Portillo

Spend the gazillion hours traveling that it takes to get to Portillo, Chile, and you’ll be rewarded with the sensation that time slows down when you’re there.

Skiing is back for international travelers south of the equator, and the season is off to a very snowy start. Summer trip, anyone?

Welcome to Portillo, Chile, where gringos trade flip-flops for ski boots, racers and freeriders mingle, and pisco flows like carménère.

Stoke your wanderlust with our most drool-worthy stories about skiing in South America.

It's not officially spring until you kick back outside with a cold one. We'll even throw in the scenery for free.

For real skiers who also happen to be parents, the adventure never stops. Especially in Portillo.

Reggie Crist helps city dwellers escape the concrete jungle to ski Chilean powder.

Twenty inches of fresh powder fell this week at Portillo, Chile, just in time for opening day.

At Portillo, there’s a good chance you’ll share a Poma with Seth Morrison or Daron Rahlves. It’s the off-season training spot for the pros. It’s no wonder why. All above treeline, the terrain is point-and-go, from rock-lined chutes to wide-open bowls to impeccably groomed cruisers. Laps are punctuated by boots-off, white-tablecloth lunches, hot-tub soaks, Ping-Pong with the locals, and thumping disco. Stay at the all-inclusive, European-style Portillo Lodge, where ski history seeps from wooden walls decorated with trophies from the first World Cup races. Thanks to overnight flights from the U.S. and a two-hour drive from the Santiago airport, you can even ski the day you arrive.

Taste the top wines of Chile from July 28th- August 3rd.

This mountain outpost is a living tribute to what skiing used to be.

Almost 7 feet and counting

Inside Skiing Magazine’s South American Photo Challenge.

The 2008 South American Photo Challenge

Skiing Magazine Staff Members head to Portillo to sponsor the contest and catch some snow.

Check out SKI Magazine's author page.

Check out SKI Magazine's author page.

Keep your 45 SPF and dorky sun hats away from me. I am a skier. I must tan.

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