Pure Patagonia

On arrival, you’ll be met and chauffeured to Le Reve, our lovely city-center boutique hotel. This evening, we’ll take you to the art-filled home of a local chef where you’ll help in the preparation of your dinner. Using fresh, locally-sourced products, this evening’s culinary experience is a fun way to learn about classic Chilean cuisine. Sit down to the fine meal that you’ve helped to prepare, accompanied by fine regional wine.  Meals D
 

Choose one of these included, privately guided excursions to tailor this day to your personal interests and style:
 
Santiago City Tour: Join our guide for a private walking tour, starting with Colonial-era landmarks like La Moneda Palace. Continue to Plaza de Armas to see City Hall and the Metropolitan Cathedral. Then discover some of Santiago’s loveliest and most avant garde districts and stroll through Parque Forestal, a lovely riverside park. After a cup of coffee or some ice cream at a popular cave, visit La Chascona, the uniquely designed former home of Nobel Poet Laureate, Pablo Neruda. End your day atop San Cristobal Hill for spectacular views of the city and its mountain backdrop.
 
Santiago Street Art + Graffiti: This guided half-day tour explores the city’s colorful and vibrant street art, both its history and cultural impact. It promises a fun and unique perspective on Chilean culture, politics, art and life. You can choose to do this excursion in the morning or afternoon.
 
Santiago by Bike: You can enjoy this tour in the morning or afternoon. Accompanied by your private guide, this gently paced cycling tour is a terrific way to explore some of Santiago’s most exclusive neighborhoods, from the open-air sculptures in Parque de las Esculturas to the elegant boutiques of Nueva Costanera.
 
Santiago’s Lively Markets: Especially appealing for foodies, this morning tour is also a terrific way to experience daily life. Starting from Plaza de Armas, walk through colorful markets where residents come daily to shop. This tour includes the lively Mercado Central; since 1872, Santiago citizens have been coming to this sprawling French-inspired landmark to shop for fresh produce and seafood.
Meals B
 

After breakfast, we’ll take you to the airport for you included flight to Balmaceda in southern Chile. On arrival, meet our local guide and embark on a 3-½ hour overland journey that will take you through some breathtaking scenery - from the soaring jagged peaks of the Cerro Castillo Mountains to ancient groves of Lenga, Coigü and Ñire, deciduous trees native to the Southern Andes. Descending through the picturesque Rio Murta Valley brings you to the shores of Lago General Carrera where you’ll check in to the comfortable Hostal El Puesto in the quiet lakeside town of Puerto Tranquilo.  Meals B+L+D
 

Accessible only by water, the Marble Caves have to be among the most isolated natural treasures on the planet. Partially submerged in the turquoise and azure waters of Lago General Carrera, these ethereal caverns and rock chambers have been formed over thousands of years by the slow erosion of calcium carbonate deposits that were left behind long ago. This morning, you can join your expert naturalist guide to explore these unique geological formations in a small motor boat or paddling your own kayak. Either way, you’ll have ample opportunity to experience the marble caverns with their amazingly swirled and stippled patterns of blue and grey. In the afternoon, we’ll take you to a viewpoint overlooking Valle Exploradores; on a clear day, you’ll be able to see the amazing Northern Patagonian Ice Field and majestic Monte San Valentín, the highest peak in Patagonia.  Meals B+L+D

This morning’s drive takes you along a stunning stretch of Chile’s Route 7, fondly known as the Austral Highway. It’s a southward journey that encompasses charming lakeside communities like Puerto Bertrand and pristine aquamarine waterways like the Neff River and the fast-flowing, rapid-filled Baker River. By midday, you’ll be checked in to the enchanting Lodge at Valle de Chacabuco, built of stone and timber and set against rugged granite peaks.
 
After lunch, you’ll visit the new Patagonia Park Museum and Visitor Center to learn more about one of South America’s newest national parks, created from more than 600,000 acres of land donated to the Chilean government by Doug Tompkins, founder of The North Face, and his wife Kris Tompkins, a former CEO at the Patagonia clothing company.  Meals B+L+D
 

When Doug Tompkins, founder of The North Face, and his wife Kris Tompkins, former CEO of the Patagonia clothing company, started to acquire property here in the Chacabuco Valley, much of the land consisted of over-grazed sheep and cattle ranches. Three decades later, the natural ecology is being restored and these magnificent steppe grasslands, glaciated peaks and rushing rivers are once again sheltering abundant wildlife including guanaco, huemel deer, puma, Chilean flamingo and the Andean condor.
 
Today, you can tailor your exploration to your own interests and personal taste for adventure with the included excursion of your choice. Ranging from gentle walks to challenging treks, your personal guide can help you select the one that’s right for you; here are some of the ones we offer:
 
La Confluencia: This gentle 3-hour excursion down to the confluence of the Baker and Chacabuco Rivers immerses you in the rugged beauty of Patagonia Park. It’s a 2-mile roundtrip with an ascent of less than 500 feet.
 
La Vega Trail: Another gentle hike, this one covering about 4.5 miles with a slightly greater ascent of 1,100 feet. In addition to impressive scenery, you’ll have a chance to encounter inquisitive guanacos and stop by the Valle Chacabuco Cemetery where several historic figures are buried.
 
Lago Chico Loop: This half-day hike covers a little more than 7 miles with an easy ascent of less than 600 feet. Exploring the eastern sector of Chacabuco Valley, the scenic highlights include the vast glacier-fed waters of Lago Cochrane and the rugged 12,000-foot peak of Mount San Lorenzo.
 
Lagunas Altas Trail: Covering 14 miles with a total ascent of 4,200 feet, this challenging full-day trek ascends Mount Tamanguito before winding around spectacular alpine lakes with awe-inspiring views of the valley. This was the first major trail created in Patagonia Park and has been named one of “Patagonia’s Five Best Treks.”
 
Avilés Loop Trail: This is one of Patagonia Park’s most remote and beautiful full-day hikes, covering 14 miles with a total ascent of 1,400 feet. Exploring the beautiful Aviles Valley Canyon, you’ll cross two bridges including a dramatic hanging footbridge – 100 fee long and 100 feet up!
Meals B+L+D
 

After breakfast and check-out from the Lodge, we’ll drive the Austral Highway to the Patagonia Baker Lodge in Puerto Bertrand, our put-in point for this morning’s whitewater rafting excursion on the pristine, fast-flowing Baker River. With complete instruction, a wetsuit and all equipment provided, you’ll join our professional, licensed rafting guide for an exhilarating 3.7-mile adventure that includes Class II and III rapids interspersed by calmer stretches. With its distinctive turquoise hue due to glacial sediment, the Baker is one of Chile’s most beautiful rivers – flowing through a spectacular region of forested mountains. After lunch at a local restaurant in Puerto Bertrand, continue to Puerto Guadal where you’ll check in to our enchanting lodge overlooking the blue waters of Lago General Carrera.  Meals B+L+D
 

Today’s guided excursion begins with scenic drive through mountain vistas with rushing rivers and native old-growth forests. Leaving the vehicle behind, a guided 3-hour walk takes you deeper into these landscapes, crossing over glacier-fed streams and ascending a trail that brings you to a grassy plain with spectacular views. Reaching the shores of Lake Leones, you’ll be surrounded by some of the most awe-inspiring mountain scenery that Patagonia has to offer. From here, a motor boat will take you across the lake to the foot of the spectacular Leones Glacier. Delight in a picnic lunch in this majestic setting before retracing your route back to our lodge in Puerto Guadal.  Meals B+L+D
 

You’ll be chauffeured back to the airport in Balmaceda for your included return flight to Santiago; our tour services end here as you connect to your homeward journey. Meals B