Santiago, Chile

Santiago is the capital of Chile and is conveniently located nearby some other cities we wanted to visit. When we first arrived in Santiago, we were struggling a bit. We had just completed our first 6 weeks of travel which were jam packed with hiking, sightseeing, and bussing through Peru and Bolivia (the flight from San Pedro de Atacama to Santiago was our first flight since Lima to Cusco!). We wanted a place to relax, recover, and enjoy a more traditional vacation and Santiago was the perfect place at the perfect time. Santiago combines the look and size of a European city with the culture and charm of South America and we soaked up as much of the city as we could.

We actually visited Santiago three separate times in 3 weeks; it served as our home-base for a bit. We flew in from San Pedro de Atacama, left to visit Mendoza, came back for 2 days, left to visit Valparaiso, came back for one day, and finally left for good to Patagonia. Our first visit we were coming off of the Bolivian Salt Flats tour and the desert of Atacama and we needed one night to treat ourselves.

One of the perks of the Amex Platinum Card is an annual Hotel Credit for a stay each year and we decided to cash that in for a night at the W Santiago for our first night in Santiago. The W is located in a really nice and ritzy neighborhood called El Golf (yes, the golf). This was a newer (or at least recently transformed) neighborhood of Santiago with wide streets and sidewalks, plenty of trees, and tons of high-rise apartments with lovely terraces filled with plants.

We pulled out the trump card when booking the W and mentioned in our comments that we were on our honeymoon (technically true!). We were upgraded to the “Cool Corner room” which was bigger than the last 3 places we stayed put together!

We also received a $100 voucher to be used on food and beverage at the W because we used our Amex to book (wow, what a great credit card in my totally unbiased and trustworthy opinion) and decided to spend the evening at the Rooftop Bar and Restaurant. For all of Peru and Bolivia we had to avoid fresh fruits and vegetables to avoid any contaminants. We decided that the W would take proper care of their food and dove back in to fresh produce. We ordered ceviche, guacamole with tomatoes and onions, and one of the best burgers we have had on our trip; everything was incredible. We also ordered cocktails including a Chilean Pisco Sour (not as sweet as the Peru version).

We were able to watch the sunlight set over the Andes mountains in the distance and see the bustling city lights come alive at night. It was an incredible evening and was severely needed to recharge our batteries. Our budget prevented us from staying more than one night but we would have moved in for good if they had let us!

The rest of our time in Santiago was mostly spent walking around the city in between trips to other places. Both times we stayed in the central part of town by Parque Forrestal. We were right in between Barrio Lastaria and Barrio Bellavista neighborhoods. Lastaria was a hipster mecca and we stumbled upon an arts and craft market that happens every Sunday that had lots of colorful characters both selling and shopping. Barrio Bellavista neighborhood had some excellent restaurants, including Peumayén Ancestral Food, where we had a Chilean tasting menu. Matt tried the sea menu & Susan tried the land menu! Both were great, with the sea having awesome starters and the land having great mains! Another neighborhood we visitar was Barrio Italia that had lots of cafes, shops, and bars within a short, walkable area. 

There are two prominent hills located near the center of Santiago. The Cerro Santa Lucia is a hill located in the middle of Lastaria that the city converted into a park. We hiked up as training for Patagonia and ended up seeing some really great views of the city. There were also some abandoned walls and gates from old palaces all throughout the hill but we think they were fake and put in to add some mystique to the park, which they definitely did! 

We also hiked to the top of Cerro San Cristobal which is much larger than Cerro Santa Lucia. There is an option to take a funicular (a tram car elevator) to the top but we are #budgettraveling so we spent an afternoon walking to the top. The views were incredible; you could see all the high rises of Santiago along with the Andes Mountains in the background. There was a church at the top with an outdoor amphitheater for service and a large statue of Mary on the top of the hill. On our way down we found out that Red Bull was hosting a Box Car Downhill Derby that afternoon but we already had dinner plans that night that we couldn’t change.

While we mostly walked around and ate during our time in Santiago we did spend some time learning about the culture and history of the city. We joined an excellent Tours-4-Tips walking tour that took us through the city center. We learned about the history of Santiago and especially the recent political conversations about the structure of the Chile government. The Chilean people voted in 2019 to rewrite their constitution (the last one was written when they were still in a dictatorship) but unfortunately the proposed version was just rejected by a vote of the people. One night while walking home we actually walked through the aftermath of a protest near our hotel. When we asked our front desk about it, they didn't even know a protest had happened and couldn't be bothered to guess what could have been the reason. 

We also took a cultural walking tour that took us to some local markets and the city cemetery. The La Vega market had hundreds of food stalls selling all kinds of produce, meat, potatoes, and other food staples. We then rode the metro (which was an incredible subway system, we never waited more than 5 min for a train and could easily get to any neighborhood in the city) to the cemetery.

Cemeteries in South America are not like back home. They are basically miniature cities with roads featuring rows and rows of crypts, some even multiple stories tall, where people are buried. The cemetery also has sections where the wealthy can purchase a “block” for themselves and you'll see crypts built only for a single family. There was even one huge ornate crypt built for just one person; he built it for himself and put his family somewhere else (anyone who is married can relate, amiright!?!?!? I CAN MAKE MARRIED JOKES NOW). It was a strange but somber experience.

In addition to the culture tours we also took some time to catch a movie where we experienced a 4.9 scale earthquake (it felt like a 4D movie effect but wasn’t anything serious), did some shopping, and some more trip planning. 

Santiago was a great compliment to some of the more rugged experiences we have done on our trip so far. It was a modern and eclectic city that came at a perfect time for us; sometimes you just need the comfort and amenities of a more modern setting. We would love to come back and spend some more time here but for now we are heading south to Patagonia for some more adventures!