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WHAT TO SEE IN CHILE :
Santiago : Santiago de Chile is a modern metropolis with a shiny face and  one of South America 's most dynamic economies. At the same time, struggling street vendors board city buses to hawk everything from pins to ice cream, and housemaids ride for hours to scrub floors and change nappies in exclusive suburbs. It's first and foremost a city of commerce, but visitors will find much to enjoy in the city and its surroundings. Less than an hour from the city center are world-class ski resorts and white-water rafting opportunities, famous beaches and the colorful port city of Valparaíso .
MORRO: Inside the Morro you find a museum remembering the saltpeter war with Peru and Bolivia in the 19th century. There was a bloody fight around this little hill during the war.
 La Serena: Important both historically and economically, the beach side city of La Serena is one of Chile 's oldest post-Columbian cities. The region's silver, copper and agriculture were so important that the city had its own mint. Today, La Serena maintains a colonial air, although it is threatening Viña del Mar 's supremacy as the premier beach resort. Apart from a string of beautiful beaches, attractions include a handful of museums and a number of nearby quaint villages and vineyards.
Parque Nacional Puyehue: Situated in the beautiful Lake District, this is  Chile 's most popular national park. It preserves 107,000ha (264,290ac) of verdant montane forest and starkly awesome volcanic scenery. Dense forest hides puma, the rare pudú (a miniature deer) and prolific bird life, including the Chilean torrent duck. Nature trails, lake views, ski resorts, thermal springs, waterfalls and examples of some of Chile's strange plant life, in particular the umbrella-leaved nalca and multi-trunked ulmo, are some of the many attractions which draw visitors.
 Puerto Montt: Settled by German colonists in the mid-19th century, this is one of southern Chile 's most important cities. It features middle-European architecture, with shingles, high-pitched roofs and ornate balconies. The redwood cathedral on the city's plaza is the city's oldest building, dating from 1856. Puerto Montt is the transport hub and access point to the southern Lakes District, the island of Chiloé and Chilean Patagonia. The nearby port of Angelmó and the island of Tenglo offer a more relaxed atmosphere. Angelmó has an outstanding crafts market and fabulous seafood.
Valparaíso : Lying 120km (74mi) northwest of Santiago , Valpo is Chile 's  principal port and second-largest city. Despite its size, it is Chile 's most distinctive city and one of South America 's most intriguing. Occupying a narrow strip of land between the waterfront and the nearby hills, its convoluted center has distinctive, sinuous cobbled streets, and is overlooked by precipitous cliffs and hilltop suburbs which are accessed by funicular railways and stairway footpaths. It truly is a rabbit-warren of a place, which probably only a lifetime resident could completely fathom. It is conducive to maze-like strolls and rides on the funicular, and its natural history, fine arts and maritime museums are justly famed. Muelle Prat, the recently redeveloped pier, is a lively market area.
 Chiloé: Only about 180km (112mi) long and 50km (31mi) wide, the Isla Grande de Chiloé is a well-watered, densely forested island of undulating hills, with a temperate maritime climate. It is linked to the Chilean mainland by ferries departing from the island's northern tip. Its towns feature distinctive shingled houses and stilt homes, and its weather is known for precipitation and fog. When visible, however, a majestic panorama across the gulf to the snow-capped volcanoes of the mainland are revealed. Ancud and Castro are the only two sizeable towns, but there are over 150 picturesque wooden churches servicing the island's small villages. Parque Nacional Chiloé protects extensive stands of native coniferous and evergreen forest and a long and almost pristine coastline. The rare pudú also lives here.
Easter Island (Rapa Nui ): Lying 3700km (2294mi) west of the Chilean  mainland, enigmatic Easter Island is the world's most remote inhabited island. It is actually more Polynesian than Chilean, though the presence of Pacific Islanders in this isolated part of the world is as much a mystery as how their descendants managed to design and sculpt the hundreds of colossal statues (moai) from hard volcanic basalt - let alone transport them from the inland quarries to the coast. This really is off the beaten track: you can sail more than 1900km (1178mi) in any direction without sighting inhabited land. Chile officially annexed the island in 1888 during the period of expansion which followed the War of the Pacific. Only about 2000 people live on the island, and nearly all of them live in the town of Hanga Roa . The population is 70% Polynesian, with most of the remainder coming from the Chilean mainland. The island is virtually an open-air national park, and boasts 300 moais and related stonework.
 Parque Nacional Laguna San Rafael : Despite the difficulty and expense of getting here, this glacier-filled, 1.7-million hectare (4.2 million acre) park in southern Patagonia is the most popular attraction in the Aisén region. It encompasses some of the most spectacular fjord and mountain scenery in the world and is dense with floating icebergs. The terrain is unforgiving for hikers, but the rewards are many: in the water there are ducks, albatross, Magellanic penguins, otters, sea lions and elephant seals; in the surrounding forests and uplands there are pudús, pumas and foxes. Charter flights from Coyhaique land in the park, and there are a number of (costly) ferry services from Coyhaique and Puerto Chacabuco.
Parque Nacional Lauca: This world biosphere reserve, 160km (99mi)  northeast of Arica , near the Bolivian border, encompasses Lake Chungará , one of the highest lakes in the world, spectacularly situated at the foot of the dormant twin Pallachata volcanoes. It supports vicuña, condor and vizcacha, and Aymara alpaca and llama herders. There is extensive bird life along the shores of Lake Cotacotani , and panoramic views from the 5300m (17,384ft) summit of Cerro Guane Guane.
Parque Nacional Torres del Paine: Near Chile 's fragmented southern  tip, this park is Chile 's showpiece: a world biosphere reserve with all the diverse scenery of Alaska in only 180,000ha (444,600ac). The Torres del Paine are spectacular granite pillars which soar almost vertically for more than 2000m (6560ft) above the Patagonian steppe. Cascading waterfalls, sprawling glaciers, dense forests, and the chance to see Patagonian guanaco make it a truly awesome experience. Viña del Mar : Chile 's premier beach resort is just a two-hour bus ride north of Santiago . The bustling commercial centre is also known as the Garden City, for reasons that are immediately obvious to any visitor. Viña del Mar developed as a playground for wealthy santiaguinos when nearby Valparaíso was linked to the capital by rail. It isn't a sinuously terraced marvel like Valparaíso, so its two distinct sectors of traditional mansions and commercial activity are easy to navigate. Horse-drawn carriages trot past attractive turn-of-the-century mansions on both river and beach frontages. The town is also the home of Chile 's national botanical garden, comprising 61ha (151ac) of native and exotic plants. White-sand beaches stretch from the town centre northward to the overbuilt suburbs of Reñaca and Concón. For a less crowded swim and bake, it's perhaps best to continue on to the less suburban Horcón, Maitencillo, Cachagua and Papudo. Other than aquatic activities, Viña del Mar has a clutch of museums and the magnificently landscaped Quinta Vergara public park, with its Palacio Vergara. The Venetian-style palazzo was formerly the residence of the prosperous Alvarez-Vergara family, and now hosts the Museo Municipal de Bellas Artes. Buses head out to Viña from Santiago every 15 minutes.
Volcán Osorno: This flawless cone sits in the Parque Nacional Vicente  Pérez Rosales, the first national park in Chile , and is surrounded by wonderful natural attractions. Beautiful Lago Todos Los Santos is the centerpiece of the park, looking over the thickly wooded vista to the volcano, and offering ferry trips to nearby lakeside villages. Osorno can be climbed and is a popular skiing spot. |
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