Posts labeled with Country ' Chile'
- Tags:
- LAN, Portillo
- Posted in:
- Chile
Portillo is soon to wind down the Winter 2010 Season. Arctic Tropic’s recent trip there, 3 weeks ago, was nothing short of amazing!
LAN 501 from MIA to SCL was a comfortable 8-hour flight. After exiting customs, a driver from Portillo met us and took our luggage. Two hours later, after a 10,000 foot climb up the Andes, we arrived at the Hotel Portillo. One hour later, we were on the slopes.
Portillo is almost like a private resort. The hotel usually has about 400 guests. Since there is no other accommodation in the area it seems there are never more than 200 or 300 people on the entire mountain at any given time. On weekends, perhaps 100 more skiers arrive from Santiago for the day. The longest line we ever encountered was a group of 5 people. It is very common to be able to ski or snowboard down the mountains by oneself.
Juncalillo Run – 10 AM.
Va I Venti lifts are unique to Portillo and get expert skiers up the mountain in minutes.
Skiing down El Plateau.
Lunch at Tio’s Bob’s !
ArcticTropic was part of a press group and we had the opportunity to sit down with the owner, Henry Purcell at teatime one day. The Purcell family, originally from the United States, has owned the hotel and resort for over 50 years. A very interesting history can be read
HERE.
Après – ski is relaxing and very social. First, a bone –warming soak in the outdoor pools and hot tubs heated to 38 C.
Dinner, like all meals, is included in the one-week package, along with accommodation and lift tickets. There is no need to carry cash. One simply gives their room number if asked, or signs for extras, such as drinks.
Many of the staff have worked at Portillo for 20 to 30 years and greet their guests by name when they return each season.
After dinner a lively crowd gathers at the bar, with different bands every night. For the late night crowd, there is a disco that opens at Midnight. Roaring fireplaces keep all the public rooms warm.
At night the hotel almost has the feeling of a ship, -far away from civilization under the bright cold Andean sky full of the Southern Stars.
ArcticTropic will have regular updates from Portillo during the off-season and lots of news before next season’s opening in June ,2011. Updates are always available on the
Portillo Website.
- Tags:
- Fish Market
- Posted in:
- Chile
On the morning of Saturday,September 11th, ArcticTropic visited a fish market in Santiago. The icy cold South Pacific Ocean , fed by the Humboldt Current flowing north from Antarctica, is home to the world’s most abundant fisheries.
Uni – Sea Urchin – eaten raw, right out of the spiny pouch.
Oyster clam with ebi – raw shrimp ! We enjoyed an incredible feast of clams, oysters and other raw delicacies for about $ 8. The same assortment in the US would have been $100.
- Tags:
- Andes
- Posted in:
- Argentina, Chile
On Friday, September 10th, ArcticTropic travelled back across the Andes, from Mendoza to Santiago, this time in just 45 minutes ! The highlight of the flight is a view of Cerro Aconcagua 6,962 m (22,841 ft), the world’s highest mountain outside of the Himalayas.
LAN has 3 daily flights to and from SCL to MDZ. Santiago – gateway to skiing at Portillo, and Mendoza, gateway to the Mendoza and San Juan wine regions.
- Tags:
- Portillo
- Posted in:
- Chile
On the last run of the day, one of ArcticTropic‘s skilled videographers shot this excellent downhill footage while skiing.
The Chilean Flag waves proudly over the Andes.
FOR ADVENTURES IN CHILE, CLICK HERE
- Tags:
- LAN, Portillo
- Posted in:
- Chile
Yesterday was frigid and snowy. Here, racers practice for an upcoming race. Today is bright and sunny.
ArcticTropic will have some great shots by evening in this time zone.
Sunrise in Portillo this morning.
FOR ADVENTURES IN CHILE, CLICK HERE
- Tags:
- LAN, Portillo
- Posted in:
- Chile
Yesterday, Portillo was cold and windy- the temperature never rose above freezing and went as low as 19 ( F) -8 ( C). Many of the upper slopes remained closed. As of this posting it is snowing again.
El Plateau.
Hot water to sooth skiers at day’s end.
Just after sunset – about 6:30 PM.
FOR ADVENTURES IN CHILE, CLICK HERE
- Tags:
- LAN, Portillo
- Posted in:
- Chile
ArcticTropic is now on location in Portillo, Chile !We arrived yesterday after a great overnight flight on LAN Airlines. Action shots and videos will be posted later today.
FOR ADVENTURES IN CHILE, CLICK HERE
- Tags:
- LAN, Miami, Portillo, Santiago
- Posted in:
- Chile, USA
Next Monday night, August 30th, ArcticTropic will board a LAN Airlines flight from Miami to Santiago.The flight will transition from a hot steamy night at MIA to a sparkling winter morning in SCL, 8 hours later. After clearing customs, we’ll board a van to Portillo, Ski Capital of South America !
LAN has brand new planes, comfortable seats, multiple entertainment choices and complimentary cocktails.
From New York or Miami – one can board a night flight and be on the slopes by lunchtime the next day.
This week the forecast calls for optimum late winter conditions – bright sunshine,mild temperatures ( though very cold at night ) and packed powder snow. ArcticTropic will have periodic updates before next week’s departure.
- Tags:
- Today Show, Travel With Val
- Posted in:
- Chile, USA
This morning, July 21,2010 , ArcticTropic will be featured on the Today Show at 9:36 AM EDT, replaying hourly across the US Time Zones. Valarie d”Elia, the Today Show’s Travel Expert will be speaking about “Cool Summer Getaways”. This summer’s record heat in the Northeast has many people thinking about skiing already. Thanks to overnight flights to Santiago, Chile , and a quick ride to Portillo – the premier Ski Resort in South America – there’s no need to wait for the next Northern Hemisphere winter.
Four and a half million people will be watching at that hour. Many thousands of interested, qualified leads will visit ArcticTropic for the first time.
Valarie is an expert travel commentator who appears on national and local media outlets including NBC’s Today Show, CNBC, Fox News and The Early Show on CBS. She is also a featured speaker at the New York Times Travel Show and makes numerous other public appearances. Every weekend, Valarie is heard fielding listeners’ questions as the host of The Travel Show on the WOR Radio Network.
On television, she is also seen as the travel correspondent for NY1 News with her featured segments, Travel with Val.
Editor’s NOTE : Due to time constraints the segment did not air.
- Tags:
- Silk Way Rallye
- Posted in:
- Chile, Russia, Turkmenistan
From September 5 th to 14th , the Paris based Dakar Rally will stage a 4500 km off road race from Kazan to Ashkabat.
The world famous Paris -Dakar Rally – which began every New Year’s Eve from 1978 to 2008 in the Place Concorde, finishing in Dakar ,Senegal about three weeks later, was discontinued this year because of terrorist threats. It relocated to Chile and Argentina during Southern Summer and the Silk Way Rally will be the adventure for Northern Summer. ArcticTropic will have periodic updates and perhaps will particpate in the race in 2010.
