Complete 12 days circuit visiting attractions such as Santiago, Concha y Toro and Santa Rita vineyards, Easter island and Chile Lakes district, where we’ll begin the wonderful lakes crossing through the Andes Mountains range until Bariloche, Argentina.
Itinerary
Day 01: Santiago City Tour
Reception at Santiago airport. Transfer to choosen hotel
City tour in Santiago visiting the main tourist attractions, such as, old district, Club Hipico, San Francisco church built between 1572 and 1618. Government Palace, Main square, Central Post office, Santa Lucia Hill founded in 1541, majesticly located in the center of the city. The trip follows until San Cristobal Hill where a panoramic view of Santiago city is appreciated. Finally we will visit the most modern district in the city. Come back to hotel. Lodging
Day 02: Full day Tour Concha y Toro and Santa Rita Vineyard
Concha y Toro
This tour start from your hotel in Santiago towards Maipo valley, located 45 minutes south of the city. The visit begins in Don Melchor plaza where the guests will be received sincerely by a bilingual guide, whom will invite you to enjoy a panoramic visit of the vineyard, accompanied by a white wine cup of “Casillero del Diablo”, so that you can be full of aromas and flavors that arise step by step in this centennial warehouse. With the cup in hand, the visitor participates in a long walk by the old park, when appreciating the large house of Pirque, residence of Concha y Toro family. In this place the greatest wine company was been born more than 100 years ago. In the vineyards of Pirque you will be able to know the grapevines development, cultural and technological handling that is responsible for a yield of first quality. Once in the warehouse we’ll be able to taste an excellent merlot stock wine, “Casillero del Diablo”, while the guide showed and explain the methodology and materials used in the production of the wine. In order to know the old facilities and to be witness of the legend, Concha y Toro Vine offer a cup of Cabernet Sauvignon “ Casillero del Diablo” the wine that made famous the Chilean wine.
Santa Rita Vineyard
Afterwards we’ll continue our trip towards Santa Rita vineyard, where we’ll be able to visit its warehouses and taste its best wines.
Vina Santa Rita?s wine cellar, was founded in 1880 by Domingo Fernandez Concha. For its construction, they brought french tecnology. In this wine cellar french and american oak were used, here the wine take the complex and the body with a taste of wood and a smooth and delicate smell. The park is permanently being maintained and cared for by 15 gardeners. Santa Rita's fertile lands rightly rank among the company's most valuable assets. Carefully selected, Santa Rita's vineyards are located in the best Chilean wine growing lands with the aim to achieve the best quality wine that Chile can produce.
We’ll have the opportunity to lunch in the famous restaurant “Dona Paula”, currently a national monument was named after Paula Jaraquemada, owner of hacienda Santa Rita's manor house over 200 years ago. At that time, a number of historical events related to the independence of Chile took place here. Bernardo O'Higgins, the general who achieved independence for Chile, and 120 soldiers took shelter here after fighting the Spanish crown forces. Santa Rita's most famous range of products is called "120" in homage to these patriots.
Come back to hotel in Santiago. Lodging.
Day 03: Santiago – Easter island
Transfer to airport. Flight to Easter island.
Reception at Mataveri airport and transfer to Hotel.
Half day tour. We initiate the tour about 15:00 hrs. from Hanga Roa's settlement visiting Ahu Vinapu. It was used for the islanders in the year 1.200 A.C. it includes 3 Ahu. The first has 6 moais demolished and painted of red color. The second one has a supposedly feminine moai which had two heads. Finally, the third and the most ancient moai has only removed stones. We will continue our way to the quarry Puna Pau, archaeological site to the east of Hanga Roa. It is a small crater of red dross, from where were obtained the Pukao or hats with which were crowned the moais. Along its antique exit way, there are some incomplete and abandoned moais. We will go on our tour towards Ahu Akivi, the first Ahu restored by the science in the island in the year 1960. The platform with 7 moais is characterized for being one of the few ones located in the center of the island, with its statues facing the rising sun. According the legend, these 7 moais would represent 7 exploratory young men sent before Hotu Matua'a's arrival to investigate the island. Our adventure takes to us to the cavern of Te Pahu, a place used as housing and as temporary refuge in war times. Then, we will return to Hanga Roa, total duration 3,5 hours.
Day 04: Easter island
Full day excursion, departing from Hanga Roa's town at about 9:30 am, going to the southeast and northeast coast of the Island visiting the Ahu Vaihu temple, which is located 10 km from Hanga Roa. It consists of a stone platform with 8 Moais and 8 pukao dispersed in the proximities. Then, we will go to Ahu Akahanga, the also called as the "platform of the king". The legend tells that Hotu Matua'a's tomb is near this place. There, we will find 4 platforms, 12 Moais, 8 Pukao and towards the interior of this Ahu; it is possible to see the best preserved village of the island.
Later, we will go to Ahu Tongariki, with 15 moais being the biggest Ahu of the island. Then, we will meet Ahu Te Pito Kura, which possesses the highest statue of the island raised in an Ahu, the moai Paro (10 meters of height and 85 tons with a Pukao of 11,5 tons). Close to this ceremonial temple is the great spherical stone that is identified as the center of the universe (Te Pito o Te Henua), as the legend tells, it was brought to the island by Hotu Matua'a in his craft.
Later, we will arrive to Ahu Nau Nau, temple of a complex construction due to its different levels where we will find 5 Moais with Pukao. There, we will see petroglyphs in the backs of the statues. We will continue our excursion to the volcano and quarry Rano Raraku, where there was carved most of the moais of the island using the volcanic rock of its hillsides. There are an estimated number of 400 moais in several stages of carved.
To finish our adventure, we will go to Anakena's wonderful beach. It is a beach of white sands chosen for the arrival of the Ariki Hotu Matua'a and his sister Avareipua. Anakena corresponds to the name of a small cave of an adjacent gully.
Returning to Hanga Roa, we will realize our last stop in the Fundo Vaitea, country estate with an extension of 6.560,80 hectares, which represents 39,6% of the total surface of the island and it was created to achieve an agricultural production capable of sustaining the needs of the whole island, which was achieved years behind.
Return to the populated Hanga Roa, total duration 8 hours.
Day 05: Easter island
We will begin our tour at about 8:30 am from Hanga Roa to Tahai's Archaeological Complex, ceremonial center with 3 Ahu, Ahu Vai Uri with 5 moais, Ahu Tahai with 1 moai, and Ahu Lo Te Riku with 1 moai. From this site the visitors can appreciate wonderful landscapes. Then, we will go to Orongo's ceremonial city, ancient ceremonial city located in the west summit of the volcano Rano Kau. It is composed by approximately 53 houses of elliptical shape with flagstone walls and a small square access looking at the sea. In this place were realized the most important ceremony of the second period of the island, the Tangata Manu (“the bird man”). It was carried out until approximately 150 years ago, with the arrival of the first Christian missionaries. Return to Hanga Roa, total duration 3,5 hours.
Day 06: Easter island
Transfer from Hotel to Mataveri airport. Flight to Santiago. Lodging.
Day 07: Easter island - Puerto Montt / Puerto Varas
Transfer to Santiago airport. Flight to Puerto Montt. Arrival to El Tepual airport in Puerto Montt, reception and transfer to hotel in Puerto Varas. Rest of the day free. Lodging.
Day 08: Puerto Varas
Breakfast in the hotel. Half day visit to Puerto Varas and Puerto Montt cities.
This cities are characterized for its german influence, those who arrived to the zone. Main attractives of both cities are visited: The handicraft fair and the Angelmo creek in Puerto Montt. Puerto Varas is located 20 km. from Puerto Montt, in the border of Llanquihue lake with a wonderful view of the Osorno Volcano.
By the afternoon, excursion to the beautiful city of Frutillar located in the opposite border of Llanquihue lake, including german tea break.
Day 09: Puerto Varas / Peulla
Breakfast in the hotel. At the according hour, you'll be taken off from the hotel for a wonderful adventure tour, combined by bus and ship as far as Peulla. The trasfer is by bus down to Petrohue, in this place you'll board a ship. This ship travels through the turquoise water of Todos los Santos lake up to Peulla, a shantytown located near to the Argentina frontier. Arrive to Hotel in Peulla. Lodging and dinner.
Day 10: Peulla / Bariloche
Breakfast in the hotel. At the according time, continuing the Andean Lakes Crossing as far as the Bariloche city travel through the Blest Port and Panuelos Port. Arrive to Bariloche, transfer to Hotel, lodging.
Day 11: Bariloche
Breakfast in the hotel, the travel begins from Bariloche bordering the Nahuelhuapi Lake. A few minutes of travel later, we find the Bonita beach from where you can see the Huemul Island. After we'll arrive to the Campanario Hill. Here is a chairlift to the summit, where you can see one of the most wonderful and fascinating views of this region. After that, return to Hotel, lodging.
Day 12: Bariloche
Transfer to airport in Bariloche.
End of services.