Torres del Paine National Park (Photo: John W. Banagan/Getty Images)Torres del Paine National Park, Patagonia, Chile
“Looking across the lake from the Explora Lodge you see one of the most magnificent mountainscapes in the world,” says Peter Friedman, a trip expert with Unique Travel, citing his favorite spot from which to take in one of the newest and grandest parks in South America, and a UNESCO World Heritage Reserve. The 598,000-acre park, tucked at the far south end of the Andes, offers a stunning mix of landscapes and fauna. Say the folks at Geographic Expeditions (who had it on their shortlist, too): “Paine’s unique physical attributes of glaciers, lakes, gnarled Magellanic trees, and dramatic mountains offer some of the most awe-inspiring hiking in the world.”
