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Chile

Northern-Chile Iquique Chile


Barefoot surfers, paragliding pros, casino snobs and frenzied merchants all cross paths in the rather disarming city of Iquique. Lots of effort is being made to turn this into Chile’s premier beach resort; they’ve already got the glitzy casino, a large mall, and a pleasant boardwalk that borders excellent beaches. Refurbished Georgian-style architecture from the 19th-century mining boom is well preserved, and a pedestrianized street, Baquedano, sports charming wooden sidewalks. Iquique’s main claim, however, is its duty-free status, with a chaotic duty-free shopping zone (zona franca), which uses the ominous sandy hills behind the town as an outlandish nighttime billboard.

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Chile

The-Lakes-District Puerto-Montt Chile


A region as beautiful and as neatly organized as the Lakes District must have an administrative and commercial capital. That honor is bestowed upon Puerto Montt. While generally out of synch with the rest of the Lakes District (not on a lake, not tranquil, not offering any outdoor activities and, according to everyone except for the Puerto Montt tourist bureau, not scenic) Puerto Montt does play an important role as a port, transportation hub and regional business center. It is growing exponentially and offers all of the goods and services that you may need as a traveler. That said, few people spend more than a day or two here in transit. Most visitors who want to stay in the general vicinity opt to sleep in nearby (and considerably more attractive) Puerto Varas. Puerto Montt does have a few charms including its quirky port area, Angelmó, which is full of tiny seafood restaurants and crafts shops.

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Chile

Northern-Chile Vicuna Chile


Snoozy little Vicuña, 62km east of La Serena, is a restful village of low adobe houses. It’s the easiest base from which to delve deeper into the Elqui Valley and indulge in the fresh avocados, papayas and other fruits grown in the region – not to mention the famous grapes that are distilled into Chile’s potent grape-brandy pisco.

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Chile

Isla-Robinson-Crusoe Chile


Castaway Alexander Selkirk whittled away years on this craggy Pacific outpost. In spite of its literary fame, this island 670km off the coast of Valparaíso has maintained relative anonymity. Discovered in 1574, Archipiélago Juan Fernández sheltered sealers and pirates for over two centuries, including the British corsairs from whom Selkirk escaped. While Spain founded San Juan Bautista in 1750, the village had no permanent presence until 1877. It garnered world attention when the British Navy sank the Dresden in Cumberland Bay during WWI.

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Chile

Southern-Patagonia Puerto-Natales Chile


Let’s get right to the point – Puerto Natales is the gateway to Parque Nacional Torres del Paine and not much else. It’s not the most attractive town in the region (nor the least attractive) – but considering that it’s the departure point for the best national park in South America, it doesn’t matter. While, overall, it is lacking a centralized local culture, Natales does have a lot to offer in terms of restaurants, hotels and a few bars that cater to international tastes. It also has some last-chance camping/hiking gear stores, which are all overpriced. You are better off picking up supplies in Puerto Montt or Punta Arenas.

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Chile

The-Lakes-District Villarrica Chile


Known to most travelers as ‘that town that we passed through on the way from Temuco to Pucón, ‘ Villarrica is not without some appeal of its own. It is bigger and a bit more chaotic than its touristy neighbor Pucón, but has a down-to-earth feel, more reasonable prices and a faded resort glory that attracts travelers of a certain lax disposition. It also has a more local character than Pucón, which gets packed with vacationing Santiaguinos and foreigners. If you are here in the summer and wish to spend time at the lake you will find superior beaches down the road in Pucón.

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Chile

Northern-Chile La-Serena Chile


Chile’s second-oldest city and the thriving capital of Región IV, La Serena is doubly blessed with some beautiful architecture and a long golden shoreline; making it a kind of thinking-man’s beach resort. The city absorbs hoards of Chilean holidaymakers in January and February, though it’s fairly peaceful outside the summer rush. Sauntering through downtown La Serena rewards with dignified stone churches, tree-shaded avenues and pretty plazas. Some of the city’s architecture is original colonial, but most of it is neocolonial – the product of Serena-born president Gabriel González Videla’s ‘Plan Serena’ of the late 1940s.

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Chile

The-Lakes-District Puerto-Varas Chile


There is always talk about what will be the ‘next Pucón’. The most common answer these days is Puerto Varas. That may mystify some as Puerto Varas has long been a vacationer’s paradise, but where Varas follows in the footsteps of Pucón is that it is quickly becoming the go-to destination for a variety of outdoor adventure sports. They have gone as far as to build cables for canopy rides on a forested hill right in town. There is great access to water sports – kayaking in particular – canyoning, climbing, fishing, hiking and even skiing. While Puerto Varas gets packed in the summer, it still receives many more independent travelers than the package-tour onslaught that sieges Pucón. It basically shuts down in the winter except for a few hearty skiers and mountaineers.

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Chile

Vina-Del-Mar Chile


Viña del Mar (Viña for short) is popularly known as the Ciudad Jardín (Garden City) for its manicured subtropical boulevards lined with palm trees and beautiful expansive parks. Visitors are greeted with the colorful, blooming Av Marina’s Reloj de Flores (Clock of Flowers). The cleanliness is in sharp contrast to the jumble of neighboring Valparaíso.

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Chile

The-Lakes-District Lago-Calafquen Chile


Black-sand beaches and gardens draw tourists to this island-studded lake, especially at fashionable Lican Ray (30km south of Villarrica) and more down-to-earth Coñaripe (22km east of Lican Ray). Out of season, it’s dead. Lican Ray’s tourist office (045-431-516; Urritia 310), directly on the plaza, offers maps and accommodations listings. Coñaripe’s Turismo Aventura Chumay (045-317-287; Las Tepas 201) rents bikes and has area information and tours. Coñaripe has access to rustic hot springs and other sides of the park that tourists rarely tread.