2 Best Hotels in Side Trips from Santiago, Chile

Situated high in the Andes, this is a boutique resort with big skiing. Grand Hotel Portillo and its two cheaper annexes provide Saturday-to-Saturday ski vacations that include accommodation for seven nights, eight days of skiing or snowboarding, four meals per day, and access to most après-ski activities. The coveted lakeview rooms are only incrementally more expensive than mountain view. Tío Bob's mountain restaurant has a gorgeous view of the Laguna del Inca, a brilliant blue lake below the snowy mountain peaks. The hotel is open year-round.

This quaint old inn on the road to Farellones gives you easy access to the slopes with its free shuttle to and from the nearby ski areas. A family-run hotel, it has 10 rooms with wood floors and heaters to keep out the chill. The rate includes breakfast and dinner in the small restaurant, as well as happy-hour drinks, sipped by the cozy fireplace looking directly down the mountain to Santiago.

The best rooms are the two corner rooms. They are a bit larger and have wide windows with excellent views.