Street Art in Valparaiso und Weine in Casablanca aus Santiago

I am not a fan of tours in general but I wanted something to help ground and direct my time in Valparaiso because the art is so vast. I was hesitant to book a tour because I find them rushed and centred on experiencing the country as a tourist. When I travel, I want to experience the places I'm visiting as the local people experience them. I am grateful that Progressive Tours made it feel like a Chilean experience, not a tourist experience. Our host, Daniel, never made the group feel rushed, and knew people at each one of the stops we encountered, so we got to visit with more Chilean people who were all so happy to welcome us. The art was phenomenal, but Progressive Tours made the the day feel truly exceptional. Chile is now a vacation destination for me in large part because of this experience. Highly recommend.

Daniel let an informative and entertaining group tour to Valparaiso. Very enjoyable and learned a lot about Chilean art, history and commerce during the day. The city is a wonderland of art and the citizens obviously take a great deal of pride in their city. Enjoyed stop offs at the harbor, looking at amazing murals and city views of the ocean, and a funicular ride as well which is always enjoyable. Definitely feel this trip helps flesh out a trip to Santiago and gives some added color without having to travel too far. Very enjoyable day!

I can’t say enough good things about this fabulous day trip to Valparaiso. Daniel gave us an incredible tour of the city, showing us many spots outside of the typical tourist route with lots of free time to explore. He is so knowledgeable about Chilean history, politics, and art; I really enjoyed learning from him. I especially loved how he taught us about all the different mural styles and artists (we even got to meet one of them in his office!). This felt like a really authentic local experience, as opposed to a tourist trap. Valparaiso is so beautiful, charming, and utterly unique—I feel like I got a really good feel for the city after this trip. The wine tasting in Casablanca was also excellent. Most of all, I really appreciate Daniel’s flexibility and understanding. Daniel dropped me off at the Santiago airport after my tour which I really appreciated! No other tour group/provider would do this. Thank you Daniel for the wonderful trip!

The tour started two hours late and never caught up. Wine visit was ordinary, saw lots of street art but Daniel didn’t have knowledge of artists. The car was very dirty and smelt of cigarette smoke.

Great tour and day trip from Santiago. Our guide was excellent.

This was the hilight of our trip to Santego. Having a small group with a great guide really made the day amazing. Daniel was very knowledgeable about the areas, culture and endless art and artists around the hills. The tour route was well laid out, didnt feel rushed at all, with plenty of time to explore. There were other tours with larger group sizes, and many very short stops, and both me and my partner are glad we didnt end up doing that! Thanks for the great day!

Great tour. Felipe was a great tour guide. We learned a lot of the history and stories behind the street art. The order was a bit different than what was described but everything was still included. We stopped a cafe first for a quick snack/bathroom break. I honestly could have done without this spot as we already ate breakfast. We then stopped at a vineyard for a quick wine tasting. I would recommend to eat beforehand as you're drinking wine at 10 am, which we didn't mind. Then you finally get to Valparaiso. We walked around the fish market and were able to see Sea Lions in the wild, which was awesome. After this we headed into town to see the street art. Get ready to walk for this portion. We did get a break to go and get lunch on our own. My advice here is to keep tabs on time. You only get 45 mins and time flies. Especially if you pick a restaurant that is busy. We were late to get back but it all worked out. This is an all day tour so prepare for it. We were picked up at 8 am and returned to Santiago around 7:30 pm. This tour is great for those who want more of an intimate experience. There were only 3 of us on this tour and it was great!

Had a great time on this relaxed and authentic walking tour of Valparaiso with Phelipe. Phelipe our guide was incredibly knowledgeable as he explained, city layout, Chilean agriculture, eco improvements, mining, climate, history, environment, geography of the area and trip to Valparaiso. He made the trip very enjoyable with his awesome energy and fun facts. As he showed us around the city pointing out all meaning and history behind the art that makes this city a must see location and this tour is all about enjoying the city in a less touristy and regimented way and being a fun and relaxed exploration with our incredible tour guide. We visited Pablo Nerudas home and I loved patting all the cats on the property. Be warned, the cats come with an engagement rating. lol. Phelipe walked us through all the different cultural areas, pointing out all the differences in architecture and highlighting the importance of immigration and its impact on this city and the country. He took us into an area that had multiple restaurants offering very different cuisines. It was only a short break for lunch but enjoyed being given the freedom to choose. We then were taken to an antique cable car and enjoyed the ride down the hill bank to our waiting car. We then headed to the fish market area and watched the fishmen “paying” their bribe to the sea lions to keep their nets untouched. We we enjoyed seeing all the bird life and sea lions come for their payment. On the way back to Santiago we stopped off at a large vineyard in the Casablanca valley and enjoyed some wine tasting of some Chileans excellent wines. They unfortunately did not ship to my home country (Australia) so I could only hope to find them bank at home. This was my favourite tours in Santiago because its relaxed and authentic vibe and the suspiro of the driver and tour guide. You won’t be disappointed if you book this tour as once you pay the only extra cost is lunch and anything else you choose to buy. All activities and trances are included. Love this tour. Ask for Phelipe if you do this tour. He is awesome.

We had such a fun day with our excellent guide and driver! We learned so much about Valparaiso (and Chile’s) history, notable people and places as we explored. Every stop felt intentional to give a deeper feel for life in Valparaiso - from the behind the scenes visit with the piure expert at the fish market, to tracking hidden series of pictures within the streets of murals, to stopping to highlight markers of transitions between different neighborhoods, to identifying symbolism in the murals. We walked a lot and covered a lot of ground and yet it was mostly downhill somehow! The drive from Santiago was lovely, with stops for coffee and pastries then at a vineyard to pet and feed alpaca, wander lovely grounds, and have a no-pressure-to-buy wine tasting with a helpful and friendly host. This tour is for you if you, like us, appreciate minimizing time on a bus and instead prefer an immersive experience with a local guide who is passionate about inspiring appreciation for and understanding of the people, places and culture of Chile. It’s probably also important to note that we never felt rushed, the van was spotless, and both the driver and guide were professional, kind, and respectful of the people we interacted with through the day.

Felipe and Rodrigo went out of their way to make our entire day incredibly enjoyable and comfortable. We saw the inner workings of a fish market, stunning street art, and finished up with a delicious wine tasting. On the journey, we learned a lot about Santiago and Chile’s history and current state, and they were very entertaining and kind!