Before the carretera (highway), the only road access to this remote part of Patagonia involved travelling through neighbouring Argentina, meaning that the region retains a spectacularly rugged, unspoiled environment and a strong identity.

BBC: Chile��s land of ice-blue lakes

"A lot of people don't really consider the availability of an unspoiled natural environment so close to L.A., " says Jess Moss, editor at Fodor's.

FORBES: Travel