Along the Carretera Austral, Northern Patagonia

Carretera Austral

Thanks to limited access until the Carretera Austral was built in the 1980s to link Chilean Patagonia to the rest of the country, the region is unspoiled and very authentic. It remains the most undiscovered part of Chile.

The Carretera Austral stretches 1,200kms from Puerto Montt to Villa O'Higgins at the foot of the South Patagonia ice field. It is an adventurous region with the dense rainforests, hanging glaciers, glacier lakes, and volcanoes of the Andes. The remaining 1,500km to Punta Arenas, at the southern tip of the continent, can only be driven on the Argentinean side. It is part of any adventure.

Northern Carretera Austral 5 nights from $1580 pp	request
A stunning self-drive circuit north from Balmaceda towards the beautiful and remote areas of Queulat National Park, emerald Lake Yelcho, and Futaleufu. This still unspoilt region is only accessible by car since the 1980s. more details

Southern Carretera Austral 6 nights from $1139 pp	request
A circuit heading southwards from Balmaceda towards Lake General Carrera and Cochrane, exploring this still unspoiled and authentic region that was only accessible by car since the 1980s. more details

Chile tours by category: Adventure Around Chile Easter & other islands Lake District Multi-country Northern Chile tours Patagonia Chile Patagonia cruises Santiago & Central Self-drives

did you know...

Novels were forbidden in Latin America for 300 years by the Spanish inquisition as these were considered bad for indians and society. The first novel, The Itching Parrot, was published in Mexico 1816 after independence. According to Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa, "We are still victims in Latin America of what we could call the revenge of the novel. We still have great difficulty in our countries in differentiating between fact and fiction".

Testimonials: Hi Laura,

Scenery is absolutely spectacular. Accommodations are sometimes just OK, food isn`t always great, but I came for the natural beauty, and in that respect, it doesn`t dissapoint. Everywhere you look it`s another beautiful mountain, forest, river, stream, lake, farm. Words and pictures can`t describe how beautiful it is. Therefore, in this respect, the destination met my expectations.

Hertz: Great. I got a Toyota 4Runner, and........ David L, USA

Read More »