By air
Chile has two national airlines, both private : LAN Chile (LA) and LADECO (VC) and two
small air transporting companies : Nacional and Avant.
Flights are frequent between the main cities, specially on weekdays, and they are pretty regular.
Air transport is specially important in the southern part of the country. It is necessary to make the
reservations previously. Trips within Chile are conducted by two Chilean airlines: LAN and LADECO and
also by aero taxis.
International and National Airports: Chile has got five international airports
(Arica, Iquique, Antofagasta, Santiago and Puerto Montt). And 12 national ones (Calama, Copiapo,
La Serena, Viña del Mar, Chillán, Concepcion, Los Angeles, Temuco, Valdivia, Osorno, Coyhaique and Punta Arenas)..
In Santiago, the International Airport Comodoro Arturo Merino Benitez is at 21 kilometers from Santiago
(30 minutes away). The bus service to downtown works 24 hours a day. You can return to the airport
from the Metropolitan Stations Los Heroes, Estacion Central and Las Rejas or Moneda
(at the corner of San Martin). There is also taxi service. In the airport facilities there are bars,
restaurants, exchange offices, car rental companies, a post office and a tourism office.
Examples of approximate fligth time: From Madrid to Santiago : 13:30 hours. From
Buenos Aires to Santiago : 2:15 hours. From Mexico D.F to Santiago : 8:20 hours. From New York to Santiago :
14:35 hours.
By sea
The main port is Empremar in Valparaiso. The most important sea lines are: Compañia Chilena de Navegacion
Interoceanica (CCNI); Compañía Argentina de Navegación Dodero (CADND) from Buenos Aires; Compañía Sud
Americana de Vapores (CSAV) fro New York and Europe; Delta Line Cruisses from the United States through
the canal of Panama; and Royal Netherlands Company from Rotterdam and Le Havre.
National Destinations by sea :
Trips by ship along the coast aren´t very frequent. There is one ship that covers the route from
Valparaiso to the Eastern Island and to the Robinson Crusoe Island (in the Juan Fernandez Islands)
once a month.
By land
Chile has got around 80.000 kilometers of highways which are in good conditions.
The Panamerican highway enters to Chile through Arica and crosses the country from North to South
(3.455 kilometers) from the Peruvian border to Puerto Montt.
Bus
The TEPSA buses connect Brasil with Ecuador. There is also service between Brasil and Santiago.
The inter city buses are cheap and reliable.
There is one luxus service that travels through the whole country from the North to the Souht. Most of the coaches
that cover long distances offer food and drink service.
If you drive
In the most distant zones it is adviseable to travel with extra fuel and spare tire. The tires must
be resistant. Drive on the right lane.
Train
International Rail way conection:
Bolivia - Chile:
Two trains a week connect La Paz, Bolivia with Arica (at the Northern border with Peru)
while you can reach Antofagasta by bus
Argentina - Chile:
You can get to San Carlos de Bariloche by train, and cross the border and continue the trip by bus to
Puerto Montt because some railway conections with neighboring countries use buses along
parts of the route.
National Railway Conection :
The Chilean railway net starts in Santiago and ends in Puerto Montt, a service limited by the country´s geography.
There are two daily trains conecting two cities with sleeping compartments, restaurants and air conditioning.
The passenger´s vehicles can be transported as well. Children shorter than 1,20 meters
don´t need to pay a ticket.
Duración de los trayectos:
The following table shows the approximated trip time(in hours y minutes)
from Santiago to the main cities of Chile.
| |
By air |
By highway |
Train |
| Arica |
2.40 |
28.00 |
84.00 |
| Concepción |
1.30 |
9.00 |
7.00 |
| Portillo |
2.30 |
- |
- |
| Puerto Montt |
1.45 |
11.00 |
17.00 |
| Punta Arenas |
3.25 |
120.00 |
- |
| Viña del Mar |
- |
2.00 |
- |
| Isla de Pascuas |
5.00 |
- |
- |
|
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