The Best Ski Resort You've Never Heard of Is in Chile

The first thing you notice when you arrive at Portillo is the sky and the fact that it is both empty and the perfect shade of blue. There should be an Instagram filter that turns all skies this blue, but there isn’t.

A groovy yellow resort sits in the middle of the Andes. (Photo: Jo Piazza)

“Ah, just another bluebird day,” my ski instructor sighed to me as we boarded the chairlift for our first run of the day. I can’t tell whether he’s been here long enough to take it for granted or not.

I don’t think I could ever take this place for granted. I’m skiing in powder in August!

Some skiers refer to this resort, perched at an elevation of 9,500 feet in the Andes Mountains, as “Chile Mignon.” It’s a cheesy nickname, but it shows just how choice world-class skiers believe this resort to be.

Hidden behind ski goggles are Olympians, Argentine polo players, Hollywood celebrities, and ski bums chasing the snow all the way to the Southern Hemisphere.

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No filter needed here. (Photo: Jo Piazza)

There is just one road that brings you to Portillo, and it is the same one that connects Santiago with Mendoza in Argentina — which means it is consistently clogged with 18-wheelers shuttling cargo between the two countries. The section that climbs the mountain to Portillo contains 32 switchbacks up a perilously steep cliff that the locals call the caracol, or the snail, both for the curve of the road and for how slowly a vehicle must travel to safely arrive at its destination.

Beneath the grandiose peaks sits this hip yellow building that looks nothing like any ski lodge you’ve ever seen. The exterior is just a taste of things to come. In a single week, Portillo can accommodate 450 guests with its more than 500 staffers.

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Family-owned and -operated for more than 50 years, Portillo is the kind of resort where you book an entire week the same week each year with the same people. The kids run around wild and free while the adults get tipsy. “I don’t even know where my kids are” becomes a familiar refrain after 9 p.m. The staff knows you by name.

Everyone is family here, from the mountain Fox named Zorro who will get close enough to nab a french fry, to the staff at the mountainside cafe, Tio Bob’s (named after the original owner, the current proprietor’s actual Uncle Bob).

Some guests liken the experience to being on a cruise ship, in that everything is self-contained. Everyone arrives and leaves on the same day and you create a microcosm in just a couple of days. I would argue that the cruise ship analogy falls short. Portillo is much more than a cruise ship in the mountains. It is a place with soul, one that surprises and delights, one that forges friendships for a lifetime.

Grabbing a bite to eat on the slopes at Tio Bob’s. (Photo: Jo Piazza)

But what about the skiing?

When the snow is falling, the skiing can be some of the best in the world. The snow quality in Portillo is excellent and is often likened to that of the Rocky Mountains. Folks have been skiing here since the end of the 19th century, when the Chilean government hired 14 Norwegian skiers to transport mail between Chile and Argentina.

Nine feet of snow dumped on the mountains two days before I arrived, a gift from the gods or from El Niño.

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The most exciting part of the week was conquering one of the most complicated ski lifts in the entire world, the va et vient (French for “comes and goes”), a gonzo invention that drags four to five people up a mountain on a group Poma chair and then slingshots them backward onto black and double black diamond ski slopes. Some call it the “slingshot to heaven”; others just refer to it with a trail of expletives.

The slingshot lifts aren’t exactly pleasant the first time you ride them, but after you get the hang of it, going up is as much fun as coming down. (Photo: Jo Piazza)

I held onto that tow bar for dear life as I was dragged up the slope.

When we reached the top, I fell flat on my face into the ungroomed snow, sliding about 10 feet down the mountain upside down, convinced I would plummet all the way into the Laguna del Inca lake below.

After a failed attempt to ride the slingshot. (Photo: Jo Piazza)

There’s a legend about the crystal blue waters of that lake. On full moon nights, the locals believe you can hear strange cries from within the water. Legend has it that the Inca Princess Kora-Illé tragically fell from a cliff during a royal mountain banquet here. Her soulmate, the warrior Illi Yunqui, was shaken with grief and believed that no earthly grave could compare to the lake. Shrouded in white linen, she was lowered into its depths. From that moment, the waters became tinted the color of her eyes, and Illi Yunqui stayed to mourn her forevermore.

We woke up like this. (Photo: Jo Piazza)

The Portillo experience is a wildly civilized one. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served at the same time each day. You sit at the same table and are served by the same team of wait staff.

Need to blow your nose? There are boxes of tissues at the base of each lift.

Forget your sunscreen? They keep large vats of it in the bathrooms. Use what you need.

The staff in the boot room and the ski room knows who you are. Your boots are ready for you each morning before you have the chance to say buenos días.

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The view looking down into the valley. (Photo: Jo Piazza)

Skiers of all skill levels can find their sweet spot here. Because visitors dedicate a whole week to the resort, group lessons at all skill levels are available each morning at 10 a.m., and skiers work with the same instructors for an entire week.

Weather and avalanche risks permitting, the resort offers renowned off-piste terrain such as the Primavera and Kilometro Lanzado runs. Then there’s the Super C Couloir, one of the most exciting and challenging off-piste runs in the world.

Reaching the Super C requires at least two and a half hours of hiking up a bootpack from the Roca Jack slingshot lift up to the saddle of Ojos de Agua mountain. Once there, you are treated to an epic view of Aconcagua, the largest mountain in the world outside of the Himalayas.

Then begins the 1,400-meter descent, which starts with a drop into an intensely steep chute of perfect powder.

Savoring a long lunch on the mountain. (Photo: Jo Piazza)

Most ski resorts promise that non-skiers will enjoy themselves. Most ski resorts are lying to you. At Portillo, it’s true. Each day brings a variety of activities, from twice-daily yoga to salsa lessons to cooking classes and snowshoe hikes. Live music ignites the bar every night, and the downstairs disco stays open practically until the sun rises over the rocky peaks.

Prices during the peak season start at $1,800 for the week, which includes seven nights’ lodging, four meals per day, and lift tickets.

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