Chile April 2026: Atacama Desert, Patagonia, and the Lake District

My 11 Day Chile Itinerary which includes the Atacama Desert, Patagonia, and the Lake District.

Day 1: Arrived in Santiago, took a domestic flight to Calama, then drove two hours to San Pedro de Atacama.

Day 2: Went to Laguna Cejar to go swimming, visited Laguna Tebinquinche and saw flamingos, drove through Valle de la Luna, then ended the day with a stargazing tour.

Day 3: Drove 2 hours to Piedras Rojas and laguna miscanti y miñiques.

Day 4: Did an early morning tour of El Tatio Geysers then caught a red eye to Punta Arenas.

Day 5: Drove from Punta Arenas to Puerto Natales and walked around town.

Day 6: Drove through Torres del Paine and did the Mirador Cuernos hike which is around 4 miles. Stayed the night in Torres del Paine.

Day 7: Hiked Mirador Base Torres, it was a long day.

Day 8: The weather was bad in Torres del Paine so I went back to Puerto Natales and spent the rest of the day and night there.

Day 9: Drove to Punta Arenas and took a flight to Puerto Montt, then drove to Puerto Varas. Spent the rest of the day checking out the town.

Day 10: Visited Petrohué falls and Osorno Volcano. Unfortunately the weather was bad on the volcano so it was short lived.

Day 11: visited a nice park then took a flight to Santiago in the afternoon and flew back home!

Images 1-5: Patagonia

Images 6-10: Atacama Desert

Images 11-15: Lake District (Puerto Varas)