Peru’s southern neighbour is a long, thin country wedged between the Andes and the Pacific and stretching from the world’s driest desert to the fjords and wind-blown plains of Patagonia at the southern tip of South America. A line of more than 2000 volcanoes marks Chile’s border with Bolivia and Argentina, and some 20% of the nation’s surface area enjoys national park status. 

In the north, the seemingly barren Atacama Desert is known to burst into flower every seven years or so when the El Niño phenomenon brings rain.

The area around the capital Santiago – with its cultured population and excellent nightlife - produces many of South America’s best wines, and lies close to both Pacific beaches and Andean ski resorts.

The Lake District to the south is a trekker’s paradise in the summer and a region of picture postcard beauty in the winter months.  Beyond the lakes, the Austral Highway cuts through great forests and towering peaks before ending in the wild expanses of Chilean Patagonia, where travel is only possible by air or sea.