Santiago Tourist Places to Visit in Santiago, Chile, America

Santiago Tourist Places to Visit in Santiago, Chile, America

Santiago is the capital city of Chile situated in the central valley of the country at 33°27′0″ S 70°40′0″ W. It is widely known for many colonial period buildings, elegant parks, dozens of shopping centers, the University of Chile and the highest building in Latin America, the Gran Torre Santiago. Metro de Santiago is the most broad subway system of South America.

Geography of Santiago:

Santiago is spread over an area of 641 sq. km. with an elevation of 520 meters. It enjoys relatively hot and dry summers from November to March and humid and cool winters from June to August and receives an average rainfall of 360 mm per year.

Brief history of Santiago:

Spanish Conquistador Pedro de Valdivia was the founder of Santiago, founded on 12 February 1541 as Santiago de Nueva Extremadura. It has been the capital of Chile since its foundation.

How to reach Santiago?

Santiago is home to the most important airport of the country, Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport located around 30 km from the downtown Santiago with scheduled flights to major international destinations including Frankfurt, Atlanta, Madrid, Sydney, New York and Mexico City.

Centro Puerto bus costs Ch$1300 per way to downtown from airport while Tur Bus costs Ch$1400 per way.

Santiago has well developed metro train system and also tourists can use taxi or city bus or rental car to get around.

Culture, Food and Shopping in Santiago:

Santiago is commercial as well as the cultural capital of Chile with plenty of colonial era buildings, churches and museums. The major orchestra that performed in Santiago is Philharmonic Orchestra of Santiago and Symphonic Orchestra of Chile.

The major shopping options in Chile are:

Mall Alto Las Condes
Mall Portal La Dehesa
Mall Plaza Vespucio

List of prominent restaurants in Chile include:

Ciudad Vieja
Los Buenos Muchachos
Boulevard Lavaud

Things to do in Santiago:

Free Tours Santiago
Foto Ruta Santiago
Tours 4 Tips
Visit wineries

Places of interest in Santiago:

Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts:

Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts was initially established in 1880 as National Painting Museum and the current structure dates back to 1910. French-Chilean architect Emile Jecquier was the designer of the museum designed with Beaux-arts style and is situated within Parque Forestal.

Plaza de Armas:

Plaza de Armas is the central square of Santiago holding much historically important structure including Central Post Office Building, Palacio de la Real Audiencia de Santiago and Metropolitan Cathedral of Santiago. Nice place to walk.

O’Higgins Park:

Measuring an area about 190 acres, O’Higgins Park is the 2^nd largest public park of Chile (behind Santiago’s Metropolitan Park). It was named in the honor of Bernardo O’Higgins who was one of the independence leaders of Chile. Perfect place for whole family.

Other places of interest near Santiago include:

Palacio de La Moneda
Víctor Jara Stadium
Central Station
Barrio Bellavista
Valle Nevado
El Colorado
Santa Lucía Hill
Parque Araucano
Parque Padre Hurtado
San Cristóbal Hill
Palacio Cousino
Iglesia y museo de San Francisco
Parque Bicentenario
Jazz Clubs

Best time to visit Santiago:

The best months to visit Santiago are December, January and February.

Accommodation options in Santiago:

Santiago is home to numerous world class hotels as well as affordable service apartments and lodges. Budget hotels charge around US$50 per night, mid range-US$100+ and spurge- around US$200. Here is the list of best budget, mid range and top end hotels in Santiago:

Budget: