10 Reasons Why You Need to Visit Chile

Is Chile on your travel bucket list yet? If not, it should be. No South American itinerary is complete without visiting the continent’s longest and thinnest country. With a large number of flights to the continent routing through Santiago, Chile’s capital city, there’s simply no excuse to leave it out of your travels. If you need more convincing why Chile is a captivating destination worthy of your time and money, here are 10 reasons why you need to visit Chile.

Embark on an adventure of epic proportions in Chile / Photo: Canva Pro

1. Number One Adventure Travel Destination

Chile was voted the top destination in Latin America for adventure tourism in 2015 by the World Travel Awards. The array of adventure activities is staggering, from trekking in the Andes, white water rafting, climbing volcanoes, sand boarding in the desert, skiing and snowboarding, horse riding, mountain biking, surfing, and fishing. Chile has an adrenaline-pumping activity for every type of traveller.

Travel Tips:  Are you planning to travel there? Read our article and discover our Tips for a safe travel in Chile!

2. Varied Landscapes

Stretching 4300 km in length, Chile boasts extraordinarily diverse landscapes. You can see everything from spectacular glacial fields, towering Andean mountains, snow-capped volcanoes, to misty fjords, the rolling green hills and glittering lakes of the Lake District, thirst-inducing hectares of prime winelands, an endless coastline, and the Atacama desert, the driest place on earth. The ease of getting around Chile thanks to its narrow width, great bus system, and cheap internal flights, means it’s simple to combine a few vastly different locations in one trip.

Travel Tips: Enjoy an Excursion to the Salar de Atacama with Daytours4u and explore some of the most incredible places in northern Chile!

The Atacama Desert is replete with otherworldly landscapes / Photo: Canva Pro

3. One of a kind food experiences

Chile is teeming with delicious gastronomic experiences. The food is a blend of indigenous and Spanish traditions, with a fair bit of Peruvian influence as well. Its long coastline means there is an abundance of fresh seafood wherever you go. Other must-eats include pastel del choclo (corn pie), empanadas, the unbeatable hot dogs (try the italiano and completo), chorillana (the ultimate bar food) and manjar (Chile’s version of dulce de leche). For a really unique food experience head to the island of Chiloé in the south. Here you’ll find curanto en hoyo, a feast of seafood, meat, potatoes, and sides cooked on hot rocks in a hole underground.

Travel Tips: Live an authentic Chilean gastronomic experience through its wine with a Guided Tour to the Colchagua Wine Route!

4. The pisco and the wine

All that food has to be washed down with something. Luckily Chile produces incredible wines. The great thing about exploring Chile’s wineries is that many world-class bodegas are easily reached from Santiago and other popular cities like Valparaíso and Viña del Mar. But don’t skip Chile’s other grape product: pisco. Get more pleasure from your pisco sours by finding out more about how this grape spirit is made in the beautiful Elqui valley.

Travel Tips: Read our article and discover How and when to visit the Colchagua Valley.

Wine lovers will appreciate the wineries surrounding Santiago / Photo: Canva Pro

5. One of the best NYE celebrations in the world

The coastal city of Valparaíso is quickly gaining a reputation in the world for its New Year’s Eve celebration. Everyone heads up the hills that make up the city where they get wonderful views of the breathtaking fireworks display that lights up the bay at the start of each new year.

Travel Tips: Daytours4u takes you to a full-day Tour to Valparaíso and Viña del Mar! 

6. Nature Lover’s Paradise

The outstanding beauty of the country makes it a dream destination for nature lovers. The many National Parks allow tourists to get their nature fix. Some highlights are Torres del Paine National Park in Patagonia, a firm favourite for hikers, the penguin colonies around Punta Arenas, and the Vicente Pérez Rosales National Park in the lake district, home to the towering Osorno Volcano. Don’t skip the conservation parks developed by the late Douglas Tompkins, the founder of The North Face. One of the most stunning is Pumalín Park in southern Chile.

Travel Tips: Get your free Travel Guide to Torres del Paine and discover one of the most beautiful national parks of Chilean Patagonia!

The natural landscapes of Chile are intoxicatingly beautiful / Photo: Canva Pro

7. The land of volcanoes

In addition to its spectacular mountain ranges from top to bottom, Chile is also home to 500 volcanoes, of which around 120 are still active. They’re a thrilling sight, dotting the landscape with their perfect snow-covered peaks. Adding to the fun, you can climb to the top of some, including the famous Villarrica Volcano. Hit it at the right season and you can also ski down the slopes.

Travel Tips: Dare to take the Villarrica Volcano Ascent tour and conquer the top of one of Chile's most active volcanoes!

8. Gateway to Easter Island

Visit the incredible and mystical Easter Island, or Rapa Nui. This island in the Pacific Ocean is one of the most remote places on Earth and is renowned for its large stone statues, or moai. As it is a territory of Chile, there are daily flights from Santiago, and the trip is well worth the expense.

See the moai heads on mystical Easter Island / Photo: Canva Pro

9. Rich cultural heritage

Chile’s cultural heritage includes an intriguing blend of indigenous (particularly from the Mapuche), colonial Spanish and immigrant cultures. The cultural differences from the dusty desert towns in the North to the wild and windy towns in Patagonia and the quaint German-influenced lake district will make you feel like you’re travelling through multiple countries.

10. The amazing architecture

From colonial Spanish buildings to crumbling pre-Incan ruins, wooden palafitos and the quirky seaside houses of poet Pablo Neruda, Chile’s architecture will surprise and charm you no matter where you are in the country.

Travel Tips: Daytours4u takes you to explore the Chilean capital through art and culture with a Cultural City Tour in Santiago!

Enjoy the interesting array of architecture in Chile / Photo: Canva Pro

We really can’t emphasise enough how incredible Chile is. With such a diversity of landscapes, activities and culture, it really is an all-in-one destination!

 

By: Nicole Eberhard, travel writer and avid explorer, with a Masters in English Literature.