Southern Chile Overview

V!VA User‘s Description

From the sweaty smog of Santiago down to the chilling ice fields, southern Chile features almost every type of terrain, and is where some of the most beautiful national parks lie.

Just south of the capital is the famous Wine Country, which produces ever-improving reds and whites that now line supermarkets worldwide. Just below is the Lake District, also famous the world over for its fantastic hiking in its numerous national parks.

The Carratera Austral is another good hiking area yet few tourists venture here. However, its very remoteness makes it a great off-the-beaten-track destination to explore. Similarly, the islands of Chiloe just off the coast are an excellent retreat from the mainland, and a charming step back in time – it seems that little has changed here in the last few hundred years, from the clothes the locals wear, to farming methods.

The landscape grows ever harsher the further south you go – after Southern Patagonia, with its windswept plains, you reach the bottom of the continent, Tierra del Fuego, where a trip through the vast ice fields is must on most travellers’ itineraries.