Chilean Special Journeys

My wife and I spent 3½ weeks in Chile in January ’08. We had been there before and, in addition to wanting to explore new places, we had friends to visit, so we decided to design our own plan, but we needed help with reservations and logistics.

We called upon Scott Jones, longtime resident of Chile and director of Chilean Special Journeys (phone 888/345-6077, www.chileanspecialjourneys.com), which we found via an ad in ITN. Communication was easy because Scott, headquartered in Santiago, has a toll-free number from the US in addition to e-mail access.

We were totally happy with the arrangements Scott provided, which included airport meeting, some but not all of our internal transportation, various accommodations, several specially designed private day tours and some bus trips.

We were told that his programs often run $200 to $400 per person per day. Ours was by no means all-inclusive, plus we stayed with friends of ours some of the time. Scott presented us with an itemized bill with which we were very satisfied: $1,869 per person for 21 days. We used mileage points for our travel between San Francisco and Santiago.

All our hotels were comfortable and well located, the buses efficient and the guides friendly and knowledgeable. We normally avoid B&Bs, but Scott talked us into The Guest House in Puerto Varas, which proved to be a total delight. Our room had a private bath, which frequently is not available in that kind of hostelry. A double room costs $75.

An overnight bus ride from Puerto Montt to Santiago was outstanding. The seats on the lower deck converted into complete beds and we slept soundlessly all the way up the Pan-American Highway. We were amazed not to see any other tourists on the buses, despite their efficiency and low costs. We took the top level of service at about $75, saving the cost of a flight and a hotel night.

We strongly recommend Scott and his personalized service to anyone planning a trip to this delightful, beautiful, rewarding country.

LEE ZEIGLER

San Francisco, CA