Santiago - Driving to Mendoza Argentina

[commodore2010]

We are on the Dec 14 Rio - Santiago cruise. We are considering driving over the Andes Mountains to Mendoza Argentina and spending a few days in this wonderful wine country. Its supposed to be an amazing drive and a bucket list for many

 

Has anyone here done this drive and any tips?

Edited April 1, 2018 by commodore2010

[sitraveler]

I suggest you post this in "ports of call", Chile and Argentina. Until the reciprocate fee was ended, this drive would need the $160. payment.

[basor]

The drive is beautiful but crossing the border in a car between Chile and Argentina is tricky, The rental car must have all of the paperwork that allows it to cross the border. Be sure when you inquire about renting a car, you let them know you will be crossing the border into Argentina. A one way rental between the 2 countries is also very expensive. You might be better off to fly between Santiago and Mendoza and then rent your car to drive around wine country. Also, be aware that visiting wineries around Mendoza is different than in the US. Most wineries do not have a tasting room and you must have a reservation to visit the wineries. If you have called ahead and made a reservation, they are very welcoming and, most likely, you will be guided around the entire winery by the owner or wine maker and be offered tastings right out of the barrel, etc.

 

Enjoy your cruise and time in the lovely wine country of Chile and Argentina.

[PatriciaF]

I would suggest that you perhaps post this on the Santiago forum for TripAdvisor. Lots more people on it than here.

[triplestar]

In 2014 we travelled from Mendoza to Santiago on the public bus. It was easy, we bought the tickets online & had no problems. The seats were very comfortable ( oh for airline seats like that) and we had great views from the upper level of the bus. The one down side was the wait at the border, the Chileans do not like the Argentinians & so we had a very thorough check of all the luggage on the bus to make sure we were not bringing in any fruit,veg etc. I would not hesitate to do the trip again. However I would not be game to do it by car. We really enjoyed Mendoza & Santiago.

[BigNance]

Check TripAdvisor for Tour guides in Santiago. Some of the tour guides will drive into, and even through, the mountain range. We did not make the drive, but spent 2 weeks between Mendoza and Santiago in 2016. We used Chilean Wine Tours, Mauricio was excellent. Basor is quite right about the rental car requirements. Their requirements are pretty stringent, and we were discouraged from pursuing that avenue. We were going to take the bus, but it was a weekend and the schedule was limited. We ended up flying RT between Santiago and Mendoza. I think the airfare was less than $200RT.

[commodore2010]

Thanks to everyone for the info.