BudgetTravel

Another big attraction: fabulous and relatively economical skiing, both downhill and cross-country (the season runs from mid-June through mid-October). There are about a dozen ski areas above 6,500 feet, with long runs and deep, dry snow reminiscent of the Rockies. The best ones, happily, are clustered within striking distance of Santiago, the most famous being Portillo (2/263-0606), only 90 miles south. It's best done by day trip, though, because while lift tickets are about $35, the lodge is expensive and in peak season usually has a seven-night minimum stay. An hour's drive from Santiago are Valle Nevado (2/698-0103), El Colorado (2/211-0426), and La Parva (2/220-9530), where lift tickets cost about $33 and equipment rentals another $24. Each ski area has offices in Santiago that arrange transportation to and from the mountains.

Santiago's ravenous growth has pushed many wineries out farther into the country, but a few notable ones still remain. Easiest to reach is Vi a Santa Carolina (Rodrigo de Araya, 1341; 2/450-3000), which no longer has actual grapes but still offers tours of the main house of the Julio Perera estate and the bodegas (cellars). Call the day before your visit to make a reservation.

Beaches dot the coast around Vina del Mar, but the best white sand and crashing surf is at Renaca, a suburb about ten minutes from downtown Vina. Take Pony Bus No. 1, 10, or 111 from 2 Norte; directions and maps are available at the main bus station. If you like to wager after a day in the sun, the Casino Municipal (32/689-200) looms over the beach at San Mart­n, 199.

Chile to go

If you don't want to tackle Chile on your own, an abundance of tour operators there and in the U.S. will piece together your trip in advance. Certain elements of Chile-like Torres del Paine National Park, glacier tours, and the lake district - will appear in the listings of every company that deals with the country. It's a matter of shopping around. Even during high season, it's not hard to find your way on your own, with the possible exception of sold-out upscale hotels in remote regions like Torres del Paine.

Escapes Unlimited (800/243-7227) offers a six-night package to Santiago and the lake district for a reasonable $1,299, including flights from New York, Boston, or Philadelphia. Los Angeles and San Francisco departures are $150 more. Extensions are available to Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, Easter Island, northern Chile, and Peru. Intervac (800/992-9629), meanwhile, flies you down for five hotel nights in Santiago for $765 from New York or Miami; other gateways are available.

U.S. companies have package tours that cover every detail, but many also will customize a tour to individual interests. Ladatco Tours (800/327-6162, www.ladatco.com) offers more than a dozen tours involving Chile, including the ten-day Lakes Explorer from $2,890 per person, double occupancy. But customers are welcome to buy part of a tour and add and subtract as they see fit.

To get quick tastes of different areas of Chile, Latour (800/825-0825) offers two- and three-day excursions from several departure cities to the desert or to glaciers at prices as low as $190 (for two days and one night in Puerto Montt, double occupancy). A three-day, two-night excursion in the Atacama Desert runs $723.

Contact Sernatur, the official tourism office at Avenida Providencia, 1550 in Santiago, for information on activities ranging from river rafting to thermal baths to winery visits (from the U.S., dial 011-56-2/236-1420, fax 011-56-2/236-1417, or log on to www.segegob.cl/sernatur/inicio.html).

To set up Patagonia tours once you get to Chile-including penguin tours of Isla Magdalena for $35-contact friendly and helpful Turismo Comapa in Punta Arenas (Calle Independencia, 830; tel. 61/241-322, www.comapa.com.).