12-Nights Wonders of Chile: Santiago, Atacama, Torres del Paine & More from $2,921

Puerto Natales is located on the coast of southern Chile. Here you'll have one spectacular experience after another -- seeing fjords, glaciers and perhaps encountering whales. And just a short distance inland you are reminded that this is Patagonia, home to Andean condors, guanacos and rheas (cousins of the ostrich), all of which can be found in monumental Torres del Paine National Park.

Puerto Varas, Chile is a charming city on the shores of Lake Llanquihue and is one of most popular tourist destinations in the country. Spectacular views across the lake at majestic snow-capped volcanoes surrounded in native forest abound as well as countless options for exploring the surrounding countryside with picture-perfect German-settled farms. Only 15 minutes from Puerto Montt, Puerto Varas is popular because it is quieter than the busy port city to the south. It has fantastic adventure opportunities nearby including: several national parks, Class II to IV white water rafting, horseback day trips and multi-day horse treks, volcano ascents, countless fly fishing rivers, sea kayaking, boat trips to Argentina.

The charming village of San Pedro de Atacama, located at 2,450 meters above sea level, is one of the places in Chile which offers the widest number of attractions. The village is located in one of the many oases originated by the ‘Bolivian winter’, in the driest desert of the world: the Atacama Desert - an incredible place with exuberating vegetation. In the plains, covered by a green color that seems to come from more rainy areas, agriculture is practiced from ancient times, maintaining the same cultivation methods used thousands of years ago. The native inhabitants thank nature for this miracle through different religious festivities and ceremonies, mixing Catholicism and ancient beliefs into one of the most characteristic cultural manifestations of northern Chile. Walking around the farming lands and watching the traditional design houses, built in adobe, makes visitors feel transported into another age.

Santiago is a huge city of nearly five million inhabitants surrounded by immense Andean peaks creating a spectacular backdrop. The city centre is quite manageable with a collection of wide avenues, squares and parks all laid out in a grid pattern.
Chile has a distinctly European flavour and Santiago will bring this home to you as you visit the churches, monuments and museums all designed in a certain familiar style.