Top 10 Chile Tourist Attractions

Squeezed between the Pacific and the Andes, Chile is often referred as the longest country in the world. Although, it’s not more than 112 miles (180 km) wide, its coastline extends more than 2,672 miles (4,300 km). Chile has a diverse collection of tourist attractions which include stunning scenery of glaciers and fjords, and world’s driest desert. Here are our list of top Chile Tourist Attractions.

10. Fantasilandia

One of the top Chile tourist attractions is the amusement park named Fantasilandia which is located at the center of Santiago. The amusement park was founded in 1978 and since then it has gradually evolved as one of the most visited places in the country. From the eight attractions initially installed, Fantasilandia now proudly offers a wide selection of new attractions (kids zone, terror attractions), competition games and rides (family rides, adrenaline rides, paid rides). Obviously, the name was taken from two words; Fantasi from the term fantasy, and landia meaning “the land of” in Chilean. Some of the most popular attractions here include large roller coasters and the Pirate of the Caribbean ride.

09. Santiago Metropolitan Park

One of the must-visit Chile tourist attractions in the capital city of Chile is the Santiago Metropolitan Park which is locally known as Santiago’s Parque Metropolitano. It is a must-visit place for tourists who are eager to enjoy a great panoramic view of the capital city. The park is ideally located at the east side of Bellavista (a famous bohemian neighborhood) and is beautifully surrounded by San Cristobal Mountain, Piramide Mountain and Bosque de Santiago Mountain. In order to reach this magnificently green urban site, you must take the funicular railway ride. The ride is actually one of the highlights as it offers a tremendously amazing experience.

08. Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts

The Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts (Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes) can be found at the Palacio de Bellas Artes. The museum features an exceptional permanent collection of beautiful Chilean arts. Some of these artworks were done by Luis Vargas Rosas (a previous museum director and member of the Abstraction Creation group) and Roberto Matta. The museum was first opened as the Museo Nacional de Pinturas or the National Paintings Museum in 1880 and its main objective was to carefully and successfully gather together the best art collection from various public and private entities in the country. Its collection of exquisite arts makes it one of the most popular Chile tourist attractions.

07. San Rafael Glacier

When in Chile, you shouldn’t miss the chance to sail around icebergs (that are quite similar to icy phantoms) that will take you to the huge San Rafael Glacier located at the lagoon’s far end. With a measurement of more that 4km wide, and poking out in the water to at 70m in height, the glacier is indeed and dizzying yet magnificent and dizzying sight. The cruise though is not going to get really close to it and the boat is going to keep a safe distance. Still, everyone on board can have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get up close and personal with the giant ice structure by boarding and the inflatable motor water craft. The adventure of this experience makes San Rafael Glacier one of the never-miss Chile tourist attractions.

06. Valle de la Luna

The Valle de la Luna is one of the most frequented Chile tourist attractions and it is located in the Cordillera de la Sal area. The site offers great attractions like sand and stone formations that were formed by nature through floods over the centuries. The great colors and the desert’s texture, on the other hand, were created magnificently by the winds. The name was chosen because of the sand and stone formations are beautifully shaped like the moon. Many people come here not just to be fascinated by this wonderful work of nature but also to watch one of the best sunsets in the world.

05. Torres de Paine National Park

The Torres Paine National Park is one of the most visited Chile tourist attractions and its granite pillars soar almost vertically at over 2000 meters above the Patagonian steppe, dominating the landscape of South America’s most beautiful national park. Before the park was created in 1959, it was part of a huge sheep estancia, and presently the place is still on its recovery process from overexploitation of wildlife, pastures and forests. Some of the fascinating parts of the park are the azure lakes, the emerald forest, the roaring rivers, the rickety bridges and the big blue glacier. The park also houses different bird species like flamingoes, ostriches (ñandú, locally) and the Andean condors.

04. Palacio de la Moneda

The presidential offices of Chile are located in the Palacio de la Moneda and it is a striking neoclassical building designed by Joaquín Toesca – an Italian architect. It was build in the late part of the18th century. As some locals would say, there is simply no other place in Santiago that has more historical value than the Palacio de la Moneda. Being home to the Chilean government though, the palace has certainly seen a lot of violence brought upon mainly by a military coup in 1973. This historical event occurred when then president Salvador Allende refuse to leave his office, but eventually overthrown. Today, the palace serves as one of most amazing Chile tourist attractions and surely one of the best architectural landmarks.

03. San Cristobal Hill

The San Cristobal Hill or the Cerro San Cristobal is definitely a remarkable place to visit in Chile. This is big hill located at the center of the city and it offers the best and the most magnificent Santiago panoramas. Once up there, you can see almost everything of the city. It is also the best place to be if you want to be oriented about the city and its surrounding areas like the Cordillera de la Costa and the Andes Mountains. One of the most commonly visited attractions in the hill is the La Virgen (a beautiful statue) and the Pope John Paul II’s memorial.

02. Lauca National Park

The Lauca National Park has about 137.883 hectares of area protected by Reserve of the Biosphere status. There are several attractions that can be enjoyed in the park like fauna, flora and topography. The place is home to over a hundred of bird species and other animals like foxes, ñandus, blanquillo, puna partridges, vicuñas, guanacos, llamas, alpacas, pumas, vizcachas, tarucas, guallata, huairavo, condors, juarjal, giant tagua, and the Chilean flamenco. The park also has great volcanoes (like the Acotando, Pomerapre and Paricanata) and lava rivers. Other visited areas here are the Lluta and the Lauca rivers as well as the Chungara Lake and the Cotacotani Lagoons. So, the Lauca National Park is one of the most visited Chile tourist attractions.

01. Easter Island

It used to be one of the less visited archeological sites in Chile until many people started talking about it. Today, the Easter Island tops the list of the most popular Chile tourist attractions. It is a small, treeless and hilly area of volcanic origin and can be found in the Pacific Ocean at 2200 miles off the Chilean coast and 27 degrees south of equator. The island is considered as the most secluded inhabited island in the world. The most popular attractions here are the gigantic stone statues known as moai; 288 of these statues once were situated upon the huge stone platforms known as ahu.