Chile - Beautiful people, beautiful places, fantastic food!!

Chile | Mar 6 - Mar 20, 2024

Thanks to our local specialist, Angel, we had an amazing, fun-filled trip to the beautiful country of Chile. There were 6 of us on the trip and we bombarded Angel with incredible detail on what we wanted to do. He took care of us before, during and after our trip. It was amazing how it all came together. We were taken care of by local guides every step of the way and Angel was always available and checking in with us.

First, we traveled to the beautiful city of Punta Arenas where we did a kayak tour on the Strait of Magellan (loved our guide, Claudia). We also did an all day tour to Tierra del Fuego to see the king penguins. Our tour guide, Ferdinando, added in a wonderful side trip to have lunch at this delightful cafe. The stew was so good! And he also took us on a side tour so we could see the flamingos.

Next stop was Torres del Paine where we stayed at Rio Serrano. What a wonderful place! We upgraded to suites with incredible views of the massif especially at sunrise!. We paid for the all-inclusive package and the staff delivered on that with a 5 star rating! At Torres del Paine, we did a kayak tour to Grey Glacier. It was a beautiful calm day. And we really enjoyed our guides! We also hiked several trails in the parque...we hiked to the Cuernos Lookout and the Mirador Base Las Torres...the latter was one of my biggest highlights of the trip. So epic! My husband also did a private fishing guide tour and had a blast. He caught 7 brown trout...thanks to Sebastian, his guide, for finding the sweet spot to fish! Thank you to our local guide, Jose, who ensured everything went well for us during this special part of our 14 day trip.

From here we went to Puerto Varas. We did a guided hike tour of Mirador Cerro La Picada with some great views of the Osorno Volcano and Lago Todos Los Santos. It was fun coming down the mountain on volcanic sand! We could not have done this hike without our awesome guides, Jose and Eduardo. We probably would have gotten lost! Thank you, Angel, for also ensuring we got the most magnificent suites at Hotel Cabana del Lago! The views from our room of the double rainbows on the lake were spectacular! Hotel Cabana del Lago is a great service-oriented hotel. A special thank you to Rafael, our local guide. Upon our departure from the hotel, our rental car completely malfunctioned. Rafael was able to work with the rental car company and a taxi service to ensure we all got to the airport on time.

We ended our trip in Santiago...thanks to Jose (aka Pepe) for all of his help at the airport on arrival and departure, for getting us to the Undurraga Winery for a great tour and for recommending Baco restaurante for dinner!

The Chilean people are very special. They are so kind and genuine. We felt so welcome in their country. Given so many of them also speak English, it was so much fun to practice my Spanish with them.

I would highly recommend kimkim to anyone looking for a memory of a lifetime. To the people at the kimkim home office, to Angel tending to our every need, to the local guides helping us throughout the trip....my husband and I say Muchas Gracias!!!

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Rio Serrano

Torres del Paine

Wonderful service, wonderful staff, great food, the suites with the view of the mountains are superb! The spa was icing on the cake...especially on one of the rainy days.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Cabaña Del Lago Puerto Varas

Puerto Varas

The 10th floor suite with the panoramic view of the lake was awesome. The clouds were hanging over the volcano most of the time, but we got an extra treat....a view of the double rainbow over the lake. The restaurant service was very good. They made my birthday special.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Amazing suite.

Hotel Diego de Almagro Punta Arenas

Punta Arenas

The front desk people were great. Rooms were clean. Great views.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Diego de Velazquez

Santiago

This is clearly a hotel in the city. We were in a very small room. The air conditioner was cold but hard to manage not being blown out in the middle of the night. Front desk staff were very courteous. Location was good.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Safe area.

Staff

Front desk always eager to help. Breakfast help very courteous.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Rooms need some upgrading. Not sure about the comforter on the bed....probably needed a good cleaning. Doors to shelves did not easily slide. They would be better off taking the doors off the tracks completely.

Activity Reviews

Agua Fresca Bay Kayaking

Punta Arenas

Loved our guide.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Full Day Tierra del Fuego - King Penguin

Punta Arenas

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Transfer to Grey Lake -Kayak through the Glaciers at Grey Lake - Transfer back to your hotel

Chile

Loved our guides. Great calm water day.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

crowded boat

Fly Fishing in Torres del Paine

Torres del Paine

Exceptional. Sebastian was great. Good guy.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Genuine human being. Great fisherman. He knows his work.

Transport

Climbing Cerro La Picada

Puerto Varas

Loved the hike.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit Undurraga Vineyard - Wine Tasting group tour

Santiago

It was a good tour but I was not feeling well that day. But really interesting.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very knowledgable.

Transport

I wasn't feeling well so wasn't in the mood to be in a van.