5 Helpful Tips for Visiting Valparaíso, Chile!
If you love colorful street art and gritty South American charm, you will enjoy Valparaíso.
It seems as if almost every inch of every building is covered with an art mural or graffiti. Valparaíso is the #2 city in South America for the most amount of street art (Sao Paulo in Brazil is #1)!
There are so many different styles of artwork that it is mesmerizing to walk up and down the winding hills and take in the view of the Pacific Ocean at sunset.
Here are five quick tips for visiting this coastal town west of Chile’s capital Santiago!
1. How Much Time to Spend in Valparaíso?
While my friend and I spent five nights in Valparaiso, others prefer to opt for a day trip.
While you can catch the highlights during a day trip, I’d recommend spending a few nights if you have more time!
The food - especially seafood - is worth it alone, and they have many great restaurants.
Plus, Viña Del Mar is 30 minutes up the coast and worth spending some time at for a different and more sophisticated vibe. It’s nice to have space in the schedule to explore freely and not feel rushed.
2. Getting to Valparaíso from Santiago
Santiago is most likely where you will be getting to Valparaíso from unless perhaps you are coming from the Atacama Desert (north) or Patagonia region (south).
From Santiago, you can take a bus, private taxi, or drive a rental car - the drive is between 1.5-2 hours each way.
There is no airport in Valparaíso (the closest one is in Santiago) and while there is a train along the coast, there is no train that goes from Santiago to Valparaíso.
The taxi is quite expensive, and the bus was super easy, clean, and affordable (only a few USD each way).
We got tickets at the bus station from the Turbus window (required before your board). It was a double-decker coach bus (not a city bus) with comfortable, assigned seats and tagged luggage storage.
No matter which form of transportation you take, be sure to look out the window and enjoy the beautiful views along the way!
3. Getting Around Valparaíso
Valparaiso is not a huge city, though it can take 20-30 minutes by foot to get from a hotel up in the hills down to the downtown area or the more touristic restaurant area.
My friend and I did plenty of walking and walked most of the time. At night, or if we were on a time crunch, we opted for an Uber or Cabify ride as they were quite cheap (usually under $5 USD).
Using Uber or Cabify (taxis are available as well) at night was what we opted for instead of walking.
Depending where you are, you can also take a cable car!
These small cable cars can get you up a hill pretty quickly, and are a fun way to experience the culture and take in the view. Many locals actually use these as transportation. The cost is only 100 Chilean pesos each way (a fraction of a US dollar).
4. Safety in Valparaíso
EVERY local I met in Santiago (Chile’s capital city) raved about Valparaíso and how cool and fun of a city it is. When I asked which one they prefer, every single person said Valparaíso!
Chilean locals also warned us to be extra vigilant in certain areas and especially at night. (However, this is quite common in most parts of the world anyway).
The locals we spoke with recommended staying up in the hills because they said at night it was safer to be in the hills compared to walking around alone in the downtown/lower areas.
They said the reason for this is that there are more opportunities for pickpocketing, etc.
My friend and I followed that advice and felt safe the whole time with no issues!
That said, always keep your bag zipped, don’t flash your money or phone around, and always trust your intuition, like you would anywhere else.
5. Taking a Day Trip to Viña Del Mar from Valparaíso
Visiting Viña Del Mar for the day was well worth it!
It is only 30 minutes up the coast from Valparaíso and you can take a bus, taxi, train, or Uber/Cabify. Our Uber was only $5.50 USD each way.
Viña Del Mar has a beautiful beach you can lay out on in the warmer months.
We were told this is the “summer spot for Chilean socialites.”
It has a cleaner, more glamorous feel compared to Valparaíso, so it is fun to visit both!
Travel Insurance for Chile (Updated: May 2022)
Chile’s entry requirements have been a little more strict than other countries in South America in early 2022, and I had to get specific travel insurance to board my flight from Argentina to Chile.
Check the government websites to ensure you meet the most up-to-date entry requirements, but during my trip (March-April 2022) this is what they required:
That it specifically covered COVID costs over $30,000 USD while in Chile
The dates that the travel insurance was active, including the day we arrived in Chile
My full name on the insurance policy and match it to my passport
Luckily, I’ve heard good things about SafetyWing, which includes COVID coverage with their insurance.
My friend and I bought the SafetyWing insurance for the week on the spot, and it was only $15 each for seven days. It met all the above requirements for Chile!
It was super easy and they listed out everything in such a clear way that this “detour” for our travel plans wasn’t too long.
If you need travel insurance as a digital nomad, I highly recommend SafetyWing (for Chile or elsewhere). You can browse their plans here.
I’m using SafetyWing as my travel insurance for all my trips to other countries as it is the most affordable with the most benefits for digital nomads.
Save this for later on Pinterest!
This website contains some affiliate links. They help keep the blog running at no extra cost to you. Any affiliate links are based on a genuine recommendation.