From City Streets to the Andes: 10 Things to Do in Santiago
Cerro San Cristóbal
Cerro San Cristóbal was one of the first places we visited in Santiago. Part of the enormous Metropolitan Park, it rises about 300 meters above the city and can be reached by walking, driving, funicular or cable car. We decided to walk up, without quite realizing how long “up” was going to be.
At the top is the Sanctuary of the Immaculate Conception and a large statue of the Virgin Mary, giving the summit a quiet, almost somber atmosphere. This is also where you finally get the big views of Santiago and the Andes.
We also met Eno, a young Venezuelan immigrant working as a guide who was as interested in travel as we were. We became friendly with him—although not quite “hop in his car and see where we end up” friendly, like we did with Alex in Valparaíso.
2. Cerro Santa Lucía
Cerro Santa Lucía rises abruptly out of the middle of downtown Santiago, on the site where Pedro de Valdivia founded the Spanish colonial city in 1541. Today it’s a public park of terraces, gardens, fountains and stone stairways. At every level, it felt like Sunday at the park. Chris preferred San Cristóbal for its higher, more expansive view, but I liked Santa Lucía much better. You don’t need to be in the clouds for a great view of Santiago.
3. Plaza de Armas
Plaza de Armas has been at the center of Santiago since the city was founded by Pedro de Valdivia in 1541. The name literally means “Plaza of Arms”—the square was originally the military and civic center of the new Spanish settlement, as well as a center for government, commerce, religion and public events. Today, around it are the Metropolitan Cathedral, the National History Museum in the former Royal Court building, and the historic Central Post Office.
But what makes it worth spending time in isn’t just the architecture—it’s the people. People are sitting, talking, playing chess, performing, selling things, or just hanging around. It’s a great place to wander, people-watch and relax without worrying about what’s next on the touring schedule.
4. Mercado Central
Before Mercado Central, this was Plaza del Abasto, Santiago’s main food market. After its market building was destroyed by fire in 1864, the current Mercado Central was built, opening in 1872 beneath an elaborate cast-iron structure fabricated in Scotland and shipped to Chile.
Today it’s famous for seafood, which is enormous—both in variety and in actual size. Fish stalls and restaurants fill the building, making it a fascinating place to wander around and see what comes from Chile’s long coastline.
5. Museo Histórico Nacional
Right on Plaza de Armas, the Museo Histórico Nacional occupies the former Royal Court building, which dates to the early 1800s. Its exhibits follow Chile from its Indigenous cultures through Spanish conquest and colonial rule, the struggle for independence, the creation of the republic, territorial expansion and wars in the 19th century, and the enormous political and social changes of the 20th century.
We went through it slowly, using Google Translate as we went. We had very little previous exposure to any of the many names and events, so there was a lot to take in, and I'm not even sure we retained it all—but it gave us a foundation for understanding the history we kept encountering throughout the rest of our time in Chile.
6. Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes
The Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes is one of the oldest art museums in South America, housed in an elaborate Beaux-Arts building that opened in 1910. Its collection includes Chilean art from the colonial period through the present, along with works by European and other international artists.
We actually went inside three or four different times to use the bathroom—and stayed a little longer almost every time. I kept getting captivated by the sculptures, staring at them and looking up their stories while I had no idea what Chris was doing. I eventually wanted to go back specifically to finish seeing the museum, but a cold at the end of our trip got in the way. I still regret that. Highly recommend visiting it for something other than the bathroom.
7. La Moneda
Palacio de La Moneda is Chile’s presidential palace, originally built in the late 1700s as the royal mint. It became the setting for one of the defining moments in Chilean history on September 11, 1973, when the military bombed the palace during the coup that overthrew President Salvador Allende.
Beneath the plaza in front of the palace is the Centro Cultural La Moneda, a large underground cultural center with exhibitions, shops, a cinema and we had two meals at the restaurants in the center. Cívico is the more contemporary of the two, while Confitería Torres is a historic Santiago institution dating back to the 19th century. We tried both—and both were worth the stop.
8. Sky Costanera
Sky Costanera occupies the top two floors of the skyscraper rising above the enormous Cenco Costanera mall. Nearly 1,000 feet above Santiago, the glass-walled space gives you a 360-degree view across the entire city and out to the Andes.
We went up near sunset, which was definitely the right time to go. You get the city in daylight, watch the sun disappear behind the mountains, and then see Santiago light up below you.
9. Museo de la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos
The Museo de la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos documents the 1973 military coup and the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet that followed, when thousands of Chileans were killed, disappeared, imprisoned, tortured or forced into exile. Through photographs, documents, news footage, testimony and personal belongings, it tells the story largely through the people who experienced it.
We spent hours here, and it was one of the most important places we visited in Santiago. Some of the exhibits are difficult to see, but that’s exactly why the museum belongs on this list. La Moneda is where the coup unfolded. The Memory Museum tells the much larger story of what came afterward—and what it meant for the people of Chile.
10. Valle Nevado
About 40 miles from Santiago, Valle Nevado sits high in the Andes, with skiing reaching more than 12,000 feet above sea level. We ski wherever we travel when we get the chance, so there was no way we were spending a month in Chile in August without skiing the Andes.
We made two day trips from Santiago, each beginning with a ridiculously early pickup around 4 a.m. and a long, winding climb into the mountains. The landscape at Valle Nevado was noticeably rockier than most places we’ve skied, with more exposed rock among the snow-covered slopes. And, really, it’s just cool to say you’ve skied the Andes.
The experience isn’t over when the lifts close, either. The long, winding road back down toward Santiago has gorgeous mountain views almost the entire way. Even if you don’t ski, Valle Nevado is worth considering just for the trip high into the Andes.
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