Arriving in Santiago filled us with more happiness than we had ever expected upon reaching this destination on our itinerary. This was of course because we had swerved a 30 hour bus journey and instead arrived in less than two hours by plane from Arica. Absolutely thrilled with our decision we hopped in the airport shuttle service vans and were dropped at our chosen hostel – Nativa Crazy Friendly – or as it was previously known, and still is in the lonely planet guide from 2015, Hostel Caracol.

The first thing we noticed was the extremely high prices, not advertised in the book. The sign situated on the reception desk stated that a standard double room was priced at a mere $80 – that’s US by the way. Instantly put off, as any backpacker would be, we were told that we could be granted a special price, the reason for this is still unknown. We were given the room for $35 and were fairly happy with our decision to stay. The hostel was clean, modern, came with breakfast included and also had the best lounge area we have seen yet. Settling in we headed out to explore the area we had chosen to stay. We had opted for Bella Vista, this is the most bohemian, arty area of Santiago and apparently the spot to be if you’re a tourist.

The place is filled with bar after bar after bar, which are all full every single evening and also most afternoons. We found a Chilean restaurant after recommendations from the hostel staff and went for some native dishes to introduce us properly to the country. They were nice but not something we would rush back to have again. Fish and a tomato sauce doesn’t seem all that different. It was by far the most westernised country we had visited on our whole trip through latin america, from Mexico to here. Not that this is a bad thing we must clarify, it was nice to feel like this for a change. We had a glass of wine and a pisco sour to celebrate, because, why not!

The next day we set out to explore the city sights. Moods were high due to the fact that we could still be sat on a bus travelling here and we were looking forward to a busy sightseeing day..

First stop – Cerro San Cristobal. This is the second highest point of the city which rises bove the surrounding terrain. It can either be summited by a two hour relatively easy hike or by the short tram/cable car ride to the top. No points for guessing which option we went for. Half an hour later we stepped off the tram and headed further up hill to get the best view possible of Santiago.

Here you can find a small chapel and a monument to Christ. Even more importantly it was here that the Pope delivered mass a few years back, a fact that Chileans and Santiago locals are very proud of. We snapped away with all our cameras and enjoyed the magnificent view for an hour or so, treated ourselves to an ice cream, topped up our tans and strolled around the picturesque gardens. At this point Cerro San Cristobal had provided us with all it could offer so we again hopped on the tram and made our way to the bottom to see what else Santiago had in store for us.

Next on our to see list was Santiagos main square, again named Plaza de Armas, as every main square in the whole of latin america seems to be named. Unfortunately for Santiago their own Plaza de Armas isn’t the most spectacular or the most impressive we had visited on our trip so far so our time here was cut rather short. It is surrounded by some impressive buildings and some street performers, crowded out by hundreds of pigeons.

From Plaza de Armas its a short walk to Mercado Central bypassing a shopping mall and the usual street vendors. Some obviously working illegally as when they noticed police heading towards them up street they hurriedly packed up there items and sprinted away in the opposite direction. Mercado Central was not what we had expected. You are instantly hit with the smell of fresh fish as you approach the entrance and once inside this is only heightened. Around the edge of the market building are small stalls selling the fresh fish, fruit and vegetables as well as fresh bread, tourist souvenirs and other assorted items. These surround the main centre of the market which is an array of restaurants, a few bars and a huge hustle and bustle of people sat eating, drinking, chatting and clearly enjoying themselves. Waiters try to entice you into their tables and do the upmost to persuade you to choose their restaurant over the immediately neighbouring one. Unfortunately for us the smell of fish was a little too much so we declined pall offers and headed off to find some lunch elsewhere. Heading towards our next destination we found a lovely little neighbourhood containing cafes and restaurants and after checking out menus opted for the best sounding one.

Cerro Santa Lucia is located near by to Santiago’s central district and this is where we made for next. This is another green area of Santiago and is filled with fountains, trees and ornate fencing all culminating to a central point of which you can summit. The hill is the remanence of an old volcano.

That afternoon we treated ourselves to an ice cream and made for Parque Forestal. This is in our opinion Santiago’s best spot. Although it is marred by seemingly everyone being over the top of the PDA front it is an excellent place to come and relax. Spreading over a large area, thinly stretched along the bank of the river this park contains fountains, play areas, benches and plenty of large grass areas for you to sit and people watch as runners, cyclists and families pass by in their daily routines. We spent a lot of time here enjoying the sun and it really reminded us of home, Santiago brings with it a very European feel as a city and it was very welcomed by us.

Evenings in Santiago consisted of us staying in Bella Vista and primarily of us visiting Patio Bellavista. This was by far our favourite area of Santiago and it left us wishing that it was actually located in Manchester or Cambridge so we could become frequent visitors. Consisting of a variety of restaurants, cafes, wine and cocktail bars and also a few small shops this was the hub of nightlife. We tried a few of the restaurants and our favourite one was a small Chilean/Peruvian place that served a stir fry to die for, Hayley had this three times during our stay. We also visited a wine bar here and sampled some of the Chilean wine that makes the country famous. Every single night, without fail, whether we had been in Bella Vista or not we returned here and Hayley ordered a Nutella pancake from one of the stalls as her desert. She isn’t a beer drinker, or much of a alcohol drinker at all but when it comes to a sweet tooth you will struggle to find someone with a larger one. For this reason and many more this area is a MUST if you ever happen to find yourself in Santiago.

Excited to start our own ‘Road to Rio’ for the carnival our last port of call in Santiago was the airport as we boarded our plane to Sao Paulo. We would be back in Santiago in three weeks and we were extremely pleased by that fact as we loved the city and Hayley could return for another nutella crepe.

Find out about our time in Sao Paulo where we celebrated Jonny’s birthday in style as well as our overnight trip to the small coastal town of Valparaiso on our next posts!

Jonny & Hayley 🙂