Chile

Understand

Chile borders Peru to the north and Argentina and Bolivia to the east. Chile has over 5,000 km (3,100 miles) of coast on the South Pacific Ocean.

History Before the Spanish arrived in the 16th century, northern Chile was under Inca rule while the indigenous Araucanians (Mapuche) inhabited central and southern Chile. The Mapuche were also one of the last independent American indigenous groups, that were not fully absorbed into Spanish-speaking rule until after Chile's independence. Although Chile declared independence in 1810 (amid the Napoleonic wars that left Spain without a functioning central government for a couple of years), decisive victory over the Spanish was not achieved until 1818. In the War of the Pacific (1879–1883), Chile invaded parts of Peru and Bolivia and kept its present northern regions. It was not until the 1880s that the Mapuche were completely subjugated.

Although relatively free of the coups and arbitrary governments that blighted South America until the 1970s, things took a turn for the worse in that decade. When popular communist/democratic socialist Salvador Allende won a bare plurality in the free and fair 1970 elections, he ran on a platform of social justice and bridging the (already then) huge divide between a wealthy few and the rest of the population. However, although some centre-right (most notably the Chilean Christian Democrats) parties supported or at least didn't outright attack his government, he had to deal not only with domestic opposition from some sectors of society and the military, but also a difficult international situation with the U.S. not tolerating any kind of "communist" in their "backyard". In a coup that was led by the head of the army (that Allende had picked himself, believing him to be loyal if not to himself

See

Stretching from 17°S in the north to 55°S in the south, Chile is latitude-wise among the longest countries in the world, with several climate zones and types of nature. High mountains are present everywhere in the country. On the Chilean mainland you can visit five UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Old Valparaíso, the Sewell mining town in Rancagua and the Humberstone, Santa Laura Saltpeter Works outside Iquique, the Qhapaq Ñan track network in the three northern regions, and the Chinchorro mummies in Arica y Parinacota. Just off the coast are the churches of Chiloé Island, and five and a half hours by plane across the Pacific Ocean will get you to maybe the most famous "Off the Beate

Getting there

Entry requirements

Visas Passport holders of the following countries do not need a visa to enter Chile when the purpose of the visit is tourism for up to 90 days (unless otherwise noted): Albania, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Republic of Korea, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao (30 days), Malaysia (30 days), Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, North Macedonia, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, San Marino, Serbia, Singapore (30 days), Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Vatican City and Vietnam. Citizens and residents (if their nationality is mentioned under visa exemptions applicable to normal passport holders) of the following countries can enter with their National ID card: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay Citizens of other nationalities, including several African and Asian nationalities, will not be able to enter Chile, without applying for a special visa from a Chile consulate before entry. Further information about tourist visas can be found on the Ministry of Interior and Public Safety website.

Entry and exit procedures Whe

Getting around

By plane Chile has a rather good airport infrastructure. The main hub for flights in Chile is the Arturo Merino Benitez International Airport (SCL IATA) in Santiago, from where several airlines serve even the remotest corners of the country. These airlines are the three Chilean airlines: LATAM Airlines, Sky Airline and JetSmart. Although LATAM is by far the largest company, Sky and JetSmart offer good services to the main cities. Use the Chilean page of the airlines because they charge in pesos, which is a lot cheaper than the English version with U.S. dollars. Subscribing to the airlines' notifications is also recommended as many of the promotions come in the form of a code. You can find cheap prices four months before the flight and especially if you fly between Tuesday and Thursday or on Saturday. Low-cost airlines do not allow free carry-ons except a small bag. Almost all flights start or finish in Santiago, so many routes between other cities are subject to time-consuming layovers in Santiago Airport. An exception is the so-called "Rutas Smart" by JetSmart which avoid Santiago; most of them are from Antofagasta, Calama, La Serena or Concepción. The only airline flying to Easter Island is LATAM Airlines from Santiago. Other remote locations are served by regional airlines. In the Extreme South, Aerovías DAP offers daily routes (in summer) from Punta Arenas to Porvenir in Tierra del Fuego and Puerto Williams. Between November and March, DAP offers very limited and expensive flights to Villa Las Estrellas in Antarctica; this flight can be taken only as part of a tour and requires a 5-day stay in Punta Arenas. To Robinson Crusoe Island, there are weekly flights from Santiago and Valparaíso.

By bus The bus system is sophisticated and provides a cheap and comforta