Valle Nevado ski resort is one of the most modern and newest ski centers in Chile. Furthermore, it is the largest in South America, and it is interconnected to the nearby centers of La Parva and El Colorado
Created in 1988, Valle Nevado is the newest ski center in central Chile. Valle Nevado was founded by a team of French entrepreneurs whose inspiration was Les Arcs in France. Throughout its years, Valle has been characterized by being pioneer in the development of ski centers in Chile, seeing it from its beginnings as a place much more integral than as a place where to practice ski and nothing else. This business model allowed them to invest in the construction of a hotel, which generated a faithful and assiduous clientele.
True to its innovative style, Valle Nevado was the first ski center in the region to have a high-speed detachable saddle in 2001, later the first Half Pipe in South America was inaugurated and again they were the first (and the only ones so far) in having a cable car in a ski center in Chile (remember that the cable car is from before).
But being the first in all is not the only thing that characterizes Valle; well known are its three hotels: Valle Nevado (the most exclusive), Puerta del Sol (more familiar) and Tres Puntas (for younger people and large groups), adding up in total more than 260 rooms of different capacities. All stays include accommodation, ski ticket for the entire stay, half board, welcome cocktail, access to hotel facilities and more.
To get to Valle Nevado, take route G21 to Farellones. When you reach the Farellones crossing, you must continue straight along the G251, popularly known as the road to Valle Nevado.
The problem of the road is that it is narrow, has no berm and has 40 curves up to Farellones and then about 20 more to Valle Nevado. The road is dangerous and not easy. This can lead to non-minor delays when arriving at the mountain. If you dare to drive, you must remember that the carrying of chains is mandatory and policeman always makes checks along the way. Also, you must know that the road has schedules of ups and downs. From Monday to Friday there are no restrictions (except holidays), however Saturdays and Sundays the climb is between 08:00 and 13:00 hrs, while the descent is between 16:00 and 20:00 hrs. No restriction between 20:00 and 08:00 hrs. of the following day. If you decide not to drive, there are several alternatives to get up. The first is to take a transfer from the Omnium shopping center (Ave. Apoquindo 4900) and for an amount close to $ 15,000 per person, you are entitled to a return trip. The Ski Total company also offers to pick up passengers from hotels, with the option to stay or return the same day.
For the most exclusive, Valle Nevado offers helicopter transfers from the airfield of Tobalaba to Valle Nevado. The cost is for the flight, regardless of the number of people traveling. It costs USD $ 1370 and can fit 6 people maximum, without luggage.
Valle Nevado has more than 900 hectares of skiing, which makes it the largest ski center in the country. It has more than 40 kilometers of track, without even mentioning the sectors considered off-piste. The particularity of Valle Nevado in terms of ski for beginners, is that it has a good progression of tracks to be able to continue learning, after the first steps. In general terms, the difficulty of the tracks results in the following percentages: of the total of the enabled tracks, 10% correspond to beginner, 36% intermediate ground, 33% advanced ground and 21% of ground for experts. It might seem that 10% of the total skiing is little, but in fact it is not, considering the average time it takes an adult skier to leave the beginner areas which in practice means that the average beginner can be 2-3 days without moving from the green slopes, then progress to blue tracks. Another peculiarity is that you can ski different faces of the mountain, reaching far behind in Tres Puntas.
If you are not interested in skiing, Valle Nevado has the gondola, which takes you directly to Bajo Zero, a mountain restaurant. The restaurant is located in the heart of the ski center, allowing you to sit and watch "Valle TV" (see skiers pass) live from the restaurant terrace, with a coffee or a pisco sour.
