Country Information Chile

Location
	In the North Chile borders on Peru, in the East on Bolivia and Argentina and in the South and West on the Pacific Ocean. The coastline of this country measures more than 4200 km, while the average breadth of the country measures only 180 km (total area approx. 750.000km2). To Chile also belongs some Antarctic territory, as well as the Juan Fernández Islands and the Easter Island located in the Pacific Ocean.

Population
	Approx. 17.6 million

Capital
	Santiago de Chile, population 8 mio.

Politics & Economy
	Chile is a presidential republic. The country is one of the leading industry nations and one of the leading producers of raw materials within Latin America. Chile disposes of the biggest copper deposits of the world; moreover, it extracts oil and gas. Chilean wines are well-known worldwide. In Tierra del Fuego and Patagonia the breeding of sheep is widespread and besides the country has one of the biggest fishing industries of South America.

Currency
	Chilean Peso (CLP $)

Language
	Spanish

Time Difference
	Continental: -4 hours GMT / Easter Island: -6 hours GMT / Punta Arenas: UTC/GMT -3

Voltage
	220 alternating voltage, it is recommendable to bring a multi-adapter

Public Holidays
	1. January, Easter & Holy Week, 1. and 21. May, 29. June, 16. July; 15. August, 18. and 19. September, 12. and 31. October, 1. November, 8. and 25. December

Opening hours
	Most of the shops open from 10:00 to 20:00h, shopping centers and malls are often opened during the weekends until 21:00h or 22:0h. Banks are generally opened from 9:00h to 14:00h.

Climate
	Summer lasts from October to March, winter from June to August. The country has quite different climatic zones in consequence of its length – from the desert regions in the North to the very cold zones in the South temperatures decrease steadily. In the centre of the country and in Santiago it is rather temperate during the whole year, whereas you have long winters and cool summers in the South. The North is warm and dry.

Best time to travel
	High season are the Chilean holiday months from January till February. Best travel time to Patagonia is from October till April; to Easter Island from September to May and in the North the nice weather conditions allow to travel all year-round.

Clothing
	Generally, tourists you should be prepared for the different climatic zones and thermal oscillation between day and night; besides light summer clothes you should bring regular outdoor wear like warm pullover and waterproof jacket.

Tourist Destinations

Santiago	Capital with European atmosphere, dynamic and cosmopolitan.
Valparaíso	picturesque city on the hills with elevators, biggest port of Chile
Atacama desert	most arid desert in the world, salt lake, geysers
Puerto Varas	lakeland district, volcano Osorno
Punta Arenas	city at the end of the world, at the Magellan street
Torres del Paine	most beautiful national park of Patagonia

Flora & Fauna
	Corresponding to the large extension of the country, you have many different vegetation zones within Chile. From desert and thorn bush steppe with cactus in the North, forests and up to evergreen coniferous forests and grass steppe in the extreme South you can explore every kind of vegetation. Concerning the wildlife you can meet lama, alpacas, puma, Magellan foxes, chinchillas and the very rare south Andes deer (Huemul), the heraldic animal of Chile. Moreover the variety of birds is tremendous.

Food & Drink
	Empanadas (fried pastry pockets with diverse fillings), stews like Cazuela or Humitas filled with maize pudding are always delicious. Other favourites of the Chilean cuisine are sea-food and fresh fish. The Chilean red and white wines are excellent and gained international reputation. Pisco Sour, a cocktail mixed with brandy, is Chile’s national drink.

Souvenirs
	Lapis lazuli, silver, bronze, copper and leather are the most important materials for the craft industry. Nice silver Indian jewellery or pieces made of lapis lazuli can be bought. Also gloriously colourful traditional costumes of Chilean cowboys and woven goods from Rari and Valdivia are highly in demand. The traditional markets (e.g. Los Dominicos in Santiago or La Recova in La Serena) offer ponchos and other products made of lama and alpaca wool.