Santiago: Maipo Valley Wine Tasting Tour with 4 Vineyards

Wine country is closer than you think. This full-day outing leaves Santiago for the Maipo Valley, mixing a small family farm with polished, established wineries. I especially like the range of settings, from alpacas and chickens at Campo La Quirinca to the grand grounds of Undurraga. I also like the small-group format, capped at 15 people, with hotel pickup and a driver who lets you enjoy the tastings.

The day is well paced, but the title needs a small clarification: you visit four wine-related stops, yet TerraMater is mainly a lunch and olive-oil stop rather than a full wine tasting. The final visit to Undurraga can also feel rushed when the winery is busy. Still, guides such as Pablo, Nacho, Esme, Alexia, and Tephi have earned strong praise for keeping the long day friendly and organized.

Key points to know before you book

• Four stops, three main tasting experiences: Campo La Quirinca, Santa Ema, and Undurraga provide the core wine tastings, while TerraMater is chiefly the lunch stop.
• A useful contrast in winemaking: You see a tiny family operation, a medium-sized producer, and a large traditional winery in one day.
• Generous tasting schedule: Past departures have included roughly 10 to 13 wines, along with Chilean pisco and snacks at the first stop.
• Hotel pickup in central Santiago: Pickup is offered in Downtown Santiago, Providencia, Las Condes, Vitacura, and Recoleta, with nearby meeting points when needed.
• Lunch is not included: TerraMater has a restaurant, but you pay for your own meal and any extra tastings or purchases.
• Expect a full day: Pickup begins around 7:30 to 8:00 AM, with return to Santiago around 6:00 to 6:30 PM.

Why this Maipo Valley day trip works

Maipo Valley is one of the easiest wine regions to reach from Santiago, but visiting several wineries independently takes planning, driving, and careful timing. This tour handles the transport and reservations, so you can taste freely without worrying about the road back to the city.

That matters here because the day includes several stops and a good amount of wine. The air-conditioned minibus is a practical choice, and groups are limited to 15 people. Some departures have been even smaller, making the ride and conversations feel more personal.

The guides are a big part of the experience. Pablo has been praised for remembering everyone’s name and suggesting things to do after the tour. Nacho is known for his humor and for switching comfortably between English and Spanish. Esme, Alexia, Tephi, Francisca, Paulina, Ramses, and others have also been singled out for warmth, clear explanations, and attention to comfort.

You should still allow for the realities of a shared tour. Pickup routes can add time, especially if you are collected early and dropped off late. One family reported spending about an hour in Santiago traffic at each end. The van is comfortable, but a tall seatback can limit views from some seats, and the roads may feel bumpy. If you are sensitive to motion, try to avoid the back row.

Leaving Santiago for the Maipo River

The morning begins with pickup from one of the central hotel districts. The listed pickup areas include Santiago Downtown, Providencia, Las Condes, Vitacura, and Recoleta. If your accommodation falls outside the regular zone, the operator provides a nearby meeting point.

The first drive takes you toward the Maipo Valley. A short photo stop by the Maipo River gives you a chance to stretch and see the countryside before the tastings begin. It is only about 15 minutes, so think of it as a quick scenic pause rather than a major sightseeing stop.

The tour’s timing helps reduce wasted driving. Instead of sending you back and forth between distant vineyards, the route keeps the stops in the same general wine-producing area. You will still spend time on the road, but the day feels active rather than dominated by transfers.

Campo La Quirinca: a farm before it is a winery

Campo La Quirinca, also called Campo La Quirinca Family Garage Winery, gives the day its most personal start. This is a small operation with a country feel, not a grand estate designed mainly for bus tours.

You begin with a guided walk through the facilities and gardens. The tour covers more than grape growing and wine production. You may see alpacas, different breeds of chickens, and other parts of the farm’s animal husbandry. The point is to show how wine fits into everyday Chilean rural life.

This stop is especially useful if you want context rather than a string of tasting glasses. The local hosts explain how wine is made in a Chilean country setting, and the farm gives you a look at agricultural production beyond the vineyard rows.

After the walk, you sit in a salon for wine tasting, snacks, cheese, and Chilean pisco. The food helps pace the alcohol, although you should still eat breakfast before pickup. The tastings can be generous, and the total day may include more than 10 wines, so arriving hungry is not a clever plan.

Campo La Quirinca is often the most memorable stop because of its size and personality. Mary, one of the local hosts, has been praised for her humor and lively presentation. The family-run setting also gives you a chance to buy local products to take home.

If you want a polished cellar tour with elaborate architecture, this is not that. Its appeal is the opposite: you see a working family operation, meet people connected to the farm, and get a more relaxed start to the day.

Santa Ema and El Peral: a focused premium tasting

The second wine stop is Santa Ema, sometimes shown as the WineShop Viña Santa Ema or El Peral. Compared with Campo La Quirinca, it feels more formal and established.

The tasting usually features three premium wines, including one of Santa Ema’s signature wines. This stop is shorter, about 45 minutes to an hour, and focuses more on the wine itself than on a long farm tour.

The setting is attractive, with a calm winery environment and views across the surrounding area. Several visitors have liked the clear tasting setup and the quality of the wines. One useful tip from the day is that the Sauvignon Blanc available separately may be worth considering, even though it is not part of the standard tasting.

Santa Ema helps create a good rhythm. You have had the farm experience at the first stop, then move to a more organized tasting with premium wines. It is not as broad a visit as Undurraga, but that brevity keeps the schedule moving.

The drawback is that the exact tasting lineup can vary. If you are expecting a long cellar tour here, check with your guide, because the main emphasis is the three-wine tasting.

TerraMater: lunch, olive oil, and a necessary pause

Around midday, you reach Viña TerraMater. This is the day’s main break and the point where you can slow down, eat properly, and reset before the final winery.

TerraMater is home to the Zinfandel restaurant, where lunch is available at your own cost. The menu and prices are not specified in the tour details, but the restaurant is repeatedly described as a pleasant stop with good food and an outdoor setting. You should budget separately for lunch, since it is not part of the $134 tour price.

This stop is also tied to TerraMater’s olive-oil production. The company’s oil has received major awards in Chile and internationally, and the shop sells bottles at cellar prices. That gives you a useful alternative to buying only wine. Olive oil is often easier to pack and use at home, provided you follow your airline’s baggage rules.

Be clear about what TerraMater is and is not. It is one of the four stops, but it is not generally a full wine tasting in the same way as Campo La Quirinca, Santa Ema, and Undurraga. The restaurant may offer its own wines, but any extra tasting is not included.

I like this pause in the schedule. By lunchtime, you will already have tasted several wines, and another formal tasting could be too much. Some people may feel the tour description promises four wineries when the actual wine program feels closer to three wineries plus a restaurant stop. That is the main point to keep in mind before booking.

Undurraga: the grand finale with 130 years of wine

Viña Undurraga is the largest and most traditional-feeling stop on the route. With about 130 years of experience, it offers a broader look at Chilean wine production and the growth of the country’s export industry.

The visit includes gardens, vineyards, production areas, the barrel cellar, and a pre-Columbian exhibition. You then taste four premium wines and receive a wine glass as a gift. The glass is a nice practical souvenir, especially if you want something more useful than another bottle.

Undurraga gives you scale. After seeing the small output of a family operation, you can better understand how a major Chilean winery handles production, storage, presentation, and sales. The contrast is one of the tour’s strongest features.

The estate itself is attractive, with traditional Spanish-style buildings and formal grounds. The larger operation also has a wider shop, where you can buy wines to take home. One participant noted that bottles could be found at accessible prices, with some good choices in the $10 to $20 range, though prices can change.

This is also the stop most likely to divide opinion. When the winery is crowded, the tour may feel rushed, and the tasting can lack the personal attention found at the first two stops. One local guide was described as less able to answer questions than the other hosts. Other departures had an excellent Undurraga guide, including Benjamin, who was praised for handling detailed questions.

Your experience may depend on the day’s staffing and crowd level. I would not book this tour solely for an intimate final tasting. Book it for the overall range, and treat Undurraga as a chance to see a major historic producer.

Wine, food, and pacing across the day

The tasting count is a major reason the tour appeals to wine fans. Depending on the departure, you might sample around 10 or 11 wines, and some groups have tasted 13. The first stop adds pisco, cheese, and local snacks, while the other wineries provide their own tasting formats.

That is a lot for one day. Eat breakfast before pickup, drink water when you can, and use lunch as a real meal rather than a quick sandwich. The schedule is active, but it is not physically demanding. You will walk through gardens, vineyards, production areas, and cellars, then stand for portions of the tastings.

The pacing is generally sensible: a rural farm first, a shorter premium tasting second, lunch at TerraMater, and the largest winery last. The lunch stop acts as a useful pause. By the time you return to Santiago, you may be ready to sleep through the ride.

The group atmosphere also matters. People come from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, and elsewhere. If you enjoy meeting people over a shared table and tasting counter, the social side adds value. If you want a private, quiet wine education, a private driver and winery appointments would suit you better.

Is $134 a fair price?

At $134 per person, the tour is not the cheapest way to visit one winery. It becomes more reasonable when you add hotel pickup, air-conditioned transport, a guide, three main tasting visits, pisco, snacks, and the convenience of not driving after drinking.

You also save planning time. Booking several wineries independently can mean arranging taxis, checking opening hours, confirming tasting slots, and finding a safe way back to Santiago. This tour bundles those details into a single day.

Lunch is extra, and so are wine and olive-oil purchases. Gratuities are not included either, so keep some money aside for your guide and driver if the service is good. The tour makes the strongest value case for someone with limited time in Santiago who wants both variety and transport handled.

It is less compelling if you only want a quiet tasting at one boutique vineyard. You will pay for a full-day group outing and spend time at a large producer that may feel commercial. For a first introduction to Chilean wine, though, the mix of sizes and styles gives you more useful context than three nearly identical estates.

Who should book this wine tour?

I would recommend it to first-time visitors to Santiago, couples, solo visitors, and small groups who want an easy route into Maipo Valley. It suits people who enjoy learning a little about production but do not need a specialist wine course.

It is also a good fit if you want to compare different kinds of Chilean wine businesses. Campo La Quirinca feels intimate and agricultural. Santa Ema offers a compact premium tasting. TerraMater gives you lunch and award-winning olive oil. Undurraga shows the scale and tradition of a major producer.

You may want another option if you dislike group schedules, standing during tastings, or long pickup routes. Serious wine collectors may also prefer a private itinerary with longer time at fewer wineries. And if you do not drink much, four stops and as many as 13 samples may be more than you want.

The tour is wheelchair accessible, and live guiding is available in English and Spanish. Availability can vary, so confirm the language and pickup details when booking.

Should you book the Maipo Valley wine tour?

Book this tour if you want a full day outside Santiago, a wide sample of Chilean wine, and transport that lets you taste without driving. The strongest parts are the farm visit at Campo La Quirinca, the friendly guides, the range from small producer to major winery, and the well-timed lunch break.

Go in with accurate expectations. You are getting three principal tasting wineries plus TerraMater for lunch and olive oil, not four equally detailed winery tours. If you accept that distinction, the $134 price is fair for the amount of ground covered, the tastings, and the time saved.

FAQ

How long does the Maipo Valley wine tour last?

The tour lasts about 10 hours. Pickup is scheduled between 7:30 and 8:00 AM, with return to Santiago generally around 6:00 to 6:30 PM.

How many wineries do you visit?

The route includes four wine-related stops: Campo La Quirinca, Santa Ema, TerraMater, and Undurraga. TerraMater is mainly the lunch stop, so the main wine tastings are usually at the other three locations.

Is lunch included in the tour price?

No. Lunch at the Zinfandel restaurant at TerraMater is at your own expense. Extra wine tastings and purchases are also not included.

What tastings are included?

You receive wine and pisco tasting with snacks and cheese at Campo La Quirinca, a tasting of three premium wines at Santa Ema, and a tasting of four premium wines at Undurraga. The exact wines and quantities may vary.

Where can you be picked up in Santiago?

Pickup is available from central Santiago, Providencia, Las Condes, Vitacura, and Recoleta, including many hotels. If your accommodation is outside the regular areas, you receive a nearby meeting point.

Is the tour available in English?

Yes. The tour offers live guiding in English and Spanish. The group is limited to 15 participants, and the activity is wheelchair accessible.