What our travellers say

Deserts, volcanoes, guanacos and flamingos

Whilst the Chileans were protesting against inequality in their country, we set foot in Santiago. Fortunately, people were still happy to see tourists and we were able to explore the city at our leisure.

We then flew to Arica, in northern Chile. That’s when the real fun began. Truly, every single day the landscapes were so breathtakingly beautiful. And just when you thought ‘it couldn’t get any better’, you’d see something else of unimaginable beauty. Lauca National Park, in particular, is a hidden gem. It’s not often that you find yourself in such a beautiful place and there’s not a soul in sight.

We drove through the deserts from Iquique to San Pedro de Atacama, and then via the lush green Salta, back to the rugged Cafayate and the deserted San Antonio de los Cobres. Of course, the altitude does make it a bit of a challenge, but that’s precisely what makes it special. You cross the border between Chile and Argentina a few times, and those journeys are absolutely spectacular. The guanacos and flamingos that blend perfectly into the landscape, the colours, the crystal-clear starry sky and the otherworldly scenes are not something we’ll forget in a hurry. We’ve been lucky enough to see a lot of the world, but this region exceeded our expectations.

It was also such fun to hear Spanish all day long, to stay in different accommodation every time, and to round off each day with a dip in the pool.

Lakes, waterfalls, glaciers and penguins

The second part of the trip began in Puerto Varas and Pucón, in Chile’s Lake District. We stayed there a bit longer so that we could both go on a long hike and, of course, climb the Villarica volcano. For adventurers, this is definitely one of the highlights. Once you’ve seen the active crater, you can sledge all the way down on your bum through the snow.

After some lovely drives through the Argentine Lake District, we travelled along the Carretera Austral. Despite a bit of rain, the natural scenery and, above all, the pioneer settlements made a big impression on us. And here too, we stayed in a number of wonderful places to stay.

You really mustn’t miss the marble caves at Lago General Carrera in Puerto Guadal. And to top it all off, we visited El Chaltén, the Perito Moreno Glacier and Torres del Paine. Our personal favourite is El Chaltén. Luckily, we had an extra day here to climb Mount Fitz Roy. This has to be one of the most beautiful hikes we’ve ever done. The glaciers and Torres del Paine were also stunning. Finally, we managed to catch the last boat from Punta Arenas to Isla Magdalena, where we saw hundreds of newborn penguins. We couldn’t have ended the trip any better.

Travelling with a four-year-old

In our experience, this trip is very suitable for families with children. The only requirement is that they don’t mind sitting in the car for long periods. If they also enjoy walking and are happy to have an empanada for lunch every day, that’s a bonus.

You can also get some local chewing gum made from coca leaves for the children. The border crossings and sleeping at high altitude went smoothly. And for your peace of mind, oxygen cylinders are provided both at the border posts and at the hotel in San Antonio de los Cobres; though, incidentally, they’re rarely used.

There are also playgrounds everywhere. Even though we’re not really into horse riding, in Pucón they’re fully geared up for horse riding for little ones, and this was great fun. On the long walks we went on, we took turns. We found them too long to take our daughter along. Mount Fitz Roy is very easy to hike yourself and the paths are well signposted. On all the other tours, such as the marble caves at Puerto Guadal, the fishing trip in Futaleufú and the Perito Moreno glacier, it was no problem to take her along.

Our daughters’ favourites were definitely the swimming pools, horse riding and the penguins. But in the end, nothing beats empanadas for her. She ate seventy of them in fifty days. Now it’s back to Dutch cheese sandwiches. It’ll take some getting used to again.