lunch and, if you want, take a dip in the crystal clear waters of the Cochamo River. Leaving the fjord behind, you head towards Ralun and soon reach Lake Llanquihue with the Osomo volcano in the background. You arrive back at your hotel in the late afternoon. Breakfast & Lunch
Day 7: Wednesday, January 14, 2015 Puerto Varas to Torres del Paine
In the morning you will be transferred to the airport for the flight to Punta Arenas which is the gateway to southern Patagonia. Upon arrival you are met by a representative of your lodge who will take you on a five hour journey filled with spectacular scenery. You will stop at Cerro Negro a working estancia and enjoy a picnic lunch along the way. In the afternoon you reach your lodge located in the heart of the park in the foothills of the massive mountains. While staying at the lodge all meals, activities and drinks are included so take a chance to relax by a fire with a glass of wine before heading into dinner. During the evening your guides will explain which of the 16 excursions both full and half day will be offered the next day. There are generally 5to 6 excursions offered each day. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Days 8 & 9: Thursday/Friday, January 15/16, 2015 Exploring Torres del Paine
During these two days you can participate in as many or as little of the offered excursions. Most programs have half day and full day options and those with a full day would include a picnic or barbecue lunch. You can however opt to spend time around the lodge sitting on the terrace and admiring the mountain views, getting a spa treatment or relaxing in the Jacuzzi. There are two main options for exploring, Trekking on foot and horse riding. Trekking makes it possible for you to contemplate your surroundings in an unhurried and meaningful way. When you trek, you can look at things more closely and carefully. In the treks in the park, you cross forests of mature lenga trees, remote pampas and rivers. You trek alongside glaciers, lakes and enormous, mountainous formations of magma and granite. You take little-used footpaths to arrive at the most isolated corners of this area, which are rich in flora, fauna and adventures. The guides always seek to adjust to the rhythm of each person, enjoying each step of the journey in fact; they even have walking sticks to help along some of the more rugged areas. A good tip is to start with an easy or moderate half day trek and build from there. The other option is exploring the park on a horse. An essential element in the life of a gaucho, the horse has been the traditional way of covering the vast distances in Patagonia, among other things making it possible for the few inhabitants on remote estancias in the pampa to stay in touch with one another. They provide horses, equipment and routes suitable for those who are new to riding as well as children and expert riders. They also offer a basic course for those who wish to learn how to ride on horseback. There are also excursions by vehicle if that is your preference. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Day 10: Saturday, January 17, 2015 Return to Santiago
In the morning you have an early departure back to the airport in Punta Arenas where you board a flight for Santiago. Upon arrival you are transferred to your hotel where you have some time to relax before enjoying a farewell dinner with your fellow adventurers. Breakfast & Dinner
Day 11: Saturday, January 18, 2015 Free Day and Return to USA
You have the day free in Santiago to explore at your own pace. We will be glad to suggest some activities. In the evening you will be transferred to the airport and assisted with check in for your flight back to the USA which departs right after midnight. Breakfast
Day 12: Sunday, January 19, 2015 Arrival in the USA
You arrive back in Miami in the morning
Accommodations
Santiago: Hotel El Bosque Suites
This centrally located hotel offers all modern amenities for both business and leisure travelers. In addition to the bedroom and private bathroom, each suite comes with a room for relaxation. All Rooms have LCD TVs, in-room safe, Wi-Fi, minibar and Room service.
Puerto Varas: Cabanas del Lago
Located in the centre of Puerto Varas on the shore of lake Llanquihue, Cabanas del Lago is an ideal place to enjoy the beauty of Central Patagonia. With 167 rooms, two restaurants and a lively bar, the family-run inn offers a combination of Patagonian views and German hospitality.
Torres del Paine National Park: Hotel Las Torres
 Hotel Las Torres provides the perfect accommodation to relax after an exciting day of sightseeing. The decoration and interior layout of the rooms are simple and comfortable, creating the comfort of your own home. With a rustic, simple and comfortable style, the rooms have central heating, box spring beds, telephones, private bathrooms, wireless internet and a wide variety of services. The hotel produces the majority of the food served at the Las Torres restaurant with greenhouses offering organic tomatoes and squash while nearby fields offer strawberries, raspberries and cherries. On lands close by, cattle, sheep and pigs are grass fed and grown to maturity in an organic manner |
