Virtual site visit: see every place before you bring a group

Can’t fly down for a pre-site visit? This virtual site visit walks you through the places a program in central Chile uses: what each one looks like, how far it is from the home base, how safety works there and what happens if conditions change.

  • 7 places
  • Home base: Providencia, Santiago
  • Photos and video from our days in Chile
The route

One home base, day trips in every direction.

The group sleeps in the same place all week. Each morning a private van heads out; each evening it brings everyone home. Times are approximate driving times from Providencia without heavy traffic.

  1. 01The home baseProvidencia, Santiago
  2. 02Into the AndesYerba Loca Nature Sanctuary · Andes
  3. 03The port cityValparaíso · Pacific coast
  4. 04The Maipo ValleyPirque · Cajón del Maipo
  5. 05The Pacific coastCachagua · Zapallar · Las Cujas
  6. 06Dunes and beach on horsebackRitoque · Pacific coast
  7. 07San Cristóbal HillSantiago
A group sharing lunch at a long table in Mercado Urbano Tobalaba, Santiago
Tour Lab team members under the hanging lanterns of Mercado Urbano Tobalaba
01

Providencia, Santiago

The home base

A central, walkable neighborhood with cafés, parks and the Metro, close to Mercado Urbano Tobalaba (MUT), where the first lunch usually happens.

Getting there
Where the group sleeps; every day trip starts and ends here.
Safety on site
Day-one orientation: meeting points, where to keep phones, how to behave in crowded places and earthquake basics. Private transport leaves from the hotel door every day.
If conditions change
Before each departure we check local news and conditions and adjust routes or timing around demonstrations or traffic.
Good to know
Accommodation is booked by your institution; we recommend options and coordinate everything around it.
Riders in helmets crossing a dry Andean meadow in Yerba Loca
Students in helmets listening to a safety briefing before the ride
A student group at a riverside lunch in the Andes
02

Yerba Loca Nature Sanctuary · Andes

Into the Andes

A protected Andean valley close to the capital: meadows, streams and the high peaks, ridden on horseback with local arrieros. Lunch by the river; on clear nights, the southern sky.

Getting there
About 1 h 30 min by private van, the last stretch on a mountain road.
Safety on site
A safety briefing and a helmet for every rider; an introduction to the horses and basic riding instruction, so first-time riders are welcome. No fires in the sanctuary — meals are cooked on portable gas equipment.
If conditions change
Rides are adjusted or rescheduled for weather. What we see at night depends on clouds and moonlight; we never promise specific stars.
Good to know
It gets cold after sunset in the mountains: warm layers, closed shoes, sunscreen and water.
Students in life jackets on a boat in the Bay of Valparaíso
Students climbing a painted stairway in Valparaíso
A guide talking to a student group in a Valparaíso street
03

Valparaíso · Pacific coast

The port city

The bay from the water, then the historic hills on foot: stairways, viewpoints, architecture and street art in a UNESCO World Heritage port. Lunch by the ocean and an artisan market.

Getting there
About 1 h 30 min by private van.
Safety on site
Life jackets on board. In the city the group moves together with our guides, on a route planned in advance.
If conditions change
The boat ride depends on harbor conditions; if it can’t run, the day continues on land.
Good to know
Expect stairs and steep streets: comfortable shoes. Market purchases are personal and optional.
The 19th-century timber winery frame at the Concha y Toro Wine Center in Pirque
A visitor at a round interactive table under a sculpture of colored panels in the Wine Center museum
A visitor smelling an aroma station at the Wine Center
04

Pirque · Cajón del Maipo

The Maipo Valley

Mountains, countryside and the Concha y Toro Wine Center, a sensory museum on one of Chile’s best-known agricultural industries — geology, farming and a historic house and park.

Getting there
Pirque is about 1 hour by private van; Las Melosas lies further up the Cajón del Maipo.
Safety on site
An educational visit with no wine tasting: academic programs are alcohol-free unless your institution says otherwise.
If conditions change
In winter, roads high in the Cajón del Maipo can close for snow; we confirm conditions before the day.
Good to know
Lunch is a shared countryside table; dietary needs are arranged in advance.
Humboldt penguins on the rocks of Isla Cachagua
Students in life jackets on a boat
A snorkeling safety briefing on the beach, students in wetsuits
A guide talking to students at the entrance of Parque El Boldo
Video: the penguin colony, seen from the boat
05

Cachagua · Zapallar · Las Cujas

The Pacific coast

A boat ride around Isla Cachagua, a protected natural monument with a colony of Humboldt penguins; a guided walk in the fog-fed forest of Parque El Boldo; snorkeling at Playa Las Cujas.

Getting there
About 2 hours by private van.
Safety on site
Life jackets on the boat; no landing on the island. For snorkeling: wetsuits and equipment, a safety briefing and supervised time in the water.
If conditions change
Sea conditions are checked before the day. In 2026 we moved the boat ride a day for safety — read what happened.
Good to know
The Pacific here is cold — the Humboldt Current — so wetsuits are provided. Wildlife is usually seen, never guaranteed.
Riders in helmets crossing the Ritoque dunes in the late afternoon light
Riders in helmets on the pine-forest trail at Ritoque
Video: from the saddle, along the dunes
06

Ritoque · Pacific coast

Dunes and beach on horseback

A ride through coastal forest, wetland and sand dunes that opens onto a long Pacific beach at sunset, followed by a Chilean BBQ in the dunes.

Getting there
About 1 h 30 min by private van.
Safety on site
Helmets for every rider, a briefing and experienced local arrieros; first-time riders are welcome.
If conditions change
Timing follows the sunset and the weather; strong wind or rain can shorten or move the ride.
Good to know
Rider weight limit: 100 kg (220 lb). Bring a windbreaker — the coast cools quickly after sunset.
Student group at the top of San Cristóbal Hill
Tasting mote con huesillo, Chile’s summer drink
07

Santiago

San Cristóbal Hill

One of Santiago’s best viewpoints: the whole basin, the wall of the Andes and how the city grew — then mote con huesillo, Chile’s summer drink.

Getting there
About 15 minutes from Providencia.
Safety on site
The group stays together with our team; summer sun is strong, so water and sunscreen.
If conditions change
The last day is planned backward from the confirmed flight, with buffer time.
Good to know
Time at the hotel to shower and pack before the private transfer to the airport.
For your approval process

What your committee will ask for.

We agree the program documentation with you during the discovery call. It usually covers:

  • Day-by-day itinerary with indicative times
  • Inclusions and exclusions
  • Safety notes for each activity
  • Plan B for every nature-based day
  • Supplier list, on request
  • Emergency contacts in Chile

Our guides are registered with SERNATUR, Chile’s national tourism service, and our transport carries per-passenger insurance. Emergency numbers in Chile: 131 ambulance · 132 fire department · 133 police.

Prefer to see it live?

Book a video call with Macarena, our founder: we walk through any day in detail and answer the questions your department or risk office will ask.

Book a video walkthrough or write to us →
Next step

Make the week yours.

These are the places of our sample program. Your course decides which ones you use, in what order and for how long.

Get the sample program Read the Florida Southern College case study →