Unlike the Carretera Austral or Patagonia, a road trip through Chile's Central Valley doesn't require complex logistics: distances are short, roads are paved and well marked, and it's entirely possible to plan it without an agency, just renting a car in Santiago.
A 3-4 day itinerary
- Day 1: Santiago - Casablanca Valley (wineries) - overnight in Valparaíso or Viña del Mar.
- Day 2: central coast, with the option to add Concón or Reñaca if the plan includes the beach.
- Day 3: Santiago - Colchagua Valley, overnight in Santa Cruz.
- Day 4: return to Santiago, with the option to stop at a Maipo Valley winery on the way back.
Practical tips
Booking tours at the best-known wineries in advance, especially on weekends, saves you from showing up without a slot. If you're driving and plan to do tastings, it's worth designating a driver for the day or arranging transport just for the winery legs, since drunk-driving checkpoints are common on central-zone routes.
If you'd rather not drive, we compare the tour from Santiago and the train to Colchagua in our guide to the Colchagua Valley wine tour.
