Location: Santiago
Top Things to do in Santiago
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What to do and see in Santiago, Chile: The Best Places and Tips
Santiago is one of those metropolitan joys where the more you look, the more you find. Funky cafes and dance clubs dot Bellavista, Forest Park art collections range from pre-Columbian to contemporary, and architecture runs the gamut from the 16th-century San Francisco Church to mirrored office towers. Shop with the locals at Mall Panora¡mico and give your palate meals to remember with hearty Chilean fare.
Restaurants in Santiago
1. Sky Costanera
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 11 reviews
Experience Santiago highest viewing platform at the top of the tallest building in Latin America. Sky Costanera is the start point to know Santiago. Sky Costanera offers an exceptional experience, a panoramic view of the city in 360° at 300 meters high
Reviewed By Mikiduta - Bucharest, Romania
Sky Costanera is a must if you are in Santiago. The ticket is not cheap (15k CLP) but the views from 61st and 62nd floor are truly amazing. The Financial District the so called Sanhattan is one of the highlights of the visit. We preferred to go in the late afternoon because the light is better for taking photos. There are also binoculars you can use free of charge. It is a unique experience in Santiago and I had the feeling that Sky Costanera shape is close to The Shard of London
2. Cerro San Cristobal
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 13 reviews
This 860 meter hill in the center of Santiago features a zoo and wine museum at the midway point and a gondola ride to the top, where a virgin mary statue overlooks the city.
Reviewed By KWH70 - Toronto, Canada
You get some great views of the city from atop San Cristobal, and you can take the gondola if you choose, or just hoof it around. Huge park offering tons of opportunities to explore. It really comes alive on Sundays when (it seems) the entire city comes out to the park - lively and fun!
3. Patio Bellavista
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 18 reviews
Reviewed By mcitaly2016 - Paris, France
It is a good place to relax and pause. Lots of bars, restaurants, pizzerias, and souvenirs shops. It is surrounded with picturesque houses, close to the Cerrro San Cristobal and Neruda’s house La Chascona.
Overall nice, but not extraordinary. One could find a similar place in a shopping mall.
4. Metropolitan Cathedral (Catedral Metropolitana)
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 8 reviews
Reviewed By DutchCarioca - Rio de Janeiro, RJ
I want here just before Sunday midday and attended mass. Beautiful Cathedral. Not as impressive as in Europe, but one of the most impressive ones I have visited in the Americas. Also nice that almost all tourists respected the mass service, attending or staying in the back as not to disturb. Only thing I could not understand how Chile allowed an ugly modern office building to be built right next door, completely destroying the architectural harmony of the Plaza de Armas.
5. Cerro Santa Lucia
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 16 reviews
The climb up this natural 230 foot hill offers a worthy reward: breathtaking panoramic views of the city.
Reviewed By DutchCarioca - Rio de Janeiro, RJ
I was planning to end the Sunday afternoon at Cerro San Sebastián, but already being in the city centre for the Metropolitan Cathedral and the Precolombine Art Museum and running out of time I decided to walk to nearby Cerro Santa Lúcia instead. It takes you about 15 minutes to walk up the hill and climb the final part of stairs. Access is free. On the old fort’s deck you have a 360 degree view of the city and Mountains. The Torre Santiago is exactly behind some trees, but you have an alternative viewing point on it plus mountain backdrop from the small park just below the observation deck. Worth the walk and climb if not going to Cerro San Cristobal.
6. Vina Aquitania
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 148 reviews
A boutique winery at the foot of Andes MountainVina Aquitania is located approximately 35 minutes from Santiago downtown, in the High Maipo Valley. This winery is oriented to produce wines of high quality in limited amounts. During the guided tours this small winery gives the opportunity to learn closely about the complete process of wine production, where the technology with artisan processes are mixed, like the labeling process that is handmade.
Reviewed By malcolm s - San Rafael, Argentina
I concur with the other reviews. This bodega is a must. Good wines, excellent tour and we went by public transport easily.
7. Santa Carolina
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 207 reviews
Enjoy the excellent wines and delightful atmosphere of one of Chile’s most prestigious traditional wineries. An engaging guided tour of our facilities, including the park, colonial manor house, old winery, and the large cellar built using the “cal y canto”—limestone and eggshell—technique in the 1880s. During the tour you will taste 3 wines, the experience ends in our new shop.
Reviewed By Adrianne M
What a lovely surprise in the middle of urban, industrial Santiago! We took the metro and walked a few blocks to the winery, where we were greeted by Andrea, who then took us on a bilingual (English and Portuguese) tour of the historical winery. There were about a dozen people in our group, half Brazilians and half Americans who turned out to be Cuban and Argentine. I particularly enjoyed that the tastings occurred at different points throughout the tour: A white in the restored dining/meeting room, a red in the upstairs storage and processing room (now an events area) and another two reds in the Bordeaux and Bourgogne-style cellars. This winery has a lot of history and is one of the oldest and most traditional in Chile. It was a great place for our first winery tour, as they tend to get more modern (in every sense) as you go into the Valleys. Plus we got a half-bottle of Santa Carolina Reserva Carmenere each as a thank you gift! At 24,000 pesos total, accessible by metro and with a take home wine, this was great value and a wonderful experience.
8. Museo Interactivo Mirador
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1 reviews
Museo Interactivo Mirador is a huge interactive science museum with lots of educational activities for children and young adults. It also has a playground outside..
Reviewed By mtngirl38 - Canada
If you are in Santiago, you should bring your kids here. It is a hands on museum, so you will not see any "no tocar" signs. It is all about interacting with science. Helpful people that work there. We spent the entire day there and still didn't see everything. There are musical things to play with, like a harp without strings that you can play, electricity experiments, giant bubbles to make, things to run through, things to watch. We did not speak much spanish, and yet we had tons to do. The only thing you miss out on if you don't speak much spanish is the extra activities that you have to book, but there is so much to do that you will really not miss out. There is a cafeteria to eat at that has lots of different types of food and is reasonably priced. Play, have lunch, and then play some more. The kids will love it. We took the subway there and then walked. It isn't the nicest area that you walk through when you walk from the subway to the museum, but as long as it is during the day in the light, you will be fine walking with little kids. The bakery on the corner just when you get off from the subway has really good desserts too.
9. Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 4 reviews
The Chilean Museum of Pre-Columbian Art (Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino) in Santiago, Chile is a jewel among the world's museums and a highlight to any trip to Chile. Widely regarded as one of the best museums in Latin America, this unique establishment houses an impressive collection of artifacts from ancient Central and South America, which underscores the rich cultural diversity and artistic splendor of the Pre-Columbian Americas.
Reviewed By G T - Redditch, United Kingdom
I had read that it was being refurbished before we travelled so was glad to see it was completed. I have long been fascinated by Pre-Columbian art so was really looking forward to visiting.
Wow!
This has to be my favourite museum in the world. It looks very ordinary from the outside but it blew me away once in the galleries. It helped that we had the place to ourselves, we went when it opened at 10.
I only had an hour because we were flying home later,so did not see the temporary exhibition but only the main exhibition on the first floor/second if American and in the basement.
Not only is the collection superb but the way it is displayed is perfect. The design of the building interior and the lighting really add to the experience and it was truly magical and theatrical.
I can't really explain what it is about the exhibits, you either just get it or you don't. But I was very moved by the artefacts in particular those objects depicting human beings and the extraordinary faces. The skill and craft and the detail and colours, just amazing.
I really didn't want to leave.
I nearly missed the fabric room so look out for it. It is upstairs in the side gallery through a rotating door into a completely dark room which at first I thought was closed. But as you enter and only as you approach each glass case do the lights slowly come on. The light levels are very low but the exhibits just beautiful.
Then the basement. You descend through a deep stairway in black stone, again very low concealed lighting, so much so, I had to hold onto the hand rails because you feel like you are lowering into a dark abyss. So clever. So dramatic. It seems to be a long way down and then you turn and see the larger than life wooden statues in a group at the left hand side of the room as you enter where most of the light is. They just take your breath away.
I won't give away any more.
Just go and see for yourself. I am of course torn between wanting everyone to see it and not wanting crowds to spoil the experience. Pick a weekday if you can and be there when it opens.
7000 pesos for foreigners only 1000 pesos for Chileans. Why is it not full of local people? I suppose it is the old thing about never seeing what is on your own doorstep. If I lived there or worked there I would get some sort of annual pass and go in every day.
An hour was nowhere near enough time, my only regret.
10. Santa Rita Winery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1 reviews
Visiting Santa Rita winery is a fascinating journey through Chile’s cultural heritage and Chilean wine tradition, only 45 minutes from Santiago. At the foot of the Mountains in Alto Jahuel, Buin, the winery is surrounded by a unique environment where wine-making tradition, Chilean history, culture and gastronomy are blended together. To complement the different tours, the Andean museum exhibits over 2,000 pieces from Pre-Columbian and Post-Conquest Chile. In addition, our wine shop offers you the best selection of wines from our cellars, beautiful local crafts and wine-tastings. For lunch or just a snack The Doña Paula restaurant and La Panaderia Café offer you the best of Chilean gastronomy. Visitors can enjoy a unique and diverse experience all in one place, just steps away from Santiago.
Reviewed By Ashbecker1 - Guatemala City, Guatemala
This is the real deal. Authentic and sophisticated. Food is exquisite and service is excellent. After your meal you can sit outside and enjoy the colonial atmosphere and the beautiful scenery. Highly recommend Osso Bucco with Santa Rita Reserve. Tip: A bit hard to find and you definitely should have a GPS. You must call and make Reservations. Telephone number is on the website. Also, don’t forget to go to the museum.
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