Explora Patagonia - Hotel Salto Chico Torres del Paine

After four days of relaxing in Santiago we flew tp Puenta Arenas (at the bottom of the world)and drove five hours to the Torres Del Paine National Park. We were immediately blown away by the spectacular beauty of the park. A place where you could lose yourself for days. The expansive and diverse nature of the terrain, the independent and rugged nature of the locals and the thought provoking history behind the settling of the region. It has it all. We stayed at the Explora lodge which overlook...

We wait around in the bus station for ages before it turns up about an hour late, we're suprised to see the English guy and French girl from our hostel in La Serena get off the bus to get some coffee before getting back on to ride all the way to San Pedro de Atacama with us. We arrive in the afternoon to a small town in the middle of the desert which looks alot different to the other places in Chile we have been to. We walk down the dusty streets and eventually find the hostel we've been reco...

Update - 31 March 2007 Another National Park - more impressive natural beauty. The three days we spent here involved a lot a walking along the French Pass and Towers Trek. The conditions were fabulous and the views amazing. I intend to return here and stay in the elite Hotel Explora for a more luxurious national park experience.

Greetings from the bottom of the world! Yesterday we flew from Santiago to Punta Arenas on the tip of continental South America, a mere 6 hours from the continent of Antartica. The sun rises here around 5AM and we watched it go down when we were finishing dinner around 10:30 last night!! II would love to see a full moon on a clear night here!! We enjoyed a 6 hour car ride (2.5 hours via dirt road) through the tundra like conditions of the tip of South America, through the beautiful village of...

WOW, we have travelled almost to the bottom of the earth and found paradise. After a 4 hour flight from Santiago to Punta Arenas(the most southerly inhabited town in Chile), followed by a 5 hour drive, the last 2 on dirt roads we arrived at Hotel Explora hidden away amongst the mountains in seclusion. Breathtaking scenery and a picture-perfect view from our bedroom window. What a welcome. What a wonderful time we have spent here in Torres Del Paine National Park. We did 3 full day hikes with ...

Right this was a 2 night/3day tour which we started from San Pedro de Atacama (Chile)and finished in Uyuni (Bolivia). We got bus to the Bolivan border (check out Enda at the very offical looking official border!) where we had breakfast with our bus driver and checked into Bolivia. When you get your passport stamped you have to pay the police an entrance fee (totally illegal but wide spread practice) to get into their country. Mind you it was only 30 Boliviano (3euro) so its not too bad. Then ...