Many people avoid taking their vacations in the summer, because of the heat and the vast number of people gathered at every resort. However, if you’re planning your holidays between December and March, this is the ideal time to travel to Southern Chile. Why?
When scientists such as Charles Darwin traveled across the channels, fjords, and valleys of Chile, in the early 19th century, they came across a rich variety of flora and fauna that was the backbone employed to study the evolution of the species.
Southern Chile is rich in forests, pastures, rivers, islands, and fjords which are hard to access in fall or winter. Summertime is ideal for anyone interested in hiking to venture into volcanoes, mountains, waterfalls or ferry rides to enjoy the local wildlife in remote corners than in any other season would be hard to reach, such as the Carretera Austral between Puerto Montt and Coyhaique.
The Pacific Ocean is not only cold but quite treacherous, especially in winter. On the other hand, those who look for beaches in Chile tend to focus in the central part of the country rather than venturing to the south.
However, the coastal and lakeside towns of southern Chile, such as Constitución and Mehuín, are beautiful jewels sometimes hidden from the more conventional summer traveler. Some of the beaches of the lake district, near Calafquén or Caburgua, are ideal spots to engage in water sports, and close enough to thermal resorts that are rich in minerals.
Puerto Montt is the gateway to Chilean Patagonia. In the summer, a range of ferry operators that generally serve freight and the local population engaged in exciting tours across the channels, islands, and fjords of southern Chile, from the island of Chiloe down to isolated areas such as Puerto Chacabuco or Caleta Tortel.
You can drink 30-year-old whiskey with 1000-year-old ice, watch a variety of seagulls, birds, whales and remote shipwrecks during the trip, and enjoy the wildlife of the Chilean Patagonia at its best.
An essential perk of southern Chile in the summertime is that locals prepare all year round to dress down to their nines and celebrate a variety of traditional festivities, combining local food and drinks, folk music and fireworks in cities such as Valdivia and Puerto Montt.
This variety of events are performed during the summer precisely to attract visitors from across the world and showcase Chilean traditions, with the combination of local spices and cooking styles, Spanish Catholic festivities, German pastries and a wide range of seafood.
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