Pisco Elqui, Chile

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An old distillery in Pisco Elqui

Pisco Elqui is a Chilean town in Elqui Valley. It is located in the Coquimbo region, 107 km east from La Serena, at about 2,000 metres above sea level. (See map)

This was the area where pisco was distilled in the early history of Chile. The original name of the town was La Greda. It was later changed to La Unión. In 1936, the decreto ley Nº 5.798 changed its name to Pisco Elqui to reinforce Chile's claim to have rights over the alcoholic drink, pisco.

Near by is the Montegrande town, where the Chilean Nobel Prize laureate Lucilla Godoy (better known as Gabriela Mistral, her nom de plume), was born.

1 How to get there
2 Summary
3 Activities
4 Services
5 Weather
6 External links

[edit] How to get there

You can drive to La Serena from Santiago or fly (50 minutes). If not driving take a bus (twice daily) to Elqui, the price of the ticket is about $1.700 Chilean pesos, and if you buy the return ticket you can get both by $3.000. The road from La Serena passes in front of the airport and continues through the valley to Vicuña (~70 km) and Rivadavia (~85 km). The road is paved up to Pisco Elqui, you may encounter trucks loaded with grapes (if in season), be careful. There is one part of the road to Pisco that is a bit more difficult because it climbs through the valley and it gets fairly narrow, although it compensates with the beautiful view that you get from the vineyards.

[edit] Summary

One of the benefits of this small town is that it has experienced a large commercial growth over the last years, mainly in the area of tourism, mainly because it is a very quiet and beautiful place and the word has been spread, it also helps that La Serena is nearby, which has also been experiencing a large growth in the wings of tourism, beeing literally invaded in the holydays. This comertial growth translates in lots of facilities and activities, there are several sourvenir stores that sell beautiful crafts, including clothes, musical instruments, masks, paintings between several others. Also the craftsmen there make several sweets and liqueurs using local fruits and recipes. There are various traditional ice cream stores and places like little pubs that sell the most delicious natural juices made in the moment, one of the most famous, because of its nice appearance and because the town's square is called "Los Jugos" (The Juices). There is also the "Tres Erres" (Three "R's") Pisquería (place where pisco is made) in town, is really nice and you can visit it and they will introduce you to the art of pisco making with a guided tour that ends with a little shot of aged pisco (if you dare!). There are lot's of places where you can spend the night, right there in town and in the surroundings, you've got several options, and you can decide based upon what are you looking for and how much money are you willing to spend, but all in all, lodging is really cheap and you always got the chance to camp, since there are at least five campings in town, and some of them got some piece of river shore with ponds, which is extremely welcome in summer since the intense heat of the area. Also, it is really important to notice that Pisco Elqui is considered by several people, specially those oriented to the esoteric way of life, to be a source of positive energies, some say that it is because tha large quantities of magnetite in the surrounding mountains, so you can expect to find much of these vibes, if not from the hills, from the people itself, who in average are fairly "hippie-like", specially the craftsmen. It is for this very same reason that the people who visit Pisco Elqui come in a very similar mood, looking for some peace and good time, so you can be surprised of the warmth of the people there and the "good vibrations" that surround social activities and "carretes" (Chilean word for party, although it means also to "hang out" and have a good time with friends). You should notice too that in Elqui Valley, or in its closest surroundings, there are two international observatories, Tololo Observatory and La Silla Observatory, so you can realize that the skies here are most clean and clear and gorgeous at nights, indeed, sometimes, if you are lucky, you can witness a "meteorite shower", a gorgeous spectacle, and if not, you will see a precious moon that lights the scenery at the point that you do not need light to move around or you will see more stars that you have ever seen!.