mdmitchell

Hi. I'm planning an 8 day (not including travel days) trip to Chile in November/December. My goal is to see a little bit of Santiago and Valparaiso, but mainly to see the many natural sights in Chile. My DW and I (30-somethings) enjoy taking day hikes when we travel, but are definitely not mount climbers.

Given the short time, we'll only be able to travel to one other region from Santiago. I'm torn between spending that time in Torres del Paine or going to Easter Island for a few days and then doing some hiking at Cajun di Maipo or other areas near Santiago. Torres del Paine seems to fit our desire to take in the outdoors, do some hiking and see glaciers, but I wonder if Easter Island might be a more unique experience that we won't get anywhere else. We've previously done a fair amount of hiking in Iceland, Australia (Uluru) and the Big Island.

Any thoughts from people who have been to both over which to choose?

Huentetu

Very different destinations but a good time of year for both and both are worth a visit. I think I would go with Easter Island for a couple of reasons. It is definitely unique and the logistics of getting there are easier. Four or five days on the island are not excessive and would tie in nicely with your other plans. Torres del Paine is more about multi-day hikes, though day hikes are certainly possible. Lodging, aside from shared accommodation in mountain lodges, is expensive.

Look into buying one ticket which includes Easter Island (One World airlines - LAN is the only airline which flies there) as that can often make it cheaper as far as the flight is concerned. Prices will go up in December as that would be considered high season.

The earlier you book air tickets in Chile the cheaper they are. Compare prices on the .cl and .com sites for your location. Local travel agents can get the .cl prices, if cheaper, and they are just in country prices and don't have other restrictions.

tower

Huentetu: Do you think that 8 days is enough for visiting a chunk of Chile and also Easter Island? I have not been to EI, but I would think that the 8 days could be better spent in exploring Chile proper. Say a few days in Santiago, go out to a day visit to the beaches and Valpo, rent a car and take in the lake distrct for four-five days and return by plane to Santiago.

We at one time enjoyed such a visit, but also took in the lake crossing to Bariloche and went on to BA and the Amazon from Rio for a total of over a month. I don't think many first time visitors have any idea of how big Chile is from North to South. Driving in Chile was comfortable with mild traffic.

Yes, we had considerably more time, but in 8 days do you think the OP can get in some of the aformentioned? Just thinking. of how to maximize the OP's narrow window.

tower

MD and Huentetu: These pix might give you an idea of what I suggested above:

https://picasaweb.google.com/stuartt...ocheArgentina#

Huentetu

With 8 days choices obviously have to be made. Although the lake district can be lovely it may not be at its best at the time of year given. This has already started as a very wet year and good weather comes later to the south. It is the rainiest part of Chile, even more so than Patagonia. Bad weather obscures the views (volcanoes) and curtails outdoor activities. If we were talking January it would be different.

I would think the best choices would be the far north - San Pedro de Atacama and the area around Arica, Easter Island or Patagonia for Torres del Paine. The first two are the easiest to get to. The airport (really an aerodrome) in Puerto Natales did have flights in summer which stopped. The airport is being upgraded and flights will resume when it is ready, making access a lot quicker. But, at the moment you are looking at 5 hours on two different buses to get to the park from Punta Arenas. But it certainly can be done.

Any of the choices can be combined with a short visit to Santiago and Valparaiso, vineyards and plenty of hiking in different terrains.

JulianoMelao

Hey, try www.skyairline.cl , just use this company to flight Santiago x Puerto Montt and saw that they has many destination.

Huentetu

SKY is a decent airline but has a much smaller fleet than LAN, so one cancellation can have an effect on other flights. Just worth bearing in mind.