Francisca Labra
Marketing · Vivencias Travel
At the gala held in Jamaica on 11 October, Chile took Best Adventure Tourism Destination, Best Cruise Destination and Best Green Destination in South America, and Sernatur was named Best Tourism Office. Twelve straight years leading on adventure.
On 11 October, at a gala held in Jamaica, the South American edition of the World Travel Awards 2026 — the prizes the industry knows as the "Tourism Oscars" — were handed out. Chile took four.
The four awards
- Best Adventure Tourism Destination in South America - Best Cruise Destination in South America - Best Green Destination in South America - Best Tourism Office in South America, for Sernatur
The adventure award is not new: Chile has won it every year since 2015, twelve editions in a row. Sernatur's is, and it is the first time the agency has taken that category.
"Chile shows once again that it is an international tourism powerhouse." — María Paz Lagos, Undersecretary of Tourism
"Chile consolidates its tourism leadership in South America." — Cristóbal Benítez, National Director of Sernatur
Not only the country: the companies too
The list of Chilean winners goes well beyond the destination categories. Tierra Patagonia was named Best Adventure Hotel; Explora, Best Expedition Company; Hotel Las Torres Patagonia, Best Green Hotel; Latam Airlines, Best Airline; Centro del Vino Concha y Toro, Best Wine Tourism Venue; and Reserva Biológica Huilo Huilo took the Responsible Tourism Award for South America.
What this means in practice
An international award does not change anyone's experience on its own. But it does say something about where the industry stands, and that shows up in the day-to-day work.
Chile winning twelve consecutive years in adventure tourism confirms what we see with our groups: trekking in Torres del Paine, rafting on the Petrohué, canopy in Pucón or the El Tatio geysers at sunrise are not filler activities. They are the reason for the trip, and they are world class.
Winning green destination is even more interesting for anyone organising school trips. Sustainability has stopped being a talking point: it is what allows a class to visit Fray Jorge National Park or the Carretera Austral in ten years' time in the same condition as today.
And Sernatur being recognised as the continent's best tourism office matters because it is the institution that certifies the operators families contract with. The Tourism Quality Seal and the register it requires of agencies are, day to day, what separates a serious company from an improvised one.
What does not change
The awards recognise the destination. A group's experience still depends on who organises it: how many coordinators travel, what the insurance covers, whether there is someone on the ground at three in the morning.
Chile has what it takes. That part, twelve years running, is already proven.
The awards and categories cited come from the official information published by Sernatur and the Undersecretariat of Tourism on 13 October 2026.
Vivencias Travel is a tour operator founded in Bariloche with a presence in Chile, Brazil and Mexico, specialising in group and individual travel experiences. In Chile it has offices in Santiago, La Serena and Temuco.
