Chile 🇨🇱

Cafe on the beach with a great breakfast and coffee.

La Serena food

Camping with composting toilets, cold-water showers, dish washing stations, and water spigots. It’s a good base camp for the many hikes in the valley. There are several other options nearby as well.

lodging

Beautiful waterfall with nice swimming area underneath.

activity

Town at the base of a volcano near a lake.

Locations other

https://www.tiktok.com/@clau.ordenes/video/7026861659058703622

activity

https://www.tiktok.com/@carlaortegamendoz/video/7055345416275070213

activity

Beautiful tiny beach town west of Osorno.

Osorno other

Gondola to the mountains over Huilo Huilo

https://www.tiktok.com/@viajeroschile/video/7309636323575418118

activity

https://www.instagram.com/p/CXw8ZdKL30e/

other

Beautiful cove and beach.

other

Famous road snaking through Chilean Patagonia. There’s so much to do and plan along the route that I’ve split it off to a separate trip.

Locations other

Summer: Mid November to late March

Vehicle Rental

Car rental
Soul Van
Wicked South America
Condor Campers
Rolling Patagonia
Andes Campers
Chile Motorhomes
Get necessary insurance and documents to cross into Argentina. This will need to be arranged ahead of time, not last minute when picking up the vehicle.

Driving

Reserve ferries in advance. Good info here
Buy paper maps at COPEC gas stations. For the full route, buy Map Number 6 (Villarica, Llanquihue & Chiloé) and Number 7 (Carretera Austral) source. They also sell an annually-updated guide to the roads and attractions in the south called Chiletur COPEC Zona Sur
Check road statuses here and at tourists offices in Puerto Montt and Coyhaique
Refill fuel every time you see a gas station
Refill cash every time you see an ATM
Some of the gravel sections are very rough. I blew a tire on both sides of Rio Tranquilo. I strongly recommend buying a full-size spare tire and tire repair kit so you don’t have to limp along with the poor quality spare tire for too long. “gomeria” is spanish for tire repair shops.

Misc

4G is fairly common in even small pueblos. I had a solid connection several times every day of driving.
World Nomads travel insurance

Route Variants

Instead of going straight from Puerto Montt to the Hornopieren ferry, curve through Puerto Varas to Petrohue, then south to Cochamo and Tagua Tagua

Best Resources

other

Wine country near Santiago.

Santiago other

https://www.tiktok.com/@tauro6691/video/7297602915156397318

activity

A waterfall famous for wind blowing it up.

The wind is hit-or-miss for making the waterfall invert. You need to go in the afternoon, but even then it may not have the right weather. Even if it isn’t, the snow-capped mountains are beautiful and worth the trip.

activity

Beautiful waterfall in a large canyon.

activity

https://www.tiktok.com/@rutaschilenas/video/7281455929533500678

activity

https://maps.google.com/?cid=263365699239098885

activity

Tiny beach town an hour north of La Serena. There are tours here to see dolphins, whales, penguins, and sea lions. On the drive here you can see tiny foxes and guanacos. The town has a ton of dive shops and solid cell signal as well for setting up for a longer stay.

La Serena other

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food

Longest ski run in Chile, hot springs.

Locations Skiing other

Archipelago famous for world heritage churces and colorful houses built on stilts.

Locations Puerto Montt other

Puerto Montt is the nearest city to Cochamo. There are just a few buses every day, all from the main bus terminal. When we went we took the 7:30 bus, arriving in Cochamo around 9:15. There was a shuttle driver waiting to take the four of us into the valley, saving us hours of extra hiking on a gravel road. We scheduled a return date and time with our shuttle driver as there’s no cell reception in the valley to call for pickup. Returning to Puerto Montt we took a bus leaving at 6:30am.

Don’t put off researching the buses, as if the hours have changed and you’ve missed yours, you could be waiting 6 hours and miss your window to start a hike. We saw buses from Puerto Montt to Cochamó at 7:30am, 12:30pm, and 2:30pm. From Cochamó to Puerto Montt at 6:30am, 7:00am, and 3pm. But it’s best to talk to locals, workers at the bus station to figure it out.

transportation

Town near rivers, mountains, lakes. The Cochamo valley is compared to Yosemite valley, with waterfalls you can slide down and world-class rock climbing. There’s a long hiking route over the mountains into Patagonia.

Parks Puerto Montt other

Beautiful nature reserve on the coast in the north.

other

Famous caves in Chile.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CKphBdVn5T1/

activity

https://maps.app.goo.gl/nbhLDk1heaU7TkYr7?g_st=com.dennisfalling.Ido.ShareExtension

Imported food

https://www.idotraveling.com/guides/9ded5419-4080-4ee2-9b3a-014e9e81be73

Locations other

Pretty boardwalk through nature.

https://www.instagram.com/p/COBzc9QnqL8/

Puerto Montt activity

https://www.tiktok.com/@tauro6691/video/7297602915156397318

activity

Valley famous for observatories, astronomy, and Chilean pisco.

Locations other

https://maps.google.com/?q=Fuerte+Bulnes,+Punta+Arenas,+Magallanes+y+la+Ant%C3%A1rtica+Chilena,+Chile&ftid=0xbdad5f8cdfabf46f:0x8102fe0cdd7efdca

Punta Arenas activity

“luca” is short for 1,000 pesos

Merken is a delicious smoked chile pepper seasoning from Chile. It’s great on fries, ceviche, pasta, sushi…

Try products from Tika Chips. I like their quinoa tortilla chips and potato chips made from a bunch of varieties (purple, red, yellow.)

other

https://www.tiktok.com/@viajeroschile/video/7285489746766335237

other

Small beach town.

other

https://jondavidson.medium.com/the-five-best-hikes-around-punta-arenas-that-arent-in-torres-del-paine-e80b7d105871

activity

National reserve with waterfalls, rivers, canyons, caves, museums, and hikes. There are several different entrances “portales” to different parks of the reserve, each with a fee between 3,000 and 5,000 pesos. You can also buy an armband that gives you access to everything for a few days. There’s so much to do here it’s worth staying in a hotel nearby to spend multiple days in the reserve.

Parks 💯 activity

Island and national reserve where you can see penguin colonies.

One tour operator: https://www.ecoturismolaserena.cl

La Serena other

A Japanese woman who cooks fresh Japanese food in markets / food courts / courtyards around town. Check out her instagram to see where she’ll be and what’s on the menu.

Valdivia food

There’s a 45 mile horseshoe-shaped hike from Cochamo to the other side of Lake Tagua Tagua.

https://fastestknowntime.com/route/la-herradura-cochamo-el-manso-chile

Hikes Puerto Montt activity

Beautiful waterfall with nearby campgrounds and refugios. It’s a four hour hike from the road.

Campgrounds:

activity

High-end, family-owned fixture with a folksy feel serving locally sourced regional dishes & drinks.

Like many of the restaurants in Punta Arenas, they have a great calafate pisco sour.

Punta Arenas food

https://maps.app.goo.gl/wd6fN1SJyBNBXXhi6?g_st=com.dennisfalling.Ido.ShareExtension

activity

Beautiful waterfalls.

activity

Large beautiful waterfall after a short hike. Entrance is free.

activity

Beautiful but expensive lodge in Tagua Tagua. It has activities including paddleboarding.

lodging

National park known for its deciduous sub-polar forest, with hiking trails, picnic sites & wildlife.

Punta Arenas activity

The most famous wine area in Chile, near Santiago.

Santiago other

Follow Calle Baquedano, past Hostal Triskel until the very end of the road. Eventually you will come to a dirt road which you will follow up about three switchbacks and then stay to the right on along the road. Follow the road for a little while longer and keep your eyes open for a dirt path that breaks off the road to the left. It may not look like much, but you can follow that up a ways and then take the spine of the hill as far up as you’d like to go.

Valle del Elqui activity

https://www.tiktok.com/@viajeroschile/video/7274330827587112198

activity

Beautiful waterfall near Siete Tazas. It doesn’t require an entrance/ticket so it’s great to visit while you wait for Siete Tazas to open. There are a number of stands selling food and souvenirs here during the peak season.

activity

http://www.conaf.cl/

Puerto Natales activity

Great hike near Faro San Isidro with panoramic views of the coastline and mountains.

Punta Arenas activity

Museum featuring the private collection of a storied 19th-century explorer, plus scenic gardens.

activity

Large national park with trails leading to caves that once housed prehistoric animals.

Puerto Natales activity

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cxp2jQMuq0F/

activity

Beautiful lodge with hikes, waterfalls, and other activities in this national park.

lodging

Arid landscape of volcanic craters, pampas & caves, with guanacos & bats, plus hiking trails.

activity

https://www.tiktok.com/@viajandoamimodo/video/7278761276220787974

activity

Beautiful national park with lakes, volcanoes, mountains. It’s near Osorno, so it’s a longer drive

https://www.instagram.com/p/CJJzvbZhsVo/

Reservations are required in advance for entry: https://www.aspticket.cl/

Hikes Parks activity

Parks La Serena other

Park with one of the world’s highest lakes, volcanoes.

other

Coastal mountain park with a number of trails.

Parks other

Waterfalls, volcanos, hot springs. Really beautiful, a good bit north of Pucon.

other

One of Chile’s most famous parks with the famous waterfalls of “siete tazas” (seven cups). In the area of the famous falls, there’s a short hike to see SaltSalto La Leona as well which absolutely shouldn’t be missed.

Tickets must be purchased in advance at ASP Ticket. Entrance comes with one of two trails in Parque Ingles: Mala Cara or Chiquillanes.

Mala Cara is a flat trail to several beautiful waterfalls. (3 hours)
Chiquillanes is a more difficult trail up a ridge with beautiful views of the valley and mountains (4 hours)

Parks other

Park with a beautiful waterfall.

https://www.tiktok.com/@pacitafc/video/6940468003364523270

I couldn’t find a ton of information about it in English until I Found Patagon Journal and this great TripAdvisor post.

conservation area, heavily protected, including daily limit of 42 people
reservations are required for entry
can be done as a day trip, but is better done as a multi-day hike, staying in refugios, packing in your own food
famous lake with dead trees, waterfalls, panoramic views
complicated to reach- ferry, boat, reservation etc. Research ahead of time and make reservation

Needs Reservation Puerto Montt lodging

https://www.instagram.com/p/COgPZQgHzqt/

Parks other

Beautiful waterfalls, camping, and hiking just an hour east of Puerto Varas.

other

Cocktail consisting of pisco, lime juice, and sugar. Unlike the Peruvian version, it doesn’t have egg white.

food

https://www.instagram.com/tv/Cct4yKfg3Gy/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=

other

Quiet beach in northern Chile.

other

Beautiful beach surrounded by cliffs and forest.

activity

Pucon is the adventure capital of Chile, with rafting, canyoneering, hiking, and snow sports. It’s close to a number of fantastic hot springs, including the famous Thermas Geometricas.

There’s so much to do I split this off to its own trip.

Locations other

Volcanoes, lakes, rivers, parks, breweries. Near Frutillar, Petrohue, and Bariloche

other

Penguins 🐧, hiking, 🐳 watching

Punta Arenas other

Beautiful cliffs near Concepción.

activity

A park with beautiful waterfalls

https://www.instagram.com/p/CKr3dGPnOkE/

other

https://www.instagram.com/p/CtWqlbfOiGA/

other

Nice viewpoint over the bay with numerous trails.

La Serena other

https://maps.google.com/?q=R%C3%ADo+Puelo&ftid=0x961979bc30aa571d:0xc90b6b4f8b69cac5

other

https://www.tiktok.com/@chileansouth.cl/video/7270702820683238662

activity

A beautiful waterfall near Osorno.

Osorno activity

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMjwL3t4R/

activity

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMjwN2s1J/

activity

https://www.tiktok.com/@guiseort/video/7267731859734285573

activity

Beautiful waterfalls into a cove in a river.

https://www.tiktok.com/@surdechile/video/6881970936036216065

activity

https://www.tiktok.com/@chileansouth.cl/video/7288501687021473030

other

Huge waterfall with multiple viewpoints. The lower viewpoints are much more popular and have lots of stores and restaurants.

activity

A beautiful eco resort in the river district.

lodging

A beach trail leads to this early-1900s striped lighthouse, overlooking the Strait of Magellan.

There’s a daily bus from town for 1.100 pesos at 7:45am, with a single return at 7:45pm. From the bus drop-off point, it’s another 5km walk along the road and beach to the 4km beach trail. Keep an eye out on the ocean, as I saw multiple dolphins breaching near the beach as I walked.

There are plenty of places to camp, with a number of bays further along the beach past the lighthouse. Additionally there’s a trail to Mount Tarn which has great panoramic views even if you don’t have the time or energy to do the whole thing.

Punta Arenas activity

City in the Atacama desert. It’s a popular hub for visiting nearby lakes, mountains, and canyons.

Locations other

I’ve split my tips for Santiago off to a separate trip.

Locations Santiago other

Hot springs near Huilo Huilo.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CMcB_qXA0dw/

Hot Springs activity

Beautiful hot spring near Cochamó.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CRsKtB3HTfS/

❓ activity

Hike from Petrohue to El Poncho via Thermas de Callao.