Chile

& Easter Island

Carolyn McCarthy Greg Benchwick, Jean-Bernard Carillet, Victoria Patience, Kevin Raub

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BEST OF CHILE

Spindly Chile stretches over half the continent, from the driest desert in the world to massive glacial fields. Its slenderness makes it a snap to explore its boggling diversity of volcanoes, geysers, beaches, lakes, rivers, steppe and countless islands. So, what’s on offer? Everything. With easy infrastructure, spectacular sights and the most hospitable hosts around, the hardest part of a visit to Chile is planning your day.

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n

Santiago

All roads lead to Santiago. Scout out the urban edge of this once-conformist capital at design shops and chic clubs or soak up some classic Latin culture at lively café debates and Sunday dinners that stretch all day. Once your urban fix is filled, stroll the parks or take refuge in the Andean peaks just beyond the city skyline.

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o n

Cerro San Cristóbal & Parque Metropolitano

p rBarrio Bellavista

With its 880m summit, steep funicular, and 5km of cable car, this enormous city park (p87) offers stunning vistas of the city. If smog hides the view, there’s a zoo, botanical gardens and swimming pools to keep you busy.

Pablo Neruda was as skilled with the cocktail shaker as he was with the pen, so it’s fitting that one of his houses (p87) now watches over the bar-lined cobbled streets of Bellavista (p87) where Chile’s most kicking carrete (partying) goes down.

oBarrio Lastarria &

sMuseo Chileno de Arte

Don your chunky black spectacles and turtleneck, then strike a pose amongst the designers and writers: with two great museums, a string of bijoux bars and cafés and dinky design stores, these two central hoods (p86) are the heart of Santiago’s art scene.

Ceramics, metalwork, textiles and stone carvings from all over Latin America chart the continent’s rich history and culture before the European invasion. Mummies and trippy shamanic accessories make for more offbeat finds (p83).

pMercado Central &

tCajón del Maipo

Barrio Bellas Artes

La Vega Central

See some of Santiago’s best food before it makes it onto your plate at the city’s best markets. The Mercado Central (p83) is a shining silver-mine of seafood while La Vega Central (p89) is the mother lode for fruit and vegetables.

qMaipo Valley Wineries

Sample big-bodied reds at top wineries (p118) without leaving town. From chichi boutique set-ups like Viña Aquitania to vinicultural behemoths like Viña Cousiño Macul or Viña Concha y Toro, some of Chile’s finest wine is only a bus- or subway-ride away.

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Precolombino

Ditch the traffic and the smog and head for the hills: you can hike, ride and raft your way along the steep-sided canyon of the Río Maipo (p116), just two hours from Santiago.

uLa Piojera

It’s riotously loud, reeks of sour booze and cat pee, and the name translates as ‘the louse-pit.’ Yet with its dangerously potent drink mixes, aging barmen and rowdy, guitar-strumming regulars, this 90-year-old bar (p105) is a local institution.

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Contents On the Road

4

Best of Chile

5

Destination Chile & Easter Island

20

Getting Started

21

Itineraries

25

History

30

The Culture

44

Food & Drink

53

Environment

62

Outdoors

70

Santiago

76

History Orientation Information Dangers & Annoyances Sights Activities Walking Tour Courses Santiago for Children Tours Festivals & Events Sleeping Eating Drinking Entertainment Shopping Getting There & Away Getting Around AROUND SANTIAGO

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77 77 77 82 82 92 93 94 94 94 95 95 98 104 107 110 112 113 115

Pomaire Cajón del Maipo Ski Centers

115 116 119

121

Middle Chile

VALPARAÍSO & THE CENTRAL COAST Valparaíso Viña del Mar North of Viña del Mar South of Valparaíso Parque Nacional La Campana ACONCAGUA VALLEY Los Andes Portillo SOUTHERN HEARTLAND Rancagua Around Rancagua Santa Cruz Pichilemu Curicó Reserva Nacional Radal Siete Tazas Talca Around Talca Reserva Nacional Altos de Lircay Chillán Around Chillán Concepción Around Concepción Cañete Salto del Laja Parque Nacional Laguna del Laja Los Angeles Angol Parque Nacional Nahuelbuta

Norte Grande Arica Around Arica Chile 11 Highway Parque Nacional Lauca South of Parque Nacional Lauca Pisagua Iquique East of Iquique

123 123 134 138 140 141 142 142 143 144 144 146 147 149 151 152 153 156 156 158 161 163 167 168 168 169 170 171 172

174 177 185 185 189 192 193 194 201

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CONTENTS

Pica Tocopilla Gatico & Cobija María Elena Calama Around Calama San Pedro de Atacama Around San Pedro de Atacama Reserva Nacional Los Flamencos El Tatio Geysers Toconao Mejillones Antofagasta Around Antofagasta South of Antofagasta

Norte Chico

204 205 206 206 206 210 212 219 220 221 221 222 223 227 228

230

Chañaral Parque Nacional Pan de Azúcar Caldera Around Caldera Bahía Inglesa Copiapó Parque Nacional Nevado Tres Cruces Huasco Valley Parque Nacional Llanos de Challe Reserva Nacional Pingüino de Humboldt La Serena Around La Serena Coquimbo Guanaqueros & Tongoy Elqui Valley Ovalle Around Ovalle Parque Nacional Fray Jorge Los Vilos

Sur Chico

233 234 235 235 235 240 241 242 243 244 250 251 252 252 258 259 261 261

263

LA ARAUCANÍA Temuco Parque Nacional Tolhuaca Parque Nacional Conguillío Curacautín Reserva Nacional Malalcahuello-Nalcas Melipeuco Villarrica

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231

266 266 271 272 273 274 275 275

Pucón Parque Nacional Villarrica Río Liucura Valley Parque Nacional Huerquehue Curarrehue Lican Ray LOS RÍOS Coñaripe Lago Panguipulli Lago Pirihueico Valdivia Around Valdivia Lago Ranco THE LAKES DISTRICT Osorno Entre Lagos Termas de Puyehue Parque Nacional Puyehue Puerto Octay Frutillar Puerto Varas Ensenada Parque Nacional Vicente Pérez Rosales Cochamó Río Cochamó Valley Puelo Río Puelo Valley Puerto Montt

Chiloé Ancud Pingüinera Puñihuil Chepu Quemchi Tenaún Isla Mechuque Dalcahue Isla Quinchao Castro Chonchi Parque Nacional Chiloé Quellón

Northern Patagonia Hornopirén Parque Nacional Hornopirén Parque Pumalín Chaitén Termas El Amarillo Lago Yelcho

278 284 285 286 287 287 288 288 288 289 289 294 294 295 295 298 299 299 300 301 302 307 308 311 311 312 312 313

321 323 327 327 328 328 328 329 330 332 336 337 339

341 343 344 345 348 350 351

Villa Santa Lucía Futaleufú Palena La Junta Puerto Puyuhuapi Termas del Ventisquero Termas de Puyuhuapi Parque Nacional Queulat Around Parque Nacional Queulat Puerto Cisnes Coyhaique Reserva Nacional Coyhaique Reserva Nacional Río Simpson Monumento Natural dos Lagunas Puerto Chacabuco Parque Nacional Laguna San Rafael Reserva Nacional Cerro Castillo Villa Cerro Castillo Puerto Ingeniero Ibáñez Chile Chico Reserva Nacional Jeinemeni Puerto Río Tranquilo Cruce El Maitén Puerto Guadal Puerto Bertrand Cochrane Reserva Nacional Tamango Caleta Tortel South to Villa O’Higgins Villa O’Higgins

Southern Patagonia

351 351 353 353 354 355 355 355 356 356 357 362 363 363 363 364 364 364 365 365 366 367 367 367 368 368 369 370 370 371

373

MAGALLANES Punta Arenas Around Punta Arenas ÚLTIMA ESPERANZA Puerto Natales Cueva del Milodón Parque Nacional Bernardo O’Higgins Parque Nacional Torres del Paine ARGENTINE PATAGONIA El Calafate Perito Moreno & Parque Nacional Los Glaciares (South)

375 376 384 386 386 392 392 393 400 400 404

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SANTIAGO

76

Santiago There’s definitely something in the air here. But like its infamous cloud of smog, Santiago’s charm is hard to pin down. When people make comparisons, Santiago always seems to come up short. Less cultural than Buenos Aires. Less colonial than Lima. Less Latin American than Mexico City. Less exciting than Rio. But it’s also less chaotic, less run down, less insular, less dangerous and less damn large. If Latin America’s cities are a family of hotheads and outrageous flirts, then Santiago’s the cool, well-balanced sibling who knows what’s what and just gets on with it. The rest of Chile does a roaring trade in life-changing views and earth-shattering experiences. In the capital, pleasures are more measured. Think diverse dining, walks in parks, kicking nightlife, low-key hiking and skiing on its outskirts, and an independent cultural scene that’s slowly blossoming. And for all Santiago’s differences with its Latino neighbors, it still has its fair share of fin-de-siècle townhouses and colonial mansions, hectic food markets, steaming street-side snack stands, mass demonstrations and hordes of fanatical fútbol fans, all overlooked by the stark peaks of the Andes. Glance at any road map of Chile and it’s clear that all roads lead to Santiago. Chances are your trip will come through here, so take a couple of days to see the city. Forget the putdowns: whether you’re running errands, shopping for dinner or planning a night on the tiles, this is the place to give out-and-out touring a break and live a little more like a local. HIGHLIGHTS „ Get a different perspective on Santiago –

and the mountains behind it – from the top of Cerro San Cristóbal (p87) „ People-watch over coffee and cake in the

cafés (p104) of Barrio Bellas Artes or Barrio Lastarria, Santiago’s hippest ‘hoods „ Dine, drink, then dance your way to dawn in

Bellavista (p106), carrete (party) central „ Trace the roots of Chilean culture through

the preconquest art of the Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino (p83)

Cerro San Cristóbal

Valle Nevado

Barrio Bellavista Barrio Lastarria Museo Chileno Barrio Bellas Artes de Arte Precolombino

„ Tear up the slopes at Valle Nevado (p120),

Chile’s top ski resort

„ POPULATION: 4,946,345

„ AREA: 2030 SQ KM

„ ELEVATION: 543M

„ TELEPHONE CODE: x02

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lonelyplanet.com

ORIENTATION Greater Santiago is wedged between two mountain ranges, the Andes and the coastal cordillera. Although it’s made up of some 32 comunas (districts), most sights and activities are concentrated in a few central neighborhoods.

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East–west thoroughfare Av O’Higgins (better known as the Alameda) is the city’s main axis; east of Plaza Italia it becomes Av Providencia and then Av Apoquindo. Metro Línea 1 runs under it for much of its length. Flowing roughly parallel to the north is the highly polluted Río Mapocho, which effectively acts as the border between downtown and the northern suburbs. Two hills punctuate the otherwise flat cityscape: Cerro San Cristóbal, a major recreational park, and the smaller Cerro Santa Lucía. Efficient, regular bus services connect Santiago with Arturo Merino Benítez airport, just west of the city (see p112) and the four main long-distance bus stations all lie along Línea 1 of the metro (see p114).

SANTIAGO

HISTORY Nomadic hunter-gatherers wandered here as early as 10,000 BC, but only in 800 BC did Mapuche-related peoples settle here. Not longer after the Inka made the area a major hub on their road network, Spanish soldier Pedro de Valdivia arrived and founded the city of Santiago de la Nueva Extremadura on February 12, 1541, then marched off to attack the Mapuche to the south. Mapuche living nearby weren’t happy and attacked: Valdivia’s girlfriend, Inés de Suárez, turned out to be as bloodthirsty as he was, and led the defense of the city, personally decapitating at least one Mapuche chief. Despite ongoing attacks, floods and earthquakes, the conquistadores didn’t budge and eventually Santiago began to grow. Santiago was the backdrop for Chile’s declaration of independence from Spain in 1810 and the final battle that overthrew the colonial powers in 1818. As the population grew, public-works projects transformed the city, which became the hub of Chile’s growing rail network before displacing Valparaíso as Chile’s financial capital in the early 20th century. Not everyone prospered, however. Impoverished farmers flocked to the city and the upper classes migrated to the eastern suburbs. Rapid post-WWII industrialization created urban jobs, but never enough to satisfy demand, resulting in scores of squatter settlements known as callampas (‘mushrooms’, so-called because they sprang up virtually overnight). Santiago was at the center of the 1973 coup that deposed Salvador Allende. During the dark years that followed, thousands of political prisoners were executed, and torture centers and clandestine prisons were scattered throughout Santiago. Despite this, military commander-in-chief General Augusto Pinochet was Chile’s president until 1990. Smog set in and the gap between rich and poor widened in the ’90s. Authorities are trying to resolve the city’s problems, but social inequality – though less pronounced than in other Latin American cities – looks set to linger for some time at least.

SANTIAGO •• History

Maps Tourist offices distribute an ever-changing collection of free (ie sponsored) maps of the Centro and Providencia, but many lack entire streets or sights. The searchable map at Map City (www.mapcity.com, in Spanish) is one reliable online resource. For trekking and mountaineering information, as well as inexpensive maps and other national park publications (mostly in Spanish), visit Conaf (Corporación Nacional Forestal; Map pp84-5; %390-0125; www.conaf.cl, in Spanish; Bulnes 285, Centro; h9:30am-5:30pm Mon-Thu, 9:30am-4:30pm Fri). For

more detailed topographical maps, go to the Instituto Geográfico Militar (IGM; Mapp84-5; %4606800; Dieciocho 369, Centro; h9am-5:30pm Mon-Fri). The road maps in the Spanish-language Turistel guides are invaluable when driving in the areas around Santiago, but have no city plan.

INFORMATION Bookstores

Books in Chile are seriously expensive, especially books in English – new English-language guidebooks start at around CH$25,000, for example. Foreign newspapers and magazines are available at kiosks at the junction of Ahumada and Huérfanos. Books Secondhand (Map pp90-1; %235-1205; Av Providencia 1652, Galería del Patio Local 5, Providencia; h11am-2pm & 4-8pm Mon-Fri, 11am-3pm Sat; mPedro de Valdivia) The best range of quality Englishlanguage paperbacks in town, including some guidebooks. Contrapunto (www.contrapunto.cl; h10:30am-8pm Mon-Fri, 10:30am-2pm Sat) Centro (Map pp84-5; %4819776; Huérfanos 665, Local 1, Centro; mUniversidad de Chile); Providencia (Map pp90-1; %231-2947; Av

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Index ABBREVIATIONS Arg Bol

Argentina Bolivia

4WD tours Iquique 198 Porvenir 411-12 Uyuni (Bol) 215

INDEX

A accommodations 460-2, see also individual locations language 497-8 Achao 331-2 activities 23, 70-5, 462-3, see also individual activities addresses 463 Aguas Calientes 300 ahu 457 Ahu Akahanga 456 Ahu Akapu 446 Ahu Akivi 454-5 Ahu Ature Huki 459 Ahu Hanga Tetenga 456 Ahu Nau Nau 459 Ahu Riata 446 Ahu Tahai 446 Ahu Tautira 446 Ahu Te Pito Kura 458 Ahu Tepeu 454 Ahu Tongariki 456-7, 16 Ahu Vaihu 456 Ahu Vinapu 455-6 air travel air passes 481 airlines 475-6, 481 airports 475-6 carbon offset 477 deep vein thrombosis (DVT) 489 departure tax 476 internet resources 476 to/from Chile 475-8 within Chile 480-1, 480 Alacaluf peoples 343, 370, 409 Alcohuaz 257

000 Map pages 000 Photograph pages

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Aldea de Tulor 220 alerce 65, 346 Allende, Salvador 36, 37-8, 92 alpacas 64 Altiplano lakes 215 Ana Kai Tangata 455 Ana Te Pahu 454 Ancud 323-7, 325 Angol 171-2 animals 63-4, 432, see also individual species Antarctica 421, 422 Antillanca 300 Antofagasta 223-7, 224 aquaculture 69, 315 araucaria 65, 260, 272, 286 archaeological sites, see geoglyphs, petroglyphs Archipiélago Juan Fernández 42938, 431 architecture 51 area codes 472, see also inside front cover Arica 177-85, 179 art galleries & art museums Bodegón Cultural 262 Casa del Arte Diego Rivera 315 Centro Cultural Matucana 91 Centro Cultural Palacio La Moneda 83 Centro de Cultura (Iquique) 195 Estación Mapocho 83 La Casa del Arte 164 MAM Chiloé 334 Museo a Cielo Abierto 125 Museo Arqueológico de Santiago 87 Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino 83 Museo de Arte Contemporáneo (Santiago) 87 Museo de Arte Contemporáneo (Valdivia) 290 Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Espacio Quinta Normal 91 Museo de Artes Visuales 87 Museo de la Moda 92 Museo de la Solidaridad Salvador Allende 92 Museo Lukas 125

Museo Municipal de Bellas Artes (Viña del Mar) 135 Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes (Santiago) 87 arts 47-52 Atacama Desert 21, 62, 207, 216 Atacameño peoples 31, 46, 175, 220 Atoca 185 ATMs 469 Ayquina 222 Aymara peoples 31, 45, 46, 181, 187, 190, 191

B Bachelet, Michelle 42, 43 Bahía Inglesa 235 Bahía Tierras Blancas 437 Baños Morales 119 Baquedano 207 bargaining 471 bars 54 bathrooms 472 beaches Arica 180 Bahía Inglesa 235 Concón 139 Coquimbo 251-2 Easter Island 446, 458-9, 459 Guanaqueros 252 Horcón 139 Iquique 197 La Serena 246 Maintencillo 139 Norte Chico 234 Papudo 140 Quintay 140 Reñaca 139 Ritoque 138 safety 466 Tongoy 252 Zapallar 140 Beagle Channel 383, 420, 421, 15 beavers 68, 416 beer 55, see also breweries Belén 188 bicycle travel, see cycling & mountain biking bird watching books 64 El Calafate (Arg) 401

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Index (B-C)

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hiking 70 history 32, 33, 36, 39, 40 language 44, 495-6 wine 55 border crossings 478 Argentina 308, 371, 375, 478-80 Bolivia 480 Peru 480 breweries Cervecería Kunstmann 294 HBH Brewery 107 Bridges, Lucas 426, 427 Bucalemu 150 Buchupureo 163 Buque Huáscar 167 bus travel to/from Chile 478 within Chile 483-4, 486 bushwalking, see hiking business hours 463

C cabañas 461 cabins 461 Cabo de Hornos 416-17, 421 Cabo Froward 384 cabs 486 Cachagua 139 cacti 64 café con piernas 105 Cajón de Mapocho 119-20 Cajón del Maipo 116-19 Calama 206-10, 208 Caldera 234-5 Caleta Tortel 370 camanchaca 177 Camerón 412 camping 461 Cañete 168 canopying 74 Glaciar Martial (Arg) 420 Peulla 310 Pucón 279 Ushuaia (Arg) 420 canyoning 74 Futaleufú 351 Parque Nacional Vicente Pérez Rosales 310 Puerto Varas 304 car travel driver’s licenses 484 insurance 485 legal matters 468 rental 484-5 road rules 485-6

to/from Chile 478 within Chile 484-6 carbon offset 477 Carretera Austral 345 casa de familia 461 Casablanca Valley 141 Caspana 222 Castillo de Corral 294 Castillo de la Pura y Limpia Concepción de Monfort de Lemus 294 Castillo San Pedro de Alcántara 294 Castro 332-6, 333 Catarpe 219-20 cathedrals, see churches & cathedrals cell phones 471-2 cemeteries Cementerio Municipal (Punta Arenas) 377-9 Hanga Roa cemetery 446 Pisagua 193 Cerro Azul 157 Cerro Centinela 437 Cerro El Roble 141 Cerro Guane Guane 191 Cerro La Campana 141 Cerro Martial (Arg) 420 Cerro Sagrado 185 Cerro Unita 198 Chacabuco 207 Chaitén 348-50 Chañaral 231-3 Chañarcillo 239 Chapa Verde 146 Chatwin, Bruce 392 chemists 490 Chepu 327-8 children, travel with 463-4 food 59 health 494 language 502 Santiago 94 Chile Chico 365-6 Chilean recluse spider 493 Chillán 158-61, 159 Chiloé 321-40, 322 Chiloé mythology 329 Chinchorro peoples 186 chirimoya 53 Chiu Chiu 222 Chonchi 336-7 Choshuenco 289 Chuquicamata 210-12 churches & cathedrals 334 Catedral de Chillán 158 Catedral Metropolitana 82

INDEX

Isla de Huevos 262 Isla de los Pájaros 420 Laguna Chaxa 220-1 Laguna Cotacotani 190 Laguna Miñiques 221 Laguna Miscanti 221 Monumento Natural dos Lagunas 363 Monumento Natural Salar de Surire 192-3 Parque Nacional Lauca 191 Parque Nacional Nevado Tres Cruces 240 Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego (Arg) 425 Parque Nacional Torres del Paine 393 Reserva Nacional Jeinemeni 366-7 Santuario de la Naturaleza Laguna Conchalí 261-2 Valdivia 290 Valle Chacabuco 369 birds 64 black widow spiders 394-5 boat tours Antarctica 421, 422 Archipiélago Juan Fernández 435 Beagle Channel 383, 420, 421, 15 Cabo de Hornos 421 Caleta Tortel 370 Coquimbo 251-2 Cordillera Darwin 383 Iquique 197 Isla Navarino 414 Navimag 319 Parque Nacional Alberto de Agostini 383 Parque Nacional Bernardo O’Higgins 392-3 Parque Nacional Queulat 356 Parque Pumalín 347 Pérez Rosales Pass 308 Puerto Montt 320 South Georgia Island 421 Valdivia 290-2 boat travel 482-3, see also boat tours, kayaking Bolsico 228 books 22-4, see also literature bird watching 64 climbing 71 culture 48, 52 cycling 72 environment 65, 66, 68 food 54, 58 health 489

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