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Skiing and Snowboarding

Chile's central and southern regions are home to a wide variety of ski centers which receive thousands of visitors each season (between June and October). You can go skiing or snowboarding for the day at one of the ski centers just outside Santiago or spend a few days at an all-inclusive hotel further south.

If you're looking for the best slopes in South America and Chile's best-loved ski centers, simply travel 40 km east of Santiago and head into the Andes. Farellones, El Colorado, La Parva and Valle Nevado all feature hotels, restaurants, equipment rental services and runs for everyone from beginners to experts seeking "off-run" skiing.

Farellones features four lifts, a ski and snowboarding school, lodges, restaurants and a hotel while El Colorado is known for the steepness of its 22 runs. From the heights of La Parva, you can take in an immense panoramic view of the Santiago Valley. And last but not least, Valle Nevado is considered the biggest and most modern winter sports center in Latin America.

On the road that takes you through the Andes to Argentina, just 164 km northeast of Santiago, you'll find Portillo, the Southern Cone's most traditional ski center. Perched 2,850 meters above sea level, it has served as a training site for Olympic skiers from Europe and North America.

Further north, the local classic Nevados de Chillán boasts 28 ski runs, nine lifts, hotels and natural hot springs.

Not everyone can say they've skied down a volcano, but in Chile, anything is possible. In Pucón, you can ski on the Villarrica Volcano and the Llaima Volcano at the Las Araucarias Ski Center. As its name suggests, it is surrounded by thousand-year-old trees. At Puyehue National Park, you'll find the Antillanca Ski Center on the slopes of the Casablanca Volcano, which offers beautiful views and runs lined with native forests.

In Punta Arenas, you have the chance to experience something unique: skiing while looking out onto the Strait of Magellan and, on a clear day, Tierra del Fuego. And Villa Las Estrellas offers more extreme adventure-seekers the opportunity to ski on ice platforms in the Antarctic.

A number of Chilean ski centers also offer off-run skiing, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and heli-skiing.

Featured Destinations

Ski Resorts		Chillán and Concepción
Pucón, Villarrica and Temuco		Valdivia and Osorno
Puerto Varas and Puerto Montt