Destinations
Chile in a camper
From the Atacama Desert in the north to the glaciers of Patagonia in the south, Chile is one long, stunning road trip waiting to happen.
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North
Atacama Desert, stargazing valleys and the driest landscapes on earth.
Atacama Desert
Earth's driest desert, endlessly beautiful
The Atacama is a world unlike any other — salt flats, geysers, flamingo lagoons and the clearest night skies on earth. Based around San Pedro de Atacama, it's a self-drive paradise with well-paved access roads.
- ✦Valle de la Luna
- ✦El Tatio Geysers
- ✦Laguna Cejar
- ✦Stargazing at 2,400 m
Valle del Elqui
Pisco, stargazing and endless clear skies
The Elqui Valley is Chile's pisco heartland — a narrow green valley carved into the arid mountains of the Norte Chico, with some of the clearest skies on earth and a deeply relaxed pace of life.
- ✦Pisco distillery tours
- ✦Mamalluca Observatory
- ✦Vicuña village
- ✦Hot springs at Termas de Socos
Central
Wine valleys, surf coast and the agricultural heartland of Chile.
Wine Valleys
Chile's great wine roads, valley by valley
From the sun-drenched Elqui in the north to the cool Maule in the south, Chile's wine valleys are a self-drive paradise — world-class wineries, colonial haciendas and landscapes that change with every latitude.
- ✦Valle de Colchagua
- ✦Valle de Casablanca
- ✦Valle del Maipo
- ✦Valle de Aconcagua
- ✦Valle del Maule
Central Valleys
Rural Chile at its most authentic
Chile's central valleys are its agricultural heartland: colonial towns, thermal springs, rodeo culture and landscapes of vineyards and wheat fields stretching to the Andes.
- ✦Termas de Chillán
- ✦Rancagua rodeo
- ✦Talca old town
- ✦Reserva Nacional Altos de Lircay
Surf Coast
World-class waves, wild Pacific coastline
Pichilemu, Matanzas and Puertecillo form the holy trinity of Chilean surfing: consistent swells, uncrowded breaks and a raw Pacific coast that rewards the adventurous.
- ✦Punta de Lobos (Pichilemu)
- ✦Matanzas left-hander
- ✦Puertecillo point break
- ✦Infiernillo beach
Central Andes
Ski runs, hot springs and Andean valleys at Santiago's doorstep
The Central Andes rise dramatically just east of Santiago — deep gorges, thermal springs, world-class ski resorts and high-altitude lakes all within a few hours of the capital.
- ✦Cajón del Maipo
- ✦Valle Nevado ski resort
- ✦Portillo and Laguna del Inca
- ✦Termas El Plomo hot springs
South
Volcanoes, ancient forests, glaciers and the roads less travelled.
Valdivia
River city, craft beer and Germanic heritage
Valdivia is one of Chile's most charming cities: a rainy, green river port with a proud German colonial past, a booming craft beer scene and sea lion colonies right in the city centre.
- ✦Mercado Fluvial sea lions
- ✦Craft brewery trail
- ✦Torreón del Barro fort
- ✦Valdivian rainforest hikes
River District
Wild rivers, ancient forests and Mapuche heartland
The River District stretches across La Araucanía and Los Ríos — a landscape defined by fast-flowing rivers, old-growth araucaria forests and the living culture of the Mapuche people.
- ✦Biobío and Fuy river rapids
- ✦Araucaria forests of Malalcahuello
- ✦Siete Lagos circuit
- ✦Mapuche cultural experiences
Lake District
Volcanoes, lakes and old-growth forests
Chile's Lake District stretches between Temuco and Puerto Montt, dotted with snow-capped volcanoes, deep blue lakes and German-influenced towns. Lush, green and approachable — perfect for first-time campervan travellers.
- ✦Villarrica Volcano
- ✦Lago Llanquihue
- ✦Pucón hot springs
- ✦Osorno stratovolcano
Patagonia
Chiloé, the Aysén wilderness and the legendary Carretera Austral.
Chiloé Island
Wooden churches, mythology and wild fog
Chiloé is unlike anywhere else in Chile: a large island shrouded in mist, defined by stilt houses over the sea, UNESCO-listed wooden churches and a folklore rooted in witches and sea monsters.
- ✦UNESCO wooden churches
- ✦Palafitos of Castro
- ✦Penguin colonies
- ✦Dalcahue market
Aysén Region
Wild Patagonia, untouched and immense
The Aysén Region is one of the least-populated places on earth — ancient forests, hanging glaciers, turquoise rivers and fjords that stretch to the horizon. Chile's great wilderness.
- ✦Northern Patagonian Ice Field
- ✦Marble Caves
- ✦Lago General Carrera
- ✦Río Baker rapids
The Carretera Austral (Route 7)
Chile's ultimate road trip
The Carretera Austral (Route 7) is a 1,240-kilometre gravel highway carved through some of the most remote terrain on earth — hanging glaciers, emerald rivers and zero phone signal. Only for the adventurous.
- ✦Queulat Hanging Glacier
- ✦Río Baker rapids
- ✦Marble Caves
- ✦Cochrane wetlands
Villa O'Higgins
The end of the road, the edge of the world
Villa O'Higgins is the southern terminus of the Carretera Austral — a village of 600 people at the end of the last road in Chilean Patagonia. Beyond here there is no road, only glaciers, fjords and silence.
- ✦O'Higgins Glacier
- ✦Lago O'Higgins
- ✦Southern Patagonian Ice Field
- ✦End of Route 7 milestone
Magallanes
Torres del Paine, the Strait of Magellan and the end of the world.
Torres del Paine
The crown jewel of Chilean Patagonia
Torres del Paine National Park is one of the world's most dramatic landscapes: granite towers, turquoise lakes and ancient glaciers. Best accessed via Punta Arenas or Puerto Natales — the ultimate road trip destination.
- ✦W Trek base camps
- ✦Grey Glacier viewpoints
- ✦Paine Massif sunrises
- ✦Condor sightings
Punta Arenas
Gateway to the end of the world
Punta Arenas is the southernmost major city in the Americas — a windswept port on the Strait of Magellan where explorers once resupplied before rounding Cape Horn. Today it's the base for Patagonia adventures.
- ✦Strait of Magellan views
- ✦Penguin colony at Isla Magdalena
- ✦Cementerio Municipal
- ✦Nao Victoria Museum
Tierra del Fuego
The island at the end of the earth
Tierra del Fuego is the large island at the southern tip of South America, split between Chile and Argentina. A landscape of bogs, beech forests, mountains and fjords, inhabited by guanacos, condors and an extraordinary history.
- ✦Cordillera Darwin
- ✦Porvenir and Bahía Inútil
- ✦Autumn beech forests
- ✦Guanaco herds on open steppe
Puerto Williams
The southernmost town on earth
Puerto Williams is the southernmost town in the world — a small Chilean naval base on Navarino Island in the Beagle Channel. The gateway to Cape Horn and one of the most remote places on the planet.
- ✦Dientes de Navarino circuit
- ✦Beagle Channel views
- ✦Cape Horn boat trips
- ✦Sub-Antarctic birdlife
Plan your route
Browse our free travel resources, packing lists, road conditions, border crossing guides and the best wild camping spots in Chile.