13 Chile Travel Tips 🇨🇱 Everything You Need to Know Before Your Visit!

Last year, I took my first trip to Chile, and it was awesome. While I had been to Europe and Asia before, this was my first time in South America. So in this video, I'll talk about 13 things I wish I knew before I went, so that you can make the most out of your trip. The first thing you need to know about Chile is how to get there. From the U.S., your best bet is to fly to Santiago, the nation's capital. There are direct flights from some major cities, depending on what airline you fly. But even from Chicago, I ended up having to stop in Atlanta. Be prepared for a long journey, because Chile is farther south than you might think. About 11 hours from L.A. or New York direct, and about 15 hours or more with a stop. One thing to note is Chile is very strict on what is allowed in the country when it comes to food. Since the country relies so heavily on agriculture, they don't want any contaminants. That means no fresh fruit, no beef jerky, no protein bars, no nuts. The list is pretty extensive, and it includes things you may think are harmless. So check what you're allowed to bring before you come, as the fines for violations are steep. Hey, one tip before we keep going. Hit the subscribe button and turn on the notification bell. That way you're alerted to any new videos we post. The nice thing coming from the U.S. is that there's very little jet lag, because Chile is only two hours ahead of Eastern time. One thing that is very different, though, are the seasons. Because it's in the southern hemisphere, they're reversed compared to the U.S. or Europe, for instance. Summer is winter, and fall is spring. Also, it gets warmer the further north you go in the country, which again is a bit counterintuitive than what you may be used to. We went in April, which is Chile's fall, and honestly, it was a pretty perfect time to go. Nice breezes and moderate temperatures in the low 70s, and it only rained on us once during the two weeks we were there. If you were going to go primarily to experience the beach and a coastal trip, though, you'd probably want to go earlier and get the warmer weather. Obviously, if you're going skiing, the reverse is true. Chile is absolutely massive north to south. It's more miles than from New York to L.A. But it's also really skinny. You can drive east to west in an afternoon. A big decision you'll need to make is how much of the country you want to see versus how much time you have. You can do a trip to Santiago and most of the wine country in the middle, or visit the desert in the north, some coastal towns to the west, Patagonia and national parks further south, and you can even go to Easter Island. But all this depends on your time and budget. You'll either need to spend a lot of time to drive it all, or you'll need to take flights. There are a lot of other videos online detailing the top sites and things to see in Chile from people who have experienced more of it than me, so I direct you to those to plan your itinerary. We had a car the whole time we were in Chile, and we didn't have any issues. Just make sure to bring your international driver's license in case they ask. In my experience, sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. When Santiago specifically, it was a bit more stressful with the car. So once we parked in the hotel, we mainly used Uber and Cabify to get around, though there is public transit. You could definitely get by without a car until after you left Santiago if you wanted. Some people have mentioned the bus system even for long distances isn't too bad, but I prefer the freedom a car provides once you're out of the big city. Just know that getting out of the city with the car, the traffic can be awful, so I'd highly recommend avoiding rush hour. Chile uses the Chilean peso, and while Chile isn't expensive, I wouldn't describe it as cheap either. Prices were generally less than big American cities like New York or LA, but on par with most European cities or American suburbs. About 40% of Chile's population lives in Santiago. I'll be honest, it's not my favorite big city I've ever been to, but I think part of that's on me. We planned on spending most of our trip in wine country, so we didn't focus too much time or research on Santiago. Like most major cities, you can find everything from budget hostels to luxury accommodation, and there's all sorts of great markets, nightlife, restaurants, museums, and bars. Everything you would expect from a big city. Again, there's a lot of videos out there that detail the city better than me, so I'll refer you to those, but what I will say is our favorite neighborhood while we were there was the Barrio Italia area. It felt very bohemian with great bars, restaurants, and a good vibe. One other note, Santiago is beautiful and surrounded by mountains, but unfortunately it has a bit of a smog problem. One thing you may want is a nice panorama photo of the city, but you gotta do this early and hopefully on a day where there was some recent rainfall to get the clearest view possible. Chilean people are generally very friendly. Through our two weeks in the country, we found everyone welcoming and wanting to show you the best of their culture. While we did have a Spanish speaker on our team, we spent time without him and had no problem getting around. I always would try to initiate conversation in some sort of Spanish if I could, but many people had no problem switching to English once they found out I was a foreigner. All in all, I wouldn't let the language barrier deter you from going. Stray dogs are kind of everywhere in Chile, in both Santiago, but especially as you get further out. And it's just kind of a fact of life here, so be especially careful as you drive. Now we're at the fun stuff. We came to Chile to visit wine country, and there is a lot of it. Chile is known for its wines, especially its rich yet fresh reds. And many of the wineries are located near a few hour radius of Santiago. If you're interested in this topic, you gotta watch our full Chile episode, in which we dive really deep into the grapes, the wine history, the regions, the people, the food pairings, and adventure you can have by going on a wine trip there. There are some incredible wineries worth visiting, like Viña Vic and their luxury hotel, one of the oldest wineries in Chile, San Pedro, the world-famous Viño Montes with its purple angel wine, as well as Frances Maman's Fuegos de Apalto restaurant, and more. We detail all these in our main episode, so head to that video to learn all you can about Chilean wine. Even if you don't plan on visiting Chile, you can still pick up a bottle and travel vicariously through the show. Chile isn't very well known internationally for its food, but I was pleasantly surprised while I was there. I thought it was great. They have some European influence from their time as a Spanish colony, as well as some Peruvian and Argentina influence due to its proximity. A few dishes you must try. First, empanadas, which are baked or fried pastries served with different savory fillings. I had so many of these on our trip, I lost count. Beef and cheese, shrimp, egg, potato, pork, all served with pebre, which is a Chilean condiment similar to pico de gallo, though not spicy. Most Chilean food really isn't spicy. Also, they like hot dogs, which they call completos. They tend to have interesting toppings like avocado or tomato slices. Ceviche is popular, which is awesome because I love it. This is raw fish that's cooked in the acidity of lime juice. Another great dish is coronto, which is a meal where they traditionally cook shellfish, sausage, meat, and veggies in nauca leaves underground. It's a super comfort food. And of course, asado, which is basically Chilean barbecue, refers to both the cooking technique and the event. Grilled red meats are common, but so is pork, chicken, and sausages. They often serve this with Chilean salad, which is basically tomatoes and onions, olive oil, and vinegar. But there's also lots of seafood, too, from their miles of coastline, and all sorts of other traditional dishes I didn't really touch on here. The food is definitely one of the best parts of Chile. One thing before we get to our last two points, I wanted to talk to you about our Vino VIP Club. I won't go into too much detail, but this is essentially a club for all our members who are really into wine, food, and travel, and you get early access to all our videos. You get members-only videos, a Facebook community with a ton of great content, raffles and giveaways, and a whole bunch more. So if you're enjoying our content, we are user-supported, so please consider joining Vino VIP. I'll put the link in the description. Chileans do enjoy their red wine, and you'll find all sorts of wine options when you go out to dinner or to bars. They do also like beer, both imported and local craft beers. Pisco is also very popular, which is a brandy distilled from grapes. It's used in the pisco sour, and though that's technically a Peruvian drink, this cocktail is consumed everywhere in the country. It's pisco, lime, sugar, egg white, and bitters. Don't leave Chile without trying one. Tea is also common, especially mate tea, which is also popular in Argentina. I also tried a drink called mote con juicios, which is peach nectar with sugar and cinnamon and pieces of husked wheat in it. You'll see street vendors selling this. It's very sweet, but it's delicious. I'm sure there's more to explore if you go, so keep an eye out. I saved this for last because I think this is the most profound thing Chile can offer. It's nature. Make sure to plan a trip around some outdoor activities. Because of the Andes Mountains and the ocean, as well as the huge north to south footprint of the country, there is so much breathtaking scenery to see. Many people go to the national parks and the glaciers, which are supposed to be gorgeous. We spent some time horseback riding in the mountains and boating near the coast, and some of my crew took a few extra days and they head up to the Atacama Desert in the north, which has some of the best stargazing in the world. If I were planning a leisure trip to Chile, I would absolutely start with which of these sites I wanted to see, and then I would build my itinerary around that. There you have it. 13 things I wish I knew before I went to Chile. I'm sure there's some things I missed, so put them in the comments. What are your favorite parts of this country, or what would you tell people who are going for the first time? Or if you're going in the near future for the first time, what do you want to know? Don't forget to subscribe and absolutely check out our full Chile episode, where we explore Chilean wine country. I think you'll love it whether you're into wine or not. Cheers everyone, and thanks for watching.