Having traveled a good bit throughout Chile while visiting and working there, I’d like to share a “best of” Chile itinerary.  This itinerary of what to see in Chile is geared to those with enough time to do more than a couple of days’ worth of exploring (but not boundless time either….).   I elaborate on some of the places mentioned here in other posts in this blog.  Therefore, I will not repeat all that content here (true, for example, for the Atacama and Patagonia bits).  Now, admittedly, I did not get to see some places I hear are worth exploring, like Valdivia but I did see a good bit!

My time in Chile – or why I can offer a best of Chile itinerary

As background, I spent three months working in Chile in the early post-dictatorship days of the early 1990s,  During that stint, I got to travel north AND south of Santiago during my spare time.  From the beaches of La Serena to the island and volcano beauties of the area around Puerto Montt and Chiloé.

Then in 2010 I got to return to Chile to work for a year.  On that year I ventured further north than I had before to the Atacama Desert.  And, equally, further south to Patagonia, in an ever-expanding coverage of my experience of the natural beauty of this South American country.  And, it goes without saying, a lot had changed in the country in the time between 1990/91 and 2010!

Not only was it almost twenty years in between (with a major set of economic booms with the liberalized economic model implemented in the 1980s), but also a real evolution.  From a timid way of living (from needing to mind curfews and the like during part of that period) to a more free and lively society reveling in the democratic and economic success that is Chile – the Switzerland of South America (or is Switzerland the Chile of Europe perhaps??).

The Valle de la Luna is one of the key sights in the Atacama Desert

The diversity of Chile’s lands

Chile offers a wide range of scenery as it runs a long way in the latitude dimension.  Therefore, the climates along the country vary significantly – a climate zone for every preference!  The presence of the Andes clearly has a major effect in the climate.  It also provides a great backdrop to many of the places you should visit and experience in the country.  Heck, sometimes the Andes are not just the backdrop but part of what you will explore!  The terrain in Chile varies from coastal plains or cliffs (lush to arid) to the big wall that are the Andes.  Fjords, hot deserts, glaciers and islands complete the diversity of landscapes that make up Chile.

View from la Cueva del Milodón in Patagonia

A trip to Chile typically starts of in Santiago (SCL), its capital.  However, one can enter the country over land from any of the neighboring countries (that would be Perú, Bolivia or Argentina) in places like the Atacama Desert, Pucón, the lake district, or Patagonia.  In terms of flying, from the U.S., a flight to Santiago can be from 9 hours upwards.  From Buenos Aires, a little over 2 hours to fly in.  And from Europe, well, longer.

In the Atacama Desert, near the Valle de la Luna (Valley of the Moon)

My best of Chile itinerary

If you really want to see the range of what Chile has to offer, a good itinerary would include these 7 destinations:

–  San Pedro de Atacama and nearby sites of interest like salt lakes, geysers, and moon-like landscapes (4-7 days); a two-hour flight from Santiago plus an hour ride by bus or car

–  Pucón and the Villarica area (3-4 days) with volcanoes, fast rivers, lakes and lots of green; I did it on a long 10-11 hour drive – LONG!

–  Patagonia/Tierra del Fuego including Torres del Paine National Park, fjords, islands, glaciers, penguins and the like (5-10 days); a direct flight from Santiago would be about 4 hours nonstop; though there are flight that stop in Puerto Montt (without changing planes) that split the flight in half

–  Santiago (a city is a city is a city but I find it worth exploring) (2-4 days) with its diversity of food, neighborhoods, nature

–  Valparaíso – check out its “elevators” or foniculares and add on nearby Viña del Mar and nearby beaches – though having grown up in the tropics, they don’t rank up there in my book!) (2 days tops, 1 day is doable); a little over an hour drive from Santiago – easy

–  Puerto Montt, the Lake District, perhaps even doing the crossing of the lakes to South America’s best known ski resort town in Argentina:  San Carlos de Bariloche, and crossing over to the island Chiloé (4-8 days); Puerto Montt is a 2 hour and change flight from Santiago; from Bariloche, one can either turn around and go back to Puerto Montt or fly to Buenos Aires

–  Mendoza (OK, this is Argentina but it is almost on Chile and easier to get to from Santiago than from anywhere else!) – wine country is just less than 40 mins away by plane and dirt cheap if you buy the plane ticket from WITHIN Chile (2-3 days).  Mendoza is also the gateway for Mount Aconcagua, the tallest mountain outside of the Himalayas, I believe.

A typical house in Puerto Natales, the closest town to Torres del Paine

Readers, please feel free to add to the list, comment on the destinations mentioned, or provide other perspectives.  Make your suggestions to expand this best of Chile itinerary.  I, by no means, saw EVERYTHING Chile has to offer and wish I could say I did.  I’d enjoy receiving more reasons to go back!

Pin these images to your travel board, create your own Chile itinerary, and then head to Chile!