Chile Guide
El Norte Chico
Pisco Elqui
PISCO ELQUI was known as La Unión until 1939, when Gabriel González Videla – later President of Chile – cunningly renamed it to thwart Peru's efforts to gain exclusive rights to the name "Pisco". An idyllic village with fewer than 500 inhabitants, it boasts a beautiful square filled with lush palm trees and flowers, overlooked by a colourful church with a tall, wooden tower. Locals sell home-made jam and marmalade in the square, and its abundant shade provides a welcome relief from the sun. Down by the main road, the Solar de Pisco Elqui is Chile's oldest pisco distillery, which today (considerably modernized) produces the famous Tres Erres brand. There are free guided tours (daily 10am–7pm) around the old part of the plant, with tastings at the end. You can also visit the 130-year-old private distillery at Los Nichos, 4km on from Pisco Elqui (daily 11am–1pm & 3–6pm); if there's no one there, ask in the red house next door.
Pisco Elqui has plenty of good places to stay. The Hotel Elqui, on O'Higgins, the main street ( 
51/1982523; Price: CH$15000-25000), offers eight immaculate rooms, some with balconies, in a charming old building with a pool. The friendly, German-run El Tesoro de Elqui, on Prat ( 51/1982609, 
51/451958; Price: CH$15000-25000), offers attractive, spotless cabañas and a gorgeous pool. For a real treat, stay up at Los Misterios de Elqui
( 51/1982544; Price: CH$50000-75000), 800m out of town on the road to Alcohuaz. Designer-magazine cabañas with fabulous views are spaced comfortably apart among landscaped gardens leading down to a stunning swimming pool; a gourmet chef prepares delicious food in a tastefully decorated restaurant; and horse rides up the valley can be arranged. Pisco Elqui also has three campsites, the best being El Olivo, just off the main road ( 51/411338; CH$3000 per person), with shade and a small swimming pool. Apart from the one at Los Misterios, Pisco Elqui's best restaurants are in Hotel Elqui, which serves typical Chilean meat dishes on a large, vine-covered patio, and El Tesoro de Elqui, where you can tuck into excellent roast meats. On the plaza, try the adobe-walled Mandarino for great pizzas and snacks served around an open fire in the cooler months; next door in a rustic patio you can enjoy real coffee (not instant) or sip a delicious fresh fruit juice or shake.