We began our trip in Santiago, so our experience of this huge metropolis is likely to be very different to that of many visitors. Having said this, we really enjoyed the 10 days we spent in the city and think that it is a great place to visit.
First things first, Santiago is an enormous place. As such, getting around can prove extremely challenging. We naively chose a combination of camper van, Uber and on foot. I say the word naively as since our time in Santiago, we have learned that navigating bit cities with our camper van is best avoided for a multitude of reasons. Being a family of four, we found that getting taxis to general locations, exploring on foot, and then returning home in taxis at the end of the day worked best for us.
We stayed the entire time parked at the entrance to the Metropolitano Park in the north-east of the city. The park is situated in an affluent part of the city, with 24/7 parking attendants and regular police and security guard patrols. The entrance had excellent bathrooms with drinking water, which came in very handy for newbie overlanders! The park itself covers a vast 722 hectares of green space, making it one of the largest urban parks in the world. While staying there, we enjoyed the playgrounds, adventure park, exercise stations, cable cars, Japanese gardens, restaurants, food stalls and general vibe of what locals call the “lungs of the city”.
Aside from our beyond stressful visits to Ikea and Decathlon in the city (with our camper van – what on earth were we thinking?!), we found time to visit some of the cities sights. Amongst these, some of our favourites were;
MIM Science Museum – This is a wonderful place for kids to learn about all things science, in an interactive and fun way. We spent a good 3-4 hours there, enjoying the huge range of exhibits and lovely gardens to relax in.
Parque Quinta – The park was somewhere with a real local feel to it. We went on a Sunday and it was great to see how the Santiago natives spent their free-time. The food and drinks available from street vendors seemed limitless, and we left with a vastly improved knowledge of the local cuisine.
Las Condes Park – We visited this on Chilean Independence Day, which was a great experience. The Chileans are a very proud nation and this was visible for all to see that day. Flags, bunting and all things Chile were front and centre around this lovely park. Our kids had to be dragged away from the huge playground which had something for children of all ages.
Sky Costanera Tower – At 300m tall, its 62 storey’s make it the highest building in South America. We went to the observatory level and had a great time viewing the whole city, plus the surrounding Andes mountains. Like make tourist attractions in South America, the level of visitors was pretty low and wait times were next to zero. Our kids had never been in any building approaching this height, so the whole experience was novel and exciting for them.
Overall Santiago was a nice arrival spot for us. We had time to learn about our camper van in a safe and hassle-free location. We also enjoyed viewing plenty of sights, places and neighbourhoods around the city.
Click here to read the “Lake District” travel guide
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