Thank you Ikon pass for leading us here! The road up to the resort was an incredibly winding road…read morefor almost an hour. Hiring a driver familiar with this drive is a must. Once arriving, the small resort area with wide terrain (no trees), was very enjoyable. During our few days stay, the highest we could get on the mountain was via Andes Express. This was around half way to the top looking at the map. The runs were well maintained and the mountain was easy to navigate. This resort is a great way to enjoy the Andes Mountains. Mastercard gets 25% discount on rentals, food, etc so come with this card. We dined at a couple restaurants and although didn't think the buffet was all that good, the restaurant with a more chill vibe, almost sports bar like had wonderful food and service. Not the best snow coverage to start our stay, but decent conditions. Ended with almost being snowed in.

This was our first visit and we had a great time. The mountain and the snow were incredible. You…read morecannot go here with a North American ski resort mentality. The chairs are extremely slow and the on-mountain service is basically nonexistent. We stayed at hotel Puerto del Sol and it is fine. It is extremely overpriced for the quality of the rooms. The whole place is like being on a cruise the whole time . You have to wear a wristband while you're there and the food is mediocre at best. With all that being said... Would I go back? Yes! The Andies are beautiful and the skiing is great and that's why you're there.

We did the Valparaiso and winery tour. Our group was small (6) and they picked us up right from…read moreour hotel. Even though the cost was over double compared to other outfits, the small group size and personal attention we got made the cost well worth it. We got so much more information about the city, it's history and saw way more of the city than from a tour from one of the big tour guide company's a few earlier. Highly recommend EcoChile to anyone looking to take a guided tour around Chile.

Our stay up in the Andes was incredible and much of it was thanks to the perfect stay at La…read moreCornisa. To get to the hotel, you have to travel about an hour outside of Santiago up to Farellones, a small village and ski resort that sits about 40 km from the city. If you're specifically going to Chile to enjoy the mountains for skiing or snowboarding, I recommending staying up here vs. trekking up from Santiago every day. We arrived at midnight and paid around $110 USD for a transfer (coordinated by the hotel) and showed up at the hotel about and hour and a half later. Claudio, our driver, was really excellent and stopped at an ATM for us to grab cash and later passed us by a 24 hour McDonald's for some much needed fries. Once morning broke, the beauty of area is something breath-taking. The hotel sits on the side of the mountain so the views are of snow-covered mountains. The sunsets we laid witness to (from the dining area or the outdoor jacuzzi) were rich and deep with a variety of orange hues. It's like nothing I'd ever seen before. While expensive, La Cornisa is definitely among the top tier in the Farellones area - I don't know that you'll find a more chicly rustic option. On the plus side, we never felt like the money spent wasn't worth it. The staff was really great in making us feel at home and the breakfast and dinner was included in the nightly fee. What's more, it's easy to make friends and we quickly hit it off with 2 other pairs staying at the hotel - every day after coming back around 5pm from the mountain, we'd enjoy happy hour (small platter and free wine) from the outdoor jacuzzi until dinner hit at 7pm. Then, we'd order bottle after bottle of Chilean wine. For those looking to venture out, there's a small area with bars and restaurants. We'd end up completely spent after a day on the mountain followed by nights with our new friends, so we never felt the need to leave the hotel once we arrived. Nevertheless, it's there for those wanting to stay out late. The only downside was the $80 USD we had to pay for transport to Valle Nevado (they offer complimentary rides to La Parva and El Cororado). I'd quickly stay here again.

We rode bikes with this company with Adrine and Carmila as our guides. They were so good at taking…read morecare of us and sharing their knowledge of the city. I highly recommend them

Every first Tuesday of the month I head over to Bicicleta Verde with a group of friends to pick up…read morea bike and ride around and discover the city -- for free! Why the first Tuesday of every month? La Bicicleta Verde supports Critical Mass, the international bikers rights movement, giving both locals and tourists the opportunity to use their bicycles to join the city's cycling activists. This is by far one of the most fun (and free) activities you can do while in Santiago. After you pick up your bike (in exchange of an ID and phone number) you will go to Plaza Italia where you will meet up with hundreds of local cyclists (including baby ciclists as well as dogs! ) there will be a short speech from a representative of Furiosos Ciclistas to get you pumped up and explain the route (the route changes every month) and then you are off! Bikers join along the way, accumulating up to a couple thousand cyclists by the end. During the 1 hour journey throughout Santiago, you will sing, ring your bike bells loud, in unison, while running red lights and in general, disobeying common traffic laws. Thousands of singing cyclists not obeying traffic laws, you say? Don't worry, this outing is VERY safe and the group has a police escort at all times. Just remember to bring a bike light, ask for a helmet from the Bicicleta Verde crew and get ready for a fun night! To warm up, start practicing your Chilean "gritos" now. To get you started, here is one of the chants: "Somos caleta, andamos en bicicleta" Important: If you are feeling like you might be lost at anytime, look out for the green Bicicleta Verde bicycles (they stand out) and you know you are in good company. Also, make sure to stay in a group, as you don't want to speedily crossing a red light by yourself. As you finish, meet up with the Biciverde crew and head back to their office together.

This hop on hop off bus was located very close to the Marriott hotel so it was very easy to buy a…read moreticket and get on board. The staff was super friendly and went out of their way to answer any and all questions. FYI, most tourist attractions are closed on Monday, you might be better served to plan something else than going to museums, and riding the gondola on a Monday. The buses were clean, the recording that you listen to, comes in a variety of languages and is extremely boring and useless. I've been on various bus tours in other cities with a live tour guides and it makes a world of difference, imho. We flew into town at 7:30 am and needed something to do until the hotel room was ready. Why not get the lay of the land, relatively cheaply with a hop on hop off bus tour, it drops you off at the most popular tourist spots. The overall length of bus tour without getting off is about 2 1/2 hours depending on traffic. Public Banos are few and far between, so take advantage when around one :-). Overall I give it 3.5 stars, but round it up to 4 because all 5 of the employees I interacted with, did an excellent job.

This is Santiago's hop-on-hop-off bus. Route has 13 stops from the North-east part of town at the…read moreParque Arauco to the western edge of the Centro district at Plaza de la Constitution. The entire loop takes about 2 hours if you dont get off. Frequency of busses is about 30 minutes. Cost $22,000 (US$33 at time of writing) for one day or $30,000 (US$45) for two day pass. Operating hours are 930AM to 6PM. For some reason I cannot find any maps on the website so I am attaching a picture of the paper map that they give out. Stops: 1. Parque Arauco Mall (very nice upscale mall with lots of restaurants even American chain restaurants like PF Changs and other high end shops) 2. Sheraton Hotel 3. Patio Bellavista (nice place to hang out for drinks and food) 4. Bellavista/Funicular (stop for funicular to the statue of the Virgin atop Cerro San Cristobal) 5. Museo Nacional de bella artes 6. Plaza de Armas (Caterdral Metropolitana, Correo Central, Palacio de la Real Audiencia, Paseo Ahumada and Huerfanos, Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino, Ex Congreso Nacional), 7. Plaza de la Constitutcion (Palacio de la Moneda) 8. Paseo Bulnes 9. Santa Lucia (Cerro Santa Lucia) 10. Providenia 11. El Golf (hip area with embassies, 5-star hotesl, restaurants) 12. Isidora Goyenechea 13. Costanera Center (Sky mall)

We booked two nights during July (winter) to ski. The accommodations were fine (we're not picky)…read more More like a hostel than a hotel. The rooms facing the road have an amazing view; rooms at the back (where we were) had high windows with a view of rocks! The room and bathroom were clean (beds a little stiff and I like a firm mattress - this was more like supported cardboard). Our room was a bunk bed and a twin. Good towels, closet, and hooks. Our price included breakfast and dinner. We enjoyed the pollo al horno (baked chicken) and French fries and the tilapia and rice. The staff is friendly and accommodating. They were lovely! We stopped by the town's information/tourist center and met Marta - she's amazing! Her English was very good and she was so helpful with information and even gave us rides to Valle Nevado for two days of skiing. Then she drive us back to Santiago! Thanks, Marta! Overall, an excellent stay! If you go give the hotel dog a scratch for me! And say hi to Marta!

Lovely place. Open year round which is how we got to enjoy it in December…read more The parking was enough for us, there was street parking. We walked up to the hotel/restaurant. The service was good and the bathrooms were clean. We sat facing the extremely large windows, I think all the seats could look out at the mountain range. Everyone was seated in the windows. We ate a meal of tots, veggies, and beef that was amazing. Again very homecooked food that was authentic and delicious. The service was attentive but not overbearing. The air is a bit thinner up here too, keep that in mind.

Taking this tour with guide Borris and driver Ariel, was the perfect introduction to this amazing…read morecountry. My husband and I got off the plane at 9am, dropped our stuff off at the hotel, and began the tour at 12. The plan was to do anything and everything to stay awake until it was bed time in order to lessen the onset of jet lag. We were in for a real treat and were enthralled with the things we saw on the tour through Santiago. With stops at Santa Lucia Hill, the Bella Vista District, and Santiago's bustling city center, we didn't have time to think about being sleepy. The next day we had Ariel as our driver again (very happy about that) and our guide was now Estéban. He is incredibly knowledgeable about the many different goings on in this country, but was most passionate about nature, respecting the land and the people who made it so. Best part of the trip was standing atop a silent mountain and watching the incredible condors gliding in between the peaks. Mesmerizing. Loved both days we spent with Servitour guides Ariel, Borris, and Estéban. I'm looking forward to returning to Chile and having them take us on other adventures.

I always check out the "free walking tours" when I travel because they're always full of great…read moreinformation and local tips. This tour didn't disappoint and I was overjoyed that they had two separate groups, one in English and one in Spanish. Our tour guide, Alonzo was amazing. He seemed very passionate about the history of his country while keeping the group engaged and entertained. He explained some of the cultural things we would see during our travels such as lots of public displays of affection especially in parks or the cafes with legs. I enjoyed the variety of neighborhoods and attractions we visited. The informative history and treatment of Chileans. He strongly recommended visiting the Museum of memory and human rights which I did and it was very eye opening. I loved that we took the subway and I was able to see how the underground transportation worked. I used the trains throughout my travels in Santiago which was very user-friendly. Our tour ended at a local bar where we had a small taste of local wine. Our guide hung around for a few minutes and answered questions. You always meet fellow travelers from all over the world including your home area. I always "tip" the suggested amount or more because their service is always worth that and more! If you're in that Santiago area, definitely check out their morning and/or afternoon tours. You won't be disappointed.

Both companies do an excellent job on these "Free Tours."…read more It is easy to tell them apart.....this company wears striped shirts, and their main competition ("Free Walking Tour") wears red shirts. We ended up using "Free Walking Tour Santiago" (red shirts) but would have gladly used this company also. Several times, we crossed paths and noticed they follow the same itinerary and both companies use guides with excellent English skills.