Vale do Elqui

The Vale do Elqui cuts across the Coquimbo region, about 470 km north of Santiago, following the Rio Elqui from the Cordilheira dos Andes to the Pacific. At its mouth lies La Serena, the regional capital and one of the country's oldest cities, founded in the 16th century. Upriver, a little over an hour by road, is Vicuña, the town where poet Gabriela Mistral was born, Nobel Prize in Literature.

La Serena blends a historic center with the coast. Around the Plaza de Armas are the Cathedral and the Iglesia de San Francisco, with stone walls, as well as the Museo Arqueológico and the La Recova market. To the west, the Faro Monumental marks the beginning of the Avenida del Mar, the beachfront promenade that continues to Coquimbo, the neighboring port city with the Cruz del Tercer Milenio and the Barrio Inglés.

Inland, the climate changes: the low coastal clouds stay behind and the valley opens between dry hills and vineyards. The Elqui grapes become pisco, the grape brandy Chileans drink neat or in a pisco sour, and the distilleries of Vicuña and Pisco Elqui welcome visits. Montegrande, where Gabriela Mistral spent her childhood and is buried, is on the way.

The valley's dry air and dark nights attracted scientific observatories and also tourist observatories like Mamalluca and Del Pangue, which run nighttime telescope sessions. Viewing depends on the weather and the Moon phase. North of La Serena, the Reserva Nacional Pingüino de Humboldt offers boat trips around islands inhabited by birds and sea lions.

This destination brings together 2 cities: La Serena, Vicuña.