Best Of The Chilean Lake District Reviews

There were a lot of highlights. We very much enjoyed Puerto Varas and surrounding areas. Our mix of activities centered around PV were really fun and diverse; the birding trip with an excellent Birds Chile guide, Carlo, to the Alerce forest natural park was a nice hike and we saw a number of birds; the kayak trip across the fjord was fun and our wonderful guide, Paz, was fun and we had lunch at a sheep farm, which was special. On our off day, we rented a car and drove into the Petrohui National Park and hiked up the flank of Osorno volcano, which was a bit challenging but really fun. The Mero Gaucho B&B was the best place to stay and had great staff. Puerto Varas was a nice little place to walk around and we found great places to eat. The second phase of the trip to Patagonia was really great. We had a good experience with the car rental and able to manage getting gas. Arriving at the Estancia Cerro Guido was a real highlight. The staff was wonderful and the accommodations were great and very interesting. We ended up going into Torres del Painey every day for hikes and drove through most of the park on one day. It was spectacular scenery and we especially enjoyed the ferry out to the Francis valley for a hike up towards the lookout was awesome. The other hikes we took were also suggested by the staff at the Estancia and those were excellent. We saw a lot of guanacos, rheas, flamengos, swans and geese. The food at the Estancia was excellent and we had very nice conversations with the waitstaff at the restaurant. Very special place. On the first night in the Estancia, after a long day of travel it was special to be able to see the Torres in the sunset. We have already told our friends about how wonderful our trip was to Chile in general and these places in particular. We were surprised by how open we found everyone in Chile to be and how enjoyable it was to talk to everyone we met; even those people who didn't speak much English and we speak very little Spanish, and much of that badly. We also had a chance to meet with one of the owners of the Estancia, who was on a visit to the ranch, and had a very interesting conversation. The gas situation in Patagonia was not really a surprise but we did find it manageable with some planning.

The activities we did with Swoop providers were part of an extended trip in Chile. Every day we have spent in Chile (and a bit in Argentina) either with a Swoop activity or traveling on our own has been fun and enjoyable. We have met many great people - locals as well as other travelers. Having said that there is no ONE thing that stands out, since the entire trip has been memorable.

Highlight: its hard to pin point what my highlight was because everyday was absolutely incredible. But if i had to pick our day and night (we got stuck in the park!) was amazing. The scenery, the people and the whole experience is something I will always remember! The Landscapes were unreal and beautiful. I felt like I was in a dream. the views were not to be believed. We saw foxes, birds and thankful I never saw the infamous Puma. We loved each and every person we met - the tour guides, drivers, people on the trips and tours and the random people we met along the way. I have already started telling people it was the most amazing trip Ive been on!! we had one huge surprise. we missed the boat back to the entrance of the park so we ended up sleeping in a tent in a refugio that night. it only made our trip more memorable! the most magical moment was watching the sunset in the park the night we slept there.

How can I answer this? The glaciers of Patagonia, Eco camp as a base for fantastic food, adventures and friends, the Ventus Australis for sophisticated exploration and great information ( as well as making new contacts), Puerta Varas for adventures and the best guides on the planet plus so much more.

Seeing the summit of the Volcán Osorno break free of the clouds.

I'll list two items: 1. Completing the Torres del Paine hike. This was a push for Debbie and I and we were very lucky with the weather. The whole day, all aspects were stunning but that combined with the effort involved yielded a sense of real accomplishment at the end of the day. 2. As a sailor, seeing Cape Horn. Even though we couldn't disembark with the wind howling 50 knots, to me this didn't matter. Cape Horn lived up to it's reputation and that was for me almost better!

Horseback riding in the Lake District

There were numerous memorable moments, but likely the best was reaching the top of the trail to Torres del Paine. It was very empowering from a physical standpoint to know that the months of hiking had been culminated in this amazing hike up and up and then up some more through boulders to reach the view at the top!

Very hard to say- all amazing in so many different ways. Loved the Atacama- such an incredible landscape and wonderful guides and a beautiful hotel. The Lakes area- very beautiful. Torres del Paine- simply stunning ! The Eco camp very comfortable , very knowledgable guides and beautiful walks. Agua Arribas Lodge quite incredible- felt so very well looked after there and very understated in its elegance. El Calafate- again so stunning , great walking and great guide. All up , an incredible experience ! Thank you

Kayaking was great Hike in Puerto Varas was stunning, our guide Isabella was fantastic too and really fun

Kayaking at the Perito Moreno Glacier and watching the calving of the glacier.

The Laguna los Tres walk at El Chalten. It was our first big hike in Patagonia. The whole holiday was brilliant.

The W Trek

Kayaking in the Reloncavi Fjord, being blown away near Grey Glaciar.

Puma encounter and seeing an iceberg in real life.

The trek

The views during the W Trek