This post provides a high-level overview of our four weeks visiting multiple national parks/reserves in Patagonia and the high Atacama desert in January/February 2026.
Category: Chile
Atacama Desert
We crammed a lot into our 4 full days based out of San Pedro de Atacama. Activities included a hot air balloon ride, visiti8ng a geyser field, photography, a short hike and a reunion with friends we made on our Antarctica cruise back in 2023.
Torres del Paine National Park
Excluding travel days, we allocated four full days for exploring parts of Torres del Paine. During that time, weather and other variables cooperated such that we experienced two of the three "must do" activities that we identified during out trip planning. Unfortunately, a multiplicity of factors meant we ended up missing out on the French Valley hike. Instead, we did a couple of half day hikes and went exploring for fossils. Keep reading for more on all of our Torres del Paine adventures, including making new friends from home when we were all far from home.
Parque Nacional Patagonia
We spent a couple of days at the extreme southern edges of Patagonia before expedition cruising to Antarctica back in 2023. At the time, we resolved to return "some day" for a more extensive experience. Early 2026 we flew to the Chilean side of Patagonia, where we started our three-week, lodge-based more in-depth exploration. After …