Chile's lakes and mountains

11 days from £1,921

A budget break in Chile. Combine time in the picturesque lake district of Chile with a few days exploring the elemental scenery of glaciers and icy peaks in Patagonia: it's just north of Antarctica, but accessible to you and your bank balance.

Suggested holiday itinerary (flexible)

Day 1: Your hotel in Santiago is the Torremayor, in the ritzy Providencia district of the  Chilean capital.

Day 2: Half-day tour of the colonial heart of the city, including the Government Palace, and the park at San Cristobal Hill, with distant Andean views. .

Days 3-5: Fly to Punta Arenas, on the southernmost tip of Chilean Patagonia and continue by scenic road - via a stop at the cave of the Milodon (prehistoric giant sloth) - to Torres del Paine National Park. This is one of the most staggeringly beautiful protected areas on the continent, if not in the world, with towering, jagged mountain peaks sliced through by blue-tinged glaciers, iceberg-dotted turquoise lakes, wind-bent trees speckled over grasslands grazed by guanacos and prowled by fox and puma. You might even spot a condor here off season.

You will stay full-board in at the Eco Camp, with warm and cosy, fully-furnished en-suite domed tents right in the heart of the Park, in contact with nature (gaze at the stars through the ceiling window) but insulated from the vagaries of the weather. Over 2 days there are gentle guided hikes, boat rides, trips to waterfalls and gem-clear lagoons and glaciers, culminating in a well-deserved Patagonian lamb barbeque.

Days 6-8: Return by road to Punta Arenas Airport and fly to Puerto Montt in Chile's verdant Lake District. The popular lakeshore resort of Puerto Varas is your base for the next 2 days. During fine weather, you'll be treated to a spectacular views of snow-capped Osorno Volcano. Excursions are included to the picturesque settlement of Frutillar and by boat across Lake Todos los Santos to the remote hamlet of Peulla, near the border with Argentina. You'll stay at the small and friendly Aura hotel. Breakfast included.

Day 9: Continue by air to Santiago for 2 nights.

Day 10: Visit a winery in the Maipo Valley and sample the magnificent New World wines.

Day 11: Transfer to airport.