Santiago de Chile: A Short Travel Guide

Ine Vandenwyngaert

Jan 123 min read

Santiago is the dynamic capital city of Chile, tucked in a valley between the Andes Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. This modern city boasts a thriving culinary scene, diverse neighborhoods, a vibrant nightlife, and a pleasant Mediterranean climate. On top of that, Santiago serves as the ideal starting point for Chilean adventures, offering easy transportation connections all around the country, from vineyards and beaches to national parks and canyons. In this travel guide, we share our top things to do in Santiago de Chile as well as great places to stay, eat, and drink.

santiago de chile sunset skyline — Sunset over Santiago

Check out our video about Santiago de Chile to see the best things to do through our camera!

Best Things To Do In Santiago de Chile

Climb Cerro Santa Lucía
Visit the Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino
Day Trip to Cajon del Maipo
Stroll around Parque Bicentenario
Indulge in a wine tasting (Cousiño Macul in Santiago or one of the wine valleys outside)
Day Trip to Valparaíso & Viña del Mar (This is the one we joined!)
Sunset from Sky Costanera
Explore the hip barrios of Santiago (Providencia, Barrio Italia, Barria Lastarría)
Ascend Cerro San Cristóbal
Discover the historic center (go on a free walking tour)

Download our Google Map with all the places to go, eat, drink, and stay here.

santiago de chile bellas artes — Bellas Artes in the historic center

Places To Stay In Santiago de Chile

BHB Hotel Boutique ($$): Boutique hotel located in Barrio Lastarría, close to most attractions and restaurants.
Hotel HW High Wellness ($): Spacious clean rooms with comfy bed and shower, breakfast buffet included, and hot tub and gym access - Located in Barrio Yungay which can be a bit unsafe. It's where we stayed but we used Uber to get around
NH Ciudad de Santiago ($$): Great location in Providencia with spacious rooms.

santiago de chile barrio lastarria food — Barrio Lastarría

Places To Eat And Drink In Santiago de Chile

Almodobar: cool bar with dance floor
Antigua Fuente: the best and original traditional sandwich and hot dog in Santiago
Bar 202: local simple bar
BAR EL BAJO: very cozy bar inside the Gabriela Mistral Cultural Center
Bocanáriz: popular wine bar in Barrio Lastarría
Café de la Candelaria: great coffee shop
Catapilcana Vegana: good vegan food
Chipe Libre - República Independiente del Pisco: great ceviche and pisco on a cozy outdoor patio
Damajuana: good Chilean food in Barrio Italia
FELIX: great coffee shop in Providencia
La Burguesía: good burger restaurant in Providencia
La Calma by Fredes: great seafood
La Piojera: good place to try the Chilean "terremoto" drink (cocktail of white wine, pineapple ice cream and grenadine)
Londres 45 Bistro Bar: impressive bar with great coffee
Mercado Urbano Tobalaba: hip (fairly new) shopping mall with lots of unique food vendors
Ña Matea: best empanadas in Bellavista area
Ocean Pacific's Buque Insignia: great seafood restaurant a bit outside the tourist area
Papachecos: fries to go in a cone (fast food option)
Patio Bellavista: shopping mall with great restaurants, cocktail bars, and shops
Peumayén Ancestral Food: fancy indigenous inspired food
Piso Uno: cool Japanese bar with tasty food
Pizzería Tiramisú: cool atmosphere pizzeria
Ramen Ryoma Providencia: great ramen
Ruca Bar: nice local bar and tapas in Barrio Italia
Sapiens. Comida Saludable: great vegan food
The Market Chile: little market with tasty sandwiches, salads and home-made style pizzas near Parque Bicentenario
Yokono Moneda: good Japanese restaurant

chipe libre ceviche in santiago de chile — Ceviche at Chipe Libre

Map Santiago de Chile

Find all the places to go, eat, drink, and stay in Santiago de Chile on Google Maps, follow and save the list, do the following:

Tap on the link to open it (click button below)
Tap Follow. This list will now be added to the group of lists you follow.
Optional: To unfollow a list someone shared with you, tap the list Saved.

If you follow the list we made, all our saved places of Santiago de Chile will show up in Your Places. The places will also appear as suggested locations in Google Maps.

Save Google Maps Places