Santiago attractions

Forestal Park (Parque Forestal), the natural green lung of Santiago, provides a peaceful break from the frenetic bustle of Chile’s capital city. Stretching from Central Market to Plaza Italia, this area offers walking paths shaded by leafy trees and two popular museums: the MAC (Museo de Arte Contemporáneo) and Palacio de Bellas Artes.

Tucked within Cajón del Maipo, a narrow river valley snaking its way up to the Andes just outside Santiago, lies Termas Valle de Colina. These mineral hot springs at the base of the San José Volcano comprise eight different milky blue pools set to different temperatures for comfortable (and supposedly restorative) soaking.

Ahumada Boulevard is a popular pedestrian thoroughfare that draws in shoppers, street vendors, and plenty of street performers. The four-block long street runs from north to south between the Plaza de Armas de Santiago and the Alameda (Avenida Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins) and bustles from dawn to dusk—and sometimes beyond.

El Yeso Dam (Embalse El Yeso), which was built in 1964, created a turquoise reservoir that can hold more than 253 million cubic meters of water. Though just a couple hours outside of Santiago, the snow-capped mountains that surround the site are more reminiscent of rural Patagonia than of the bustling metropolis.

Cajón del Maipo, a narrow canyon in the Andes mountain range where the Maipo River flows, begins just 16 miles (25 kilometers) southwest of Santiago, but its picturesque scenery, fresh mountain air, and charming mountain towns feel worlds away from Chile’s capital city. Thanks to its close proximity, Cajón del Maipo is one of the more popular destinations for a day trip from Santiago.

Situated at Plaza de Armas in central Santiago, the Central Post Office is as beautiful as it is functional. This 19th-century Renaissance-style building features ornate exteriors and elegant interiors crowned by a glass-covered roof that fills the space with natural light.

The Chilean poet and politician Pablo Neruda helped design this quirky, nautical-themed home for himself and his third wife, Matilde Urrutia, for whom La Chascona—which translates from Spanish as tangle-haired woman—is named. Home to an eclectic collection of Neruda’s possessions, the house offers insight into one of the most important figures in Chile’s recent history.

Believed to be the oldest building in Santiago, the San Francisco Church (Iglesia de San Francisco) dates back to when the city was first settled by Spaniards. Its construction began in the late 16th century, and unlike most buildings of its era, parts of the structure were able to withstand numerous earthquakes over the centuries.

In Santiago’s ritzy Las Condes neighborhood, Parque Arauco is one of Chile’s biggest and best-known shopping malls. Whether you need to pick up some essentials or want to shop till you drop, you’ll find a range of stylish options, from high-end global brands such as Louis Vuitton and Versace, to department stores including South America’s biggest, Falabella.

Situated on the Mapocho River in the Providencia neighborhood, Sculpture Park Museum is a grassy parkland featuring a variety of sculptures, many of which are quite large. It's a great spot to come for a picnic or a stroll, and its location at the base of San Cristobal Hill makes it a natural stop after taking in city views.

Among Santiago's swankiest suburbs, Vitacura is home to luxury homes, high-end hotels and restaurants, and plenty of great shops. It’s across San Cristobal Hill (Cerro San Cristobal) from central Santiago and is home to Parque Bicentenario, which features walking paths, benches, and a dog park.

Hailed as the most important museum in Chile, the Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino (the Chilean Museum of Pre-Columbian Art) has a collection of artifacts that spans 4,500 years of history. The gallery is housed in the former Royal Customs Palace, a neoclassical space chosen by the museum’s private collector, Sergio Larraín García-Moreno.

The Museum of Memory and Human Rights honors the victims of Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship by chronicling his despotic rule from 1973 to 1990. This museum is not for the faint of heart, offering accounts of human rights abuses with exhibits featuring torture devices, video footage of political rallies, and photographs of the victims, called the "disappeared."

Chile is celebrated for its wine. Many winery visits require long car rides from Santiago, but Cousino Macul makes it easy to immerse yourself in the winery experience without leaving the city. Founded in 1856, this family-run winery produces merlot, syrah, and cabernet sauvignon from estate-grown grapes.

These interconnected villages of Farellones and El Colorado—located only one hour from Santiago—comprise one of the most popular ski resorts in the country, both because of their proximity to the capital and their location among the snow-capped peaks of the Andes. As opposed to Valle Nevado, El Colorado is recommended for beginner and non-skiers.

Inspired by the French resort of Les Arcs, Valle Nevado Ski Resort contains almost 7,000 acres (2,832 hectares) of skiable domain, making it the largest accessible ski spread in South America. The resort offers opportunities for skiers and snowboarders of all levels, as well as gourmet dining, nightlife, and accommodation options to suit all budgets.

The small Chilean village of Pomaire is best-known for its skilled artisans, who make the clay dishes used all over Chile to serve soup, olives, and sauces. An easy day trip from the capital, a visit to Pomaire offers a combination of sightseeing, shopping, and traditional Chilean food.

Santiago's Club Hípico is the most famous of the city’s horse race tracks. Dating back to 1870, it's Chile’s oldest racetrack and home to South America's oldest, and most prestigious, stakes race, the Clásico El Ensayo, making it the best place to see thoroughbred horse racing in the Chilean capital.

Santiago’s principal market, La Vega CentralMarketis a chaotic, colorful snapshot of daily life in the Chilean capital. Housed in the salmon-colored Mercado Central and bustling with locals and travelers alike, La Vega is one of the most vibrant places in the city to pick up fresh, seasonal produce and try local cuisine.

Home to almost two dozen vineyards—including Casa Silva and MontGras, producers of award-winning reds such as cabernet sauvignon, merlot, and carménère—the Colchagua Valley is one of the most prolific and emblematic wine regions in Chile. With a climate and landscape as appealing as its wine, the valley is a popular side trip for Santiago-based travelers.

Located around 32 miles (50 kilometers) from the Chilean capital, Santiago, La Parva Ski Resort offers the opportunity to enjoy a day of skiing without traveling far from the city. In the Andes mountain range, 9,000 feet (2,750 meters) above sea level offers sweeping views of the Santiago Valley and endless powder skiing.

Chile’s Maipo Valley is often called the Bordeaux of South America for its numerous wine producers. Maipo’s many estates are among the nation’s top vineyards and its easy access from Santiago, and spectacular scenery makes it an ideal place for travelers looking to sample the nation’s favorite reds and whites.

Escape Santiago city life for a day, and hike El Morado, one of Cajón de Maipo’s most popular natural monuments. A serpentine trail leads you past the ice-blue San Francisco Glacier, way up high to a lookout. If you need to catch your breath, stop for coffee and German-style sweets while taking in the views of snow-capped peaks.

One of Chile’s most-loved ski resorts, Portillo occupies a picturesque piece of the Andes, above a turquoise lagoon and below some of the most sought-after peaks in South America. Ski Portillo attracts skiers and snowboarders of all ages who enjoy incredible powder on slopes suitable for beginner, intermediate, and advanced skiers.

If you're in the market for handicrafts in Chile, Santiago’s Los Dominicos Handicraft Village, set in a historic cloister, is the place to be. Here you'll find everything from jewelry to sweaters, many of which are made on-site and sold by the artisans who produced them.

Among Chile's best-known wineries, Matetic Vineyards in the San Antonio Valley specializes in organic and biodynamic wines. This family-owned producer welcomes visitors who want to tour the vineyards, learn about biodynamic grape growing, and—of course—taste what the winery has to offer.

Parque Safari is an animal park and safari center that allows you to get closer to wild animals than you would at a traditional zoo. The only one of its kind in Chile, the park gives you the chance to observe giraffes, emus, lions, and animatronic dinosaurs while riding in a variety of different types of vehicles.

During the 1800s, Mapocho Station served as both the heart of Chile’s nation-wide railway network and the country’s gateway to the rest of the world, due to its links to the port town of Valparaiso. Today, after being reopened as the Centro Cultural Estación Mapocho, the National Monument hosts cultural events and performances throughout the year.

Popular among families and science fans, the National Museum of Natural History (Museo Nacional de Historia Natural) features exhibits on everything from dinosaurs to early human life. Since 1830, the museum has housed a herbarium of Chilean and exotic plants; today, the collection features over 150,000 plant specimens.

Home to some of the last remaining Chilean Wine Palm trees, La Campana National Park encompasses more than 17,000 acres (6,879 hectares) of settlement ruins and hiking trails. Charles Darwin himself paid the UNESCO-listed biosphere reserve a visit in 1834 and hiked to the top of the scenic hill that gave the park its name.