Trip to ChileWe had one of our best vacatio...
Chile
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Feb 2 - Feb 13, 2023
Trip to Chile
We had one of our best vacations ever thanks to Erin and her team at Kimkim.
Everyone of our airport transfers were waiting for us when we cleared customs and baggage claim and drove us to our destinations giving us good information regarding that region of Chile.
The hotels Erin selected were excellent with nice rooms, good locations for exploring the cities, and great breakfasts.
The activities that were scheduled for us were both challenging and interesting (kayaking, hiking in a temperate rain forrest, fishing, and penguin viewing. )
The restaurants in each city that were recommended were all excellent with local seafood, fresh vegetables, and fine wine.
We particularly enjoyed staying at the Matetic La Casona Hotel with its' beautiful rooms, garden areas, excellent restaurant and, of course, the fine wines. It was nice to get out of Santiago with its' warm temperatures and smoke from the recent fires.
We spent a day touring Valparaiso which was quite entertaining with its' fish market, murals, funiculars, and views.
The San Francisco of Chile.
We enjoyed staying in Puerto Varas with the beautiful beach setting, lake, and volcanoes in the background.
Jass was a perfect host with pickup at the airport and kayaking on a fjord. Learning about the fjord, salmon and mussel farms was interesting but the river was so wide and big the actual kayaking was not much fun. Would have preferred a smaller river to learn about the trees, birds, and animals.
The trekking trip to Alerce Andino National Park was interesting but not a high point. Good for training to climb a mountain with all the stairs you have to negotiate. Our guide Marcella has a spider phobia she pontificated on that was the most entertaining part of the hike.
The fishing trip I took with Matthew (?) was the best day of the trip for me. Rowing me down a quiet, beautiful river with large brown trout hungry to grab my lure, identifying multiple water birds, and cooking me a riverside lunch was perfect.
June enjoyed her penguin trip as well.
We dined at the Casa Varas and Brasas restaurants in the evening and found them both excellent.
The frozen piscos and ceviche at Casa Varas and the king crab and baked Alaska dessert at Brasas were highlights.
Puerto Natales was the gateway to Torres del Paine National Park and a perfect base to launch our different activities.
Our hotel Remota was hip and cooly designed and built using local wood and resources.
It was a long walk from town and we usually took a taxi.
It could use a better sauvignon blanc in the wine list.
Our private tour of Torres del Paine National Park was quite nice hitting all the major waterfalls and mountain views.
Saw lots of wildlife including condors, Darwin Rhea, caracara, black eagles, flamingos. and guanacos.
The Hotel Grey located in Torres del Paine was also quite nice and we enjoyed a hike to the Chorrillo Los Samones with Pablo and Jorge as our guides. Multiple plants, trees, and birds were identified on the hike along the Pingo River.
The best and most comfortable views of the glacier and the iceberg were in the hotel bar. :)
Erin worked easily with us on our itinerary changing several activities to match our interests. She was up front about the costs and provided detailed information and photos on each of the hotels, destinations, and activities.
I hardily recommend Erin and Kimkim to anyone considering a trip to Chile. You will be rewarded with a trip of a lifetime.
Joe and June Spann
Austin, Texas
Hotel Reviews
great location with good restaurant and bar.
Great breakfast, view from our room of the lake and volcanoes, and great location to access the town.
Cool, hip hotel with its' design and materials. Long walk from town. Needs a better sauvignon blanc wine on the menu.
Beautiful, relaxing setting with lap pool, gardens, and on-site restaurant. Great wine!!
Activity Reviews
wine tasting with Pablo Took a day trip to Valparaiso...very entertaining. Strongly recommend.
Too many stairs and guide fixated on spiders.
Jass was great but fjord but was wide and large and did not feel very intimate for a kayaking trip.
Presented with a menu of possible activities the first evening, We chose the most difficult hike up to the base of the three towers of Torres del Paine. It was a 14 mile round trip hike with sunshine and warmth on the hike up with the last mile picking our way up over giant boulders and the last two hours in a cold rain with driving wind. One of the most difficult hikes I have ever done especially at age 71 but we were rewarded with some magnificent views, incredible scenery, and a sense of accomplishment at the end. It was 10 hours of hiking interrupted with a half-hour lunch. Nicholas was our young guide at 24 years of age and I think he worried we were going to collapse. So did we. :) The next day we took a tour of Puerto Natales downtown and enjoyed visiting the museum and shopping for souvenirs.
Best day of the trip for me with phenomenal trout fishing, beautiful serene setting, and abundant wildlife. The guide was especially skilled and helpful. Would recommend highly to all those interested in one of the greatest fishing trips of their life. I used a spinning rod and reel since I am not especially skilled at fly fishing.
My wife took this trip and enjoyed it.
Wife took this trip and enjoyed it.
We checked all the boxes on waterfalls, mountain views, and wildlife.
Enjoyed taking this informative hike with Pablo and Jorge in a visitor restricted area.
