La Serena & Elqui Valley wine tour: Pisco, vineyards & food

Taste pisco and wine where Chilean viticulture was born

A full-day tour of La Serena and the Elqui Valley that traces Chilean wine and pisco from their origins in the oldest vineyards to modern high-altitude estates, with tastings at multiple wineries, traditional Chilean food, and stops at the sites where Spanish conquistadors first planted vines that spread across South America. Pickup is included. The guide speaks English or Spanish.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore La Serena and Elqui Valley wines

• Tour historic sites of La Serena and Coquimbo
• Visit ancestral indigenous sites and haciendas
• Meet vineyard of Francisco de Aguirre
• Taste wines at Viña Falernia store
• Enjoy typical Chilean food at Solar Kitchens
• Photo stop at ancient wine landscape
• Walk and free time in alcohol mecca
• Visit oldest underground cellar and distillery
• Visit high altitude avant-garde vineyard
• Taste ancient vine varieties at small winery
• Tour and free time in cultural city

The experience

La Serena and the Elqui Valley hold the story of how wine and pisco came to the Americas. The tour starts in La Serena and Coquimbo, the oldest coastal city in Chile, where you'll see the historic sites and indigenous landscapes that shaped the region before the Spanish arrived. You'll visit the hacienda and vineyard of Francisco de Aguirre, the conquistador who sent the first vines to Argentina in 1556: the moment that launched South American viticulture. From there, the route moves into the Elqui Valley, a mountain landscape that became the center of Chilean wine and pisco production.

Tastings happen at multiple stops. At Viña Falernia, you'll taste wines that reshaped Chile's wine map. The oldest underground cellar and pisco distillery in Chile comes next, where you taste artisanal piscos and aged spirits made by ancestral methods. A high-altitude vineyard follows, one of the world's highest, where red varieties grow using both traditional and modern techniques. A small artisanal winery closes the tasting sequence with wines made from the original vine varieties that arrived in the 1500s, using ancestral methods alongside classical winemaking technology. Lunch is traditional Chilean food at the Solar Kitchens of Villaseca: appetizers, main course, sides, desserts, soft drinks and wine included. The day runs ten to eleven hours and includes an air-conditioned vehicle and a live guide in English or Spanish.

Two stops offer free time to walk and explore. One is a photo point overlooking one of the oldest and most beautiful wine landscapes in Andean America. The other is in the Elqui Valley itself, one of the country's most important cultural capitals. Soft drinks and alcoholic beverages are included throughout the day.

What’s included

• Pickup from your hotel.
• air-conditioned vehicle.
• live guide in English or Spanish.
• tastings at four wineries and distilleries.
• traditional Chilean lunch with wine.
• soft drinks and alcoholic beverages throughout the day.
• entrance to historic sites and vineyards.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDeparts at 08:00

Book up to9h before

AgesAdult (18 to 65 years) · Senior (66 and older) · Youth (13 to 17 years) · Child (5 to 12 years) · Infant (under 5)

GroupUp to 15

Live guideEnglish and Spanish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.You can choose from 2 pickup points.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated today

Good to know

Low physical effortStroller-friendlyPublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Tembeta

Is this one for you?This tour works best for small groups interested in wine history and willing to spend a full day tasting at multiple stops. The pace is set by the itinerary, not by individual preference, and the focus is on the origins and evolution of Chilean wine and pisco rather than on a single winery or region.

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English and Spanish.

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Youth (13 to 17 years); Child (5 to 12 years); Infant (under 5).

What is the hacienda of Francisco de Aguirre and why does it matter on this tour?

Francisco de Aguirre's hacienda and vineyard in the Elqui Valley is where the first vines were planted that would travel to Argentina in 1556, launching viticulture across South America. The tour visits the actual site where this history began.

How many wineries and distilleries do we visit for tastings?

The tour includes tastings at four separate stops: Viña Falernia, the oldest underground pisco and wine distillery in Chile, a high-altitude vineyard, and a small artisanal winery specializing in ancestral vine varieties and methods.

Is lunch included, and what kind of food is it?

Yes, lunch is included at the Solar Kitchens of Villaseca and consists of traditional Chilean food with appetizers, main course, sides, desserts, soft drinks and wine.

What makes the Elqui Valley significant for Chilean wine history?

The Elqui Valley became the center of Chilean wine and pisco production and is home to the oldest vineyards and winemaking sites in the country, where the first vines planted by Spanish conquistadors evolved into the wines and piscos that define Chile today.