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Things to Do and See

By Bonnie Hamre, About.com

Casa Colorada Museo de Santiago Chile

Casa Colorada, Museo de Santiago, Chile

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Things to Do and See
Around town:
  • There aren't many colonial buildings left in Santiago, but a visit to the Museo de Santiago, in the historic Casa Colorada, to see the display of maps, paintings, dioramas and colonial dress will give you an idea of Santiago's history.
  • Tours Of Central Chile, Santiago, Vina Del Mar and the Wine Country
  • Teatro Municipal
  • Museo Nacional de Historia Natural – new copper salon, biodiversity, anthropology, flora and fauna, paleontology
  • Museo de Artes Decorativas in Casa Lo Matta, an eighteenth-century hacienda in Las Condes, features silverwork, paintings, ceramics, textiles, sculpture and furniture
  • Museo de Arte Contemporáneo
  • Museo Chileno de Arte PreColombino
  • Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes
  • Museo de Arte Colonial San Francisco
  • Los Graneros del Alba in Los Dominicos in Las Condes is a large craft fair offering beautiful handicrafts, antiques, books, fossils, a restaurant, and live music and dancing at weekends
  • Stroll through Bellavista and arrange a guided tour of La Chascona, the house Nobel winning poet Pablo Neruda designed for his mistress, and later third wife. Now maintained by the Fundación Pablo Neruda, the house is an ecletic mix of furnishings, extensive library and beautiful gardens.
  • Take a walk along Santiago's streets, as Clarence Fisk did, to spot the city monuments in plaza's and parks. You can read his report in Spanish in Santiago de Chile: Son Solo 15 Kilometros De Historia or follow along with the Photo Gallery with explanations in English.
  • Cerro Santa Lucia is an easy walk from the Centro, and an easy uphill ascent to see gardens, fountains and a view of the city. Go only in the daytime.
  • Cerro San Cristobal is the highest point in the city, and afer a ride in the funicular, you'll be rewarded, on a clear day or early morning, with a panoramic view of the city and the Andes beyond. San Cristobal is part of Parque Metropolitano, Santiago's largest park. `The zoo is here.

    Out of town:

  • The nearby ski resorts of Portillo, Valle Nevado, Colorado/Farellones and La Parva are only an hour or so from downtown Santiago and offer world-class skiing.
  • Wine tours to wineries and vineyards, or viñedos, such as Viña Concha y Toro, Viña Santa Rita, Viña Portal del alto, Viña Tarapacá ex Zabala, Viña Cousiño Macul and Viña Undurraga.
  • There are more suggestions, including a vist to Cajón del Maipo in Excursions from Santiago

    There is much to do and see in Santiago and the Central Valley. Whenever you go, enjoy your stay and post your comments about Santiago on the forum.

    Buen viaje!

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