A · B · C · E · F · G · H · I · J · K · L · M · O · P · Q · R · S · T · U · V · Z
For a short stay, we recommend the following addresses:
La Casa Roja: Agustinas 2113, Barrio Brasil, tel. 6 96 42 41, info@lacasaroja.tie.cl.
Backpacker hostel in a very large, old aristocratic palace; new beds, modern,
communal bathrooms, Internet, patio. 5 US-$ per person in multi-bed room,
double room 12 US-$.
Residencial Santo Domingo: Santo Domingo 735, Stgo. Centro, tel. 6 39 67
33.
Simple hostel, very much in the centre, rather impersonal, some rooms have
no window, double room with breakfast 12 US-$.
Residencial París and Residencial Londres: near the corner Londres
and París, next to the Iglesia San Francisco, tel. 664 09 21 (París),
638 22 15 (Londres), about 10 US-$ per person.
El Patio Suizo: Condell 847, Providencia, tel. 474 06 34, info@patiosuizo.com,
www.patiosuizo.com. Family-like hostel with pretty garden, rooms with private
bathroom.
No reservations are expected there; in case they are booked
up, you will be referred to another place. Tip: In all Chilean hotels foreigners
can save money (the 19% VAT, value-added tax) by paying cash in US dollars.
For a week stay or longer, PractiGo can find you single or
double rooms in hostels, hotels, private homes and apart-hotels, at a reasonable
price.
Buses
The yellow buses (‘micros’) run all over town. The main stops
of the respective routes are written on the windows; there are no timetables.
There are fixed bus stops in the central districts of a town; in all other
areas buses stop on hand signal. The bus fare is about 300 pesos
for which you should have change ready; buy tickets either at a ticket machine
or from the bus driver. There are no multiple-ride tickets or group tickets.
The bus lines are listed on the pocket map of ‘Map-City’. Top
Buses II
Chile has a good bus network and one railway line (from Santiago to Temuco).
Long distance coaches are cheap and have three categories: ‘clásico’ or ‘turismo’ with
normal seats and little legroom; ‘semi-cama’ or ‘ejecutivo’ with
comfortable reclining seats where you are served a snack; and the ‘salón
cama’ and ‘premium’, which provide legroom (but not the
service) offered in business class. It is safe and comfortable to book
long-distance travel by bus with the Tur-Bus company. They are the leading
company on the market and you find them in the metro stations Tobalaba,
U. de Chile and Calicanto, as well as in some malls, online booking is
also available. Other bus companies have their counters at bus stations
only (metro Universidad de Santiago). It is worth comparing prices.
Examples from Tur-Bus:
Santiago – Viña del Mar (about 120 kilometres), clásico:
about 3.70 €
Santiago – Pucón (about 800 kilometres), salón cama:
about 22 €
Top
Car rental
See details under ‘Rental cars’. Because of dubious practices,
there are warnings about the Alamo company. Our link Praktikumsvermittlung.de
lists fair and reliable agencies. Top
City maps
You can get a simple map for free at the airport, and also at the tourist
office at Sernatur, Av. Providencia 1550. At newspaper stands and in bookshops
you can get inexpensive detailed maps. In addition, the pocket map by Mapcity/IGM
(1000 pesos) offers a survey of all bus lines. Top
Climate and clothing
Because of Chile’s location on the globe, seasons in Chile are opposite
those in Europe. The climate in Santiago can be compared to the Mediterranean.
Winter lasts from the middle of May to August and is wet with rainfall and
great variations in temperature (at night almost 0° C and 10 to 25° C
during the day). Most accommodations and offices are without central heating,
which means you should bring warm clothing. Summer lasts from November to
March and is mostly dry and warm to hot (average temperature is 30° C,
up to 35° C at noon). Nights are cool and agreeable and there is hardly
any rainfall. Top
Communal taxis (colectivos)
These taxis carry a sign on top giving the direction of the route and take
several passengers at a time on registered routes. When there are no more
buses running late at night, this is a useful alternative. Prices are moderate. Top
Cost of living
Compared to other Latin American countries, Chile is not cheap. Still, most
basic food, services, local traffic, bus travel and simple restaurants
are clearly less expensive than in Germany. Fruit and vegetables are much
cheaper, especially in street markets. Most industrial goods have to be
imported and therefore are more expensive than in Europe. Top
Customs and way of life
Chileans are called the ‘Prussians of South America’, yet punctuality
is not taken very seriously. Appointments in general are handled with at
least 15 minutes of flexibility; buses and planes, on the other hand, are
usually on time.
Outward appearance is of great importance to Chileans. Long hair and earrings
for men, and short skirts, unshaven legs and underarms for women are disliked
by the very neat Chileans, as is using deodorant insufficiently or not at
all. For business, the rules for dress are formal; in many offices you must
wear a tie, and jeans or sandals are taboo.
On the other hand, you are easily on first-name terms with colleagues and
passing acquaintances, except in formal contexts; younger people (up to 30,
35) are quickly referred to by their first name. When in doubt, and particularly
with older people or superiors, it is better to use ‘Usted’. Top
Electrical plugs in Chile have 220V, 50 Hz. Devices with safety plugs can only be used with an adapter (adaptador), which can be obtained in any supermarket.
Examples for restaurants, cafés, etc.:
Mineral water, Coca Cola 0.3 l: 0,70 €
Coffee (espresso): 0.70 €
Beer (on tap): 0.5 l ("Shop"): 1.20 €
Sandwich: 2.00 €
Lunch: from 4.00 € Dinner (3 courses with wine): from 10 €
Examples for shopping in supermarkets:
1 litre full-cream milk: 0.50 €
1 pound butter: 0.70 €
400 g pasta: 0.50 €
1 kg apples: from 0.30 €
1 kg avocados (paltas): from 1.00 €
1 kg tomatoes: 0.40 €
1 lettuce: 0.15 €
1 kg white bread: 1.00 €
1 kg cheese slices: from 3.50 €
1 kg beef: from 3.50 €
Mineral water/Cola 500 mll: 0.50 €
Mineral water/Cola 2 l: 0.85 €
1 bottle of wine 0.7 l: from 2 €
Examples other prices:
Metro/bus ride: 0.40 €
Taxi per km: 1.00 €
1 litre petrol: 0.60 €
Coach (500 km): 10.00 €
Overnight stay in a hostel, per person: from 5 €
Overnight stay in a three-star hotel (double room): from 25 €
Internet café per hour: 1.30 €
Cinema: 4.00 €
Daily paper: 0.50 €
Top
Internet-Cafés
You will find Internet cafés at every corner, but very few offer good
coffee. Tip: In the Café Melba, Don
Carlos 2898 at the corner of El Bosque Norte, you may use the Internet free
of charge as long as you drink coffee or try their delicious breakfast. Top
Insurance
Before leaving your home country, it is absolutely necessary for you to take
out a policy that is valid abroad, for your luggage, illnesses, accidents
and liability! It is worth comparing the price-performance relation of
different companies, or perhaps asking a broker. In private clinics, credit
cards are accepted as a guarantee. Top
Here you can find more information about insurance.
Luggage
In 2003 the luggage limit was lowered to 20 kilos for Lufthansa, LanChile
and all other European airlines flying to Chile. With North American lines
you can still take two pieces of luggage free, 32 kilos each. Top
In Santiago, there are three metro lines running daily from
7.00 to 22.00 h. Number 1 is the main line and runs from west to east along
the main axis Alameda – Providencia – Apoquindo. The other two
lines are the number 2 and number 5; they cross from north to south. The
metro is fast and clean and preferable to the micros. Depending on the time
of day, a single fare costs between 290 and 380 pesos. The ‘multivia’ is
a prepaid card that can be reloaded. If you change directly from one line
to another you do not have to pay a second time. Top
Money
Chilean currency is the peso (CLP), shortened as ‘$’, which is
a little irritating. The exchange rate varies, and at the moment it is 688
CLP to 1 € (2010). The inflation rate has come down to 2 percent within
the last few years.
Drawing money from bank terminals is easiest from the ‘Redbanc’ chain,
which you find in all larger towns. You need an EC/Maestro credit card and
your PIN-number, and you can draw a maximum of 200 000 pesos (= 300 €)
per day. You pay 3 to 5 € per draw. You can pay almost everywhere with
all common credit cards, but drawing cash with it means paying high bank
fees.
Several European banks have appointed partners in Chile,
and this simplifies the transfer of money if you need larger amounts. Ask
for
information at your bank before leaving.
As for traveller’s checks and cash checks (dollar or Euro), it is better
if you change them at a exchange booth instead of a bank – and never
on the street! The exchange rates are high at airports, and you will get
better rates in the city centre in the ‘Agustinas’ at the corner
of Ahumada (opening hours Monday to Friday from 9.00 to 19.00 h, and Saturday
mornings). There are further exchange booths at the corner of Ave. Providencia
and Petro de Valdivia, and of Manuel Montt. The American Express bureau is
located at Isidora Goyenechea 3621, piso 10, telephone 3506700, Las Condes,Metro
Alcántara. It is open Monday to Friday from 9.30 to 17.00 h. It is
only worth going there if you want to exchange a large amount of Am-Ex traveller’s
checks. At the weekend, all big hotels can cash your traveller’s checks,
but at unfavourable rates. Top
Mobile phones
Mobile phones are standard equipment in Chile, but they work only within
urban regions and along the Pan Americana nationwide. Mobile phones have
eight numbers and start with 9 or 8; calls from the landline need a 0 to
start with (for more details see Phone calls).It is possible to use your
personal mobile phone by the roaming system if your phone company offers
this service for Chile and if your phone is equipped with a Triband. This
is very expensive since you are charged high roaming rates for incoming
as well as outgoing calls and also SMS.
Prepaid cell phones are a less expensive option (celular
de prepago). Although you cannot easily make calls into foreign
countries, it is possible to receive
calls from everywhere. The three most important prepaid companies are Amistar
(Telefónica CTC), Aló PCS Entel, and BellSouth; their rates
do not differ very much. Try to find out about special offers such as free
minutes included in the price and package prices with reduced rates per minute;
these contracts run for at least one year.
Another possibility is to bring along your own mobile phone and have a SIM
chip from a Chilean company built in. This will cost only a small basic charge
and you can use your phone like a Chilean prepaid mobile phone (see above).
Although it seems rather complicated, this is the cheapest possibility. Important:
Your mobile phone must not have a SIM lock!
For a shorter stay and for visitors to Chile who only need to receive calls,
we would recommend that you hire a mobile phone. PractiGo
will help you with this; more information on request! Top
Newspapers
The biggest daily paper with a full section on culture is the conservative
Mercurio, one of Latin America’s oldest papers. Other papers are
La Tercera, the right-wing evening paper, La Segunda and the free papers
metro and La Hora. Weekly papers are: CONDOR (German), Siete+7, Qué Pasa
and Ercilla. You can read several international daily newspapers and magazines
with some delay in the cafeteria of the Goethe Institute (Esmeralda 650),
or
you
can buy current issues at the kiosks in the Ahumada, the pedestrian area. Top
At the moment, postage to Europe is 360 pesos for a letter or a postcard (20g). The main post office is at the Plaza de Armas and is open from Monday to Friday from 9.00 to 19.00 hours and on Saturdays from 9 to 12 hours. You can get nice postcards in the Museo de Bellas Artes and in the Museo Precolombino. Mail to Europe needs between four and ten days, and from Europe (air mail) about a week, and even longer to smaller towns. You can have very important letters and parcels registered for an extra charge (certificado). Top
Return flight confirmation
The telephone numbers of airlines are found in the ‘yellow pages’ under ‘L’ (‘Líneas
Aéreas’). Ask for the confirmation of your return flight 48
hours in advance – this is a must with most airlines. To avoid long
waiting hours at the airport, it’s best to call the airline again shortly
before, in case of delay. Top
Safety
There is no question that Chile is the most secure country for travellers
within South America. Tourists can move freely and without problems.
Areas to avoid are the poor outskirts of big cities, and in the centres
of big
cities one should be very careful. Like in many other places in the
world, there are clever pickpockets around, and they are often very well
dressed
(like businessmen). Keep your handbag and backpack close to your body
and, especially in the city centres and in public transport, do not
let yourself
be distracted by anything or anybody (this is a well-known trick).
Do not carry around big sums of money, your flight tickets, or your passport.
Store them in a safe place, and take only a copy of your passport with
you. We recommend wearing a money belt. Never hang your bag on the
back
of your chair in cafés or restaurants or leave them unattended.
Although there are very few cases of robbery with the threat of violence,
walking in the city centre and on the Cerro San Cristóbal by
night is best done in company (not on your own). Top
Spanish
The Chilean variation of the Spanish language differs greatly from the Spanish
spoken in Spain or in other Latin American countries. Chileans speak fast
and with little modulation, swallowing consonants (mainly ‘s’)
and using countless trendy expressions. English is only partly useful for
understanding them.
PractiGo can arrange Spanish courses or private lessons for
you at a reasonable price with registered language schools. Top
Taxis are black with a yellow roof. They may be stopped anywhere and their prices are reasonable: During the day the basic fare is 150 pesos; 200 m is about 80 pesos. All taxis have a meter, and you should ask the driver to use it. Tips are not expected. Do not expect the taxi driver to find the address you want to get to; most of them do not have a good knowledge of the town. For longer taxi rides we recommend that you agree on the price beforehand. Top
Telephoning
Long distance calls: Telephone companies offer differently graded rates.
Except for mobile phones, you dial the three numbers of the company (carrier)
first and then the number for the country (0049 for Germany). The 0 for
the town is dropped. Throughout the city you find public phones that accept
coins or a phone card. There are also phone centres offered by the various
companies, where you can have a quiet cabin; from there you can also send
a fax. For a local call you pay 100 pesos for three minutes; a long distance
call to Germany is 200 to 500 pesos, depending on the time of day. Carrier
177 has the cheapest rates at the moment (68 pesos to
Germany). This company offers free contracts to private persons and to
firms (Tel. 2516900). Some Internet cafés offer IP phone calls at
even lower rates.
To call a mobile phone number (you recognise it by their first two numbers:
08 or 09), you must insert 200 pesos per minute into a public phone. If you
call from a private phone you pay about 100 pesos per minute. See also ‘Mobile
phones’. Top
The journey / Flight information
From Europe, about half a dozen airlines fly daily to Santiago de Chile,
usually with a stop-over. From Frankfurt: Lufthansa (via Buenos Aires or
Sao Paulo), Lan Chile (via Madrid), Iberia (via Madrid), Aerolíneas
Argentinas (via Buenos Aires) and Air France (via Paris-Sao Paulo). Flying
time, depending on the connections, is between 16 and 20 hours. Prices
vary according to season; cheap tickets may be found for less than 700 €,
but they are usually 800 €. We strongly recommend early reservation
because flights are very often sold out weeks in advance. Connections with
American airlines via the USA are less expensive but with several stopovers
and long waiting hours. Top
Time difference
The Chilean summer lasts from the second Saturday in October to the second
Saturday in March. During this season it is 4 hours later in Europe.
Winter lasts from the end of March to the end of September, depending on
the date of change, and during that season it is 6 hours later in Europe.
During the respective 2 weeks between the change of time in Europe and in
Chile, the difference is 5 hours. Top
Visa / Tourist card
You do not need a visa to enter Chile. On the airplane, you will get a tourist
card that is valid for 90 days, which will be stamped at the arrival office.
This document should be kept in a very safe place! In case of loss, contact
the Policía Internacional (in Santiago: Gen.Borgoño 1052,
Metro Calicanto, Monday to Friday 8.30 – 12.30 hours). If you try
to leave the country without having your tourist card, you will be delayed
at the airport. Another way is to pay 100 US $ for a single extension
at the foreigners’office
(Extranjería).
The Extranjería is also the place to go if you want to apply for
a visa for a longer stay while you are already in the country: Agustinas
1235
piso 2, Monday to Friday 8.30 - 14.00 h. Be prepared for a long wait.
If you want to apply for a visa before you leave your hometown, you can do
so at the Chilean consulate in or near your hometown. Top
