Chile: From the Atacama Desert to the Patagonian Fjords

DAY 1
Depart U.S.
Depart the U.S. on your overnight flight to Santiago, Chile.

DAY 2
Arrive Santiago, Chile • Walking tour
Meals included: D Accommodations: Hotel Cumbres Lastarria or similar

Welcome to Santiago! An OAT representative will greet you at the airport and escort you to our hotel, where you’ll meet your Trip Leader and fellow travelers.

Enjoy a few hours to settle in before we gather again for an orientation walk around Chile’s cosmopolitan capital. Against a stunning backdrop of Andean peaks, Santiago has witnessed a remarkable history, from settlement by conquistadors in 1541 to the Marxist, military, and democratic governments of the 20th century. We’ll explore the city’s hub, Plaza de Armas, as well as La Moneda Palace, the seat of Chile’s government.

Tonight, we’ll see a slice of local life when we take the subway to the Mercado Central, Santiago’s bustling seafood market. We’ll enjoy a Welcome Dinner at a restaurant in the market.

DAY 3
Explore Valparaiso • Home-Hosted Lunch
Meals included: B L Accommodations: Hotel Cumbres Lastarria or similar

Today we set out on a full-day tour of Valparaiso, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and Chile’s largest seaport.

“Pancho,” as locals call the city, is a chaotic maze of narrow alleys, steep staircases, and colorful funiculars that ramble up 17 surrounding cerros (hills). We’ll ride one of these ascensores to catch a spectacular view.

Once a booming port, Valparaiso’s economy was hit hard by the opening of the Panama Canal in the 20th century. But today, the city has bounced back as the nation’s cultural capital. Gritty yet romantic, Pancho has long been a haven for artists and writers. We’ll see its unusual charms at play as we wander past old mansions and modern street art. And to really catch the rhythm of life in Valparaiso, we’ll enjoy lunch with a local family in their home.

Back in Santiago, dinner is on your own.

DAY 4
Fly to Calama • Rainbow Valley • Overland to San Pedro
Meals included: B D Accommodations: Hotel Cumbres San Pedro de Atacama or similar

This morning, we fly to Calama and transfer to San Pedro de Atacama, an oasis town in Chile’s Norte Grande region—home to the driest desert on Earth. En route to our hotel, we spend the afternoon exploring the Rainbow Valley.

Much like San Pedro and its surroundings, the Rainbow Valley is an otherworldly landscape of layered rock formations sculpted by centuries of wind. But its colors—a kaleidoscopic palette of vibrant reds, purples, and yellows formed by mineral deposits—set it apart. From here, we’ll discover the ancient petroglyphs in the nearby mountains and boulders.

After dinner at a local family-owned restaurant, we’ll check into our hotel in San Pedro.

DAY 5
San Pedro • Visit Toconao • Sunset at Laguna Chaxa
Meals included: B L Accommodations: Hotel Cumbres San Pedro de Atacama or similar

Today, we take a walking tour of San Pedro. The compact, terra cotta-hued village serves as a base for northern Chile’s nearby wonders, but our destination is the Museo Gustave Le Paige. Because it receives virtually no rainfall, the Atacama is an archaeological gold mine. The museum houses thousands of well-preserved artifacts dating back to pre-Inca cultures—including shamanic devices for ingesting hallucinogenic plants.

We’ll break for lunch and a few hours of free time. Later, we’ll depart for Toconao, a small village known for its 18th-century bell tower, built from volcanic rock mined from a nearby quarry.

Our next stop is Laguna Chaxa, a flamingo breeding site in Salar de Atacama, Chile’s largest salt flat. We’ll have the chance to seek out native wildlife, such as the five flamingo species that inhabit this lake—a bizarre sight in the midst of a desert. The scene becomes even more surreal at sunset, with a horizon of pink-streaked skies and pastel mountains.

Back in San Pedro, dinner will be on your own.

DAY 6
Optional Tatio Geysers tour • Valley of the Moon OPTIONAL TOUR
Meals included: B D Accommodations: Hotel Cumbres San Pedro de Atacama or similar

Enjoy free time today with lunch on your own. Or, rise early for an optional excursion to El Tatio, a bubbling geyser field enclosed by snowcapped volcanoes.

We’ll regroup this afternoon to explore the Valley of the Moon, a lunar setting of rock formations, caves, and gorges carved by eons of wind and floods. (Scientists chose this region to test drive a prototype Mars rover in 2013.) We’ll wander its rocky terrain and enjoy an evening toast as the valley below glows pink and gold in the setting sun.

Dinner will follow at a local restaurant.

DAY 7
Fly to Santiago
Meals included: B D Accommodations: Hotel Cumbres Lastarria or similar

This morning, you’re free to make your own discoveries in San Pedro before we transfer to the airport in Calama for our flight to Santiago. Arriving early in the evening, we’ll check into our hotel and meet for dinner at a local restaurant.

DAY 8
Fly to Punta Arenas • Walking tour
Meals included: B D Accommodations: Jose Nogueira Hotel or similar

Today we fly to Punta Arenas, an active port overlooking the Strait of Magellan. Punta Arenas rose to prominence in the late 19th century because of its sheep and wool industry and the discovery of gold nearby.

After checking into our hotel this afternoon, we’ll visit the Nao Victoria Museum to see a replica of one of Ferdinand Magellan’s ships, complete with original furniture and hardware. From here, we’ll continue on a walking tour of Punta Arenas’ main square, ending with dinner at a local restaurant.

DAY 9
Punta Arenas • Ranch visit • Travel to Torres del Paine
Meals included: B L D Accommodations: Hotel Lago Grey or similar

Today we enjoy a window into Patagonian ranch life when we visit a working estancia. The area’s sweeping grasslands are ideal for sheep farming, which has been one of the primary economic engines here since the end of the 19th century. At the estancia, we’ll enjoy a lunch of Patagonian lamb—the iconic dish that the President of Chile served to President Obama in his first visit to the nation.

We travel overland to Torres del Paine, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve site and one of the most remote and beautiful places in the world. During our two nights here, we’ll hike winding trails over rippling currents; witness the ostrich-like rhea (known locally as ñandú), fox, and other wildlife; and take in the stunning scenery of purple mountains and mirror-smooth lakes.

DAY 10
Explore Torres del Paine
Meals included: B L D Accommodations: Hotel Lago Grey or similar

Sprawling 935 square miles, Torres del Paine spans grasslands, beech forests, and glaciers that have carved out fjords and valleys. We’ll explore these unique landscapes in a trio of hikes over the course of two days. (Our routes may vary depending on seasonal conditions.)

Today, we may trek along the shores of Lago Grey, where gigantic blue icebergs rest against sandy beaches. Glacier Grey stretches into the distance through the towering peaks of the surrounding mountains.

We’ll stop for a boxed lunch at a scenic viewpoint, then hike to Salto Grande, a rushing waterfall set between Lago Nordenskjold and Lago Pehoe. Here, we may spot some of the indigenous wildlife that feed on the verdant foliage along the riverbank.

We return to our hotel for dinner tonight.

DAY 11
Torres del Paine • Puerto Natales • Embark cruise
Meals included: B L D Accommodations: MS Skorpios III or similar

This morning, we'll explore Torres del Paine in a final hike, keeping our eyes peeled for fauna such as guanacos (related to the llama and the camel) and condors winging overhead.

After a boxed lunch, we drive to Puerto Natales to board the MS Skorpios III, our home for the next three nights as we cruise the Chilean fjords. This family-owned vessel is uniquely designed with a reinforced hull for navigating ice and a small size for threading through the narrow fjords and bays.

We depart Puerto Natales and sail through the Kirke Narrows toward Bernado O’Higgins National Park, home to the furthest flows of the massive Southern Patagonian Ice Field. Our ship is the only one that sails this particular route. As we follow the path of Darwin and FitzRoy, we’ll be able to witness the ever-shifting palette of light and shadow on the mountains, sea, and ice without distraction.

Dinner will be onboard tonight. The Chilean owners of the Skorpios III ensure that everything about our shipboard experience, from wine and food to friendly staff, reflect their culture. During our cruise, all meals are included while we're onboard ship.

DAY 12
Cruise glaciers
Meals included: B L D Accommodations: MS Skorpios III or similar

Every slip of land we’ve traveled in Chile was once covered by the Patagonian Ice Sheet, which stretched all the way to the Andes. The remaining Southern Patagonian Ice Field still sprawls nearly 5,000 square miles. Expedition teams have only crossed the full length of the ice field once, and many parts remain still unvisited. Most of what is known to explorers is accessible only by boat or helicopter.

Today we have the privilege of exploring three smaller fjords feeding the Peel Fjord, each with its own character. Amalia Glacier is wide and low, and you can see the rivers feeding into it. We’ll disembark on a nearby beach for a walk through the vegetation to get a better look at the glacier.

We cruise onward into the Asia Fjord, home of the El Brujo glacier—so vividly blue it seems almost lit from within. Weather permitting, we’ll go ashore for panoramic views. Finally, we navigate Calvo Fjord, a glacier-filled alley of bobbing ice. We’ll board an icebreaker boat, the Capitán Constantino, to sail through the choppy ice and get closer.

DAY 13
Explore Las Montañas Fjord
Meals included: B L D Accommodations: MS Skorpios III or similar

Today we discover the Las Montañas Fjord, which threads between the Cordillera Sarmiento and the Cordillera Riesco mountain ranges. Cordillera Sarmiento includes The White Lady, a 7,000-foot peak, while the Cordillera Riesco is best known for Grupo la Paz, a cluster of jagged rock towers.

We cruise by Zodiac through the bay of the Alsina glacier. Then we visit Bernal Glacier, where our Zodiac boats drop us off for a walk through a small rain forest to a glacial lagoon, and then onward to the front of the glacier itself, which we can touch.

Continuing on past Herman and Zamudio glaciers, we’ll arrive at Angostura White Glacier. Here, we embark exploration craft and keep our eyes peeled for the diverse wildlife that populate these waters: Peale's dolphins, seals, upland geese, petrels, cormorants, and albatrosses.

This evening, we enjoy a special farewell party and Captain’s Dinner onboard.

DAY 14
Disembark cruise • Punta Arenas • Fly to Santiago
Meals included: B Accommodations: Hotel Cumbres Lastarria

We disembark this morning and drive to Punta Arenas, arriving in time for lunch on your own.

This afternoon, we fly to Santiago and settle into our hotel.

Your Trip Leader will have plenty of ideas for dinner on your own. You might seek out Chile’s famed seafood or restaurants serving traditional dishes like pastel de choclo (corn pie) and plateada (pot roast). Or, try one of the restaurants on Isadora Goyenechea, an area popular with local diners and visitors alike.

DAY 15
Winery visit • Return to U.S. or begin post-trip extension
Meals included: B L

We toast our journey today during a visit to Paseo del Vino, a charming boutique winery whose owner established it on a single acre of grapes, as a passion project. He makes just 3,000 bottles a year (both red and white) and loves introducing visitors to Chilean wine culture. We’ll learn about winemaking and taste some of his vintages, followed by a Farewell Lunch of local cuisine.

This afternoon, we depart for the airport for our return flights home, or to begin our post-trip extension to Buenos Aires & Iguassu Falls.