With nationwide lockdowns preventing many British holidaymakers from accessing Europe's and North America's popular ski slopes this season, specialist tour operator Journey Latin America has created a new ski-focussed holiday in South America offering lovers of the sport a chance to hit the slopes later this summer once travel restrictions are lifted.

'Active Chile: Andean skiing and desert adventures' is a premium 12-day holiday with 4 nights spent in Portillo ski resort, 5 nights in the Atacama Desert and 2 nights in Santiago. The holiday will operate from late June to October to coincide with Chile's ski season and is available to book for 2021. The holiday costs £5,811 per person and includes high-end hotels, transfers, most meals, excursions and domestic flights. Direct international flights are extra and start from £762 per person.

Located a 2-hour drive northwest of Santiago, Portillo is one of Chile's best known ski resorts and is a training site for Northern Hemisphere ski teams in the summer. At over 2,800m above sea level it is set against a stunning Andean mountain backdrop and offers breath-taking views of the enormous mirror-still Laguna del Inca lake. Founded over 70 years ago, Portillo caters for all levels with 35 runs and off-piste skiing. Its 14 lifts serve slopes from 2,885m to 3,322m and heli-skiing can be arranged.

In contrast to the snowy slopes of Portillo, the holiday finishes with 5 days in the lunar landscapes of the Atacama Desert. Home to hissing geysers, sprawling salt flats and otherworldly valleys of magnificent amber rocks, visitors can warm up exploring on foot, by bike or horseback whilst staying at the stylish and luxury Tierra Atacama hotel.

David Nichols, Product Manager comments, “Chile usually springs to mind as somewhere to go for the southern summer, but there's plenty to do all year. Skiing and winter sports are growing here, and May to October is the best time of year to go north especially to the spectacular Atacama region where there's enough to keep active folks busy for a week or more. At the other extreme, Torres del Paine National Park in Patagonia is full of wildlife thanks to the lack of visitors in winter. We can extend the holiday to include it.”

Notes to editor:

Journey Latin America has introduced a Flexible Booking Policy allowing customers to change or postpone their holiday, whatever the reason, 45 days before the departure date.