Chile attractions

The Nao Victoria Museum in Punta Arenas is home to full-scale replicas of world-famous ships, including Magellan’s Nao Victoria (the first ship to sail around the world), Shackleton’s James Caird lifeboat, and the HMS Beagle, which a young Darwin called home for five years. Replicas of antique weapons, sailing instruments, and important documents are also displayed.

Reigning supreme from a hill overlooking the Magellan Strait, Fort Bulnes (Fuerte Bulnes) has been reconstructed to look exactly as it did when it was first built by Chilean settlers back in 1843. In addition to offering panoramic vistas of Punta Arenas from its watchtower, the reconstructed fortress features a museum that explores the fascinating colonial history of southern Chile.

The grand, tree-lined Plaza Muñoz Gamero (also known as the Plaza de Armas) is a popular gathering place in Punta Arenas due to its historic atmosphere and close proximity to some of the city’s most important attractions. Surrounded by 19th-century baroque mansions, the plaza offers a glimpse into Punta Arenas during its heydey

Tumbling into Grey Lake (Lago Grey) in the heart of Torres del Paine National Park, massive Grey Glacier is almost 100 feet (30 meters) high at its peak. An arresting backdrop of snowcapped mountains adds to the glacier’s frozen enchantment.

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.

Chile's Atacama Desert is the driest desert in the world, but it's far from a barren wasteland. Instead, the vast and arid landscape offers plenty to see and explore, including hot springs, lagoons, salt flats, and active geysers. The Atacama also has some of the world's best stargazing opportunities thanks to its high altitude and lack of light pollution.

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.

Inaugurated in 1894, the Punta Arenas Cemetery (Cementerio Municipal Sara Braun) is the final resting place for some of the area’s most famous historical figures. Notable families, including the Menendez-Behetys, even have their own chapels. A visit to the beautiful cypress tree-lined cemetery provides a peek into the lives of those who shaped much of Punta Arenas’ fascinating history.

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.

Covering 286 square miles (740 square kilometres), Los Flamencos National Reserve (Reserva Nacional Los Flamencos) is home to some of the most stunning scenery in the Atacama Desert. Between the Andes and Chile’s Pacific coast, the park has glittering salt flats, wind-sculpted moonscapes, and high-altitude lagoons surrounded by wild flamingos.

Arrayanes Forest (Bosque de Arrayanes), named after the rare Arrayán trees that grow along the northern shores of Nahuel Huapi Lake, is Los Arrayanes National Park's star attraction. Covering more than 4,000 acres (1,600 hectares) along the Quetrihué Peninsula, it’s a picturesque spot for hiking and wildlife watching.

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.

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.

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.

Situated in the popular Torres del Paine National Park, the Salto Grande Waterfall is fed by the ice-blue waters of Nordenskjöld Lake and tumbles 50 feet (15 meters) into Lake Pehoé below. Admire the Salto Grande Waterfall—one of the most impressive attractions in the park—during a beginner-friendly day hike and look out for grazing guanacos (camelids).

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.

A few minutes west of Puerto Montt’s center, Angelmó is famous for its craft and fish markets. The colorful, bustling markets are crammed with vendors, making it a popular spot for visitors to stroll along the waterfront, browse for souvenirs, and grab a fresh seafood meal. It’s touristy but well worth a visit while in Puerto Montt.

Tebenquiche Lagoon (Laguna Tebenquiche is a vast salt lake with a unique appearance. The lake is so shallow that its underlying lunar-like salt bed is clearly visible from the surface. Since there is so little water and often so little movement, the lake acts as a mirror, reflecting the surrounding mountains.

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.

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.

Take a journey to Chile’s ghost towns, the Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works. These UNESCO World Heritage sites are remnants of the saltpeter mining era, and offer a glimpse into Chile’s industrial past. You can wander through the well-preserved buildings and uncover the stories of the hardworking people who once called these towns home.

The pre-Columbian Pukará de Quitor National Monument overlooks the fertile Río San Pedro valley from atop a strategic bluff. Its serpentine rows of thick, stone walls defended the verdant oasis since around AD 1100. Today, the fortress's impressive architecture and historic significance make it one of Chile's most important archaeological sites.

Founded by the Guilisasti family in 1986, Emiliana Organic Winery was the first winery in Chile (and one of the first in the world) to make a foray into organic wine production. The winery began its organic agricultural practices in an effort to preserve the environment, promote healthy soil, and ultimately improve the quality of the grapes. Besides wine, Emiliana also grows organic vegetables for the workers and their families, and produces honey and olive oil from trees grown throughout the vineyards.

Thickly forested with diverse trees that include the native araucaria, laced with dozens of lakes, and home to the cone-shaped Lanín Volcano, Lanín National Park is a Patagonian treasure in the Argentine state of Neuquén. Travelers flock here to enjoy some of Argentina’s best hiking, kayaking, sport fishing of salmon and trout, and camping.

Founded in 1970, Lauca National Park in North Chile is part of a UNESCO-designated Global Biosphere Reserve. The park’s dramatic natural scenery encompasses lakes, lagoons, snow-capped mountains, and hot springs; and is home to more than 140 different species of birds, making it one of the best places for birdwatching in northern Chile.

Northern Chile's Elqui Valley is a magnet for travelers interested in pisco distilleries, wineries, agriculture, and the area's natural beauty. Its proximity to the Atacama Desert makes it an exceptional place for stargazing, and there are plenty of astro-tourism opportunities in the area.

High in the Andean foothills, at a lung-testing 8,200 feet (2,500 meters), travelers can sink into the thermal springs of Baños Colina that are naturally heated by the San José volcano. The waters have a high mineral content—and are believed to have healing qualities—promising soothed skin after an alpine soak with a view.

When Magellan passed through his eponymous strait bound for Chile for the first time, he cruised past the tiny Magdalena Island (Isla Magdalena). Today, travelers make it a point to stop at this scenic island just northeast of Punta Arenas to explore the rocky shores and observe the huge colony of Magellanic penguins at their critical breeding site.

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.