Easter Island / Torres Del Paine Question

Travel, Wine Tourism, and Restaurants Forum
1

A couple of Qs for the group…

Easter Island:

  1. I believe this is just part of Chile… no issues with bringing a couple of bottles of wine on to the island right?
  2. Any must eat places? my understanding is i’m not there for the cuisine…

Torres Del Paine - Staying inside the part at Hotel Lago Grey for 2 nights, then one night in Puerto Natales.

  1. Any must eat places at Puerto Natales? one dinner here.
  2. For TdP, we won’t be trekking/hiking as i’m with a 70 year old parent. Other than the big/well known view points (Salto grande/chicco, pehoe, lake grey, etc), any hidden gems that doesn’t require much hiking that shouldn’t be missed?

Thank you!

2

I went in from Chile and don’t specifically remember entrance requirements, but we certainly didn’t go through customs on EA (only place to get a passport stamp is at the post office, and they’re not open every day). I’d be surprised if there weren’t some restrictions on fruits and vegetables given the remoteness, but there’s also a scarcity of variety on the island which makes me think wine shouldn’t be a problem.

The food was fine but unremarkable. Nothing I remember that’s worth recommending. When I was there in 2012 I’m sure I would’ve looked into it and didn’t find anything. Maybe Explora if you happen to be staying there, but I don’t think they cater to non-guests.

Enjoy, it’s a unique and special place.

3

I may be comparing apples to oranges, but in terms of experiences, how do the Easter Islands compare to the Galapagos and Machu Picchu?

4

I would imagine it to be more like Machu Picchu in the sense that there’s a lot of history in what you see. Stone heads vs Stone villages… how people got there. Why people left. Etc.

Galapagos is more animal viewing. Unique animals not just to Galapagos but from island to island. Like this bird exists no where else in the world except this tiny island right here. That was kinda cool. I imagine the Antarctica cruise portion (after Easter island and Patagonia) to be more like Galapagos (also a live aboard cruise)…

Anyone been to them all and can comment? Curious to hear as well.

5

We went for a boat ride on a lake in Torres del Paine where they went up to a glacier, chipped some ice and served scotch on 10,000 year old rocks. That was way cool, even if the Scotch was pedestrian.

6

Hiking is not mandatory in Torres del Paine. There are also horseback trips, though not on the same trails.