Transportation in Chile

By | July 12, 2021

GETTING THERE

Arriving by plane

According to youremailverifier, Chile’s national airline is called LAN Airlines (LA) (Internet: www.lan.com). It flies daily from Frankfurt via Madrid to Santiago de Chile. Lufthansa (LH) offers feeder flights from all cities in Germany and from Austria to LAN long-haul flights. Swiss International (LX) serves as a feeder from Switzerland. Iberia (IB) can also be used as a feeder to Madrid from Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Lufthansa (LH) (www.lufthansa.de) flies daily directly from Frankfurt / Main to Santiago de Chile.

Flies from ZurichSwiss International (LX) (Internet: www.swiss.com) via Paris or Sao Paulo to Santiago,
from Vienna Austrian Airlines (OS) (Internet: www.aua.com) and Air France (AF) (Internet: www.airfrance.com) via Paris.

KLM (KL) flies from Amsterdam via Buenos Aires to Santiago de Chile.

Iberia (IB) flies via Madrid, also in cooperation with other airlines to Santiago de Chile.

Air passes

The TAM South American Airpass is valid on all routes of the participating airlines within Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile (with the exception of Easter Island), Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. The participating airline is: TAM (JJ). The pass is valid for stays of a minimum of 7 and a maximum of 45 days and is only available to passengers who are resident outside of South America in conjunction with an international round-trip ticket. A minimum of 2 and a maximum of 5 countries must be visited. A maximum of 8 flight coupons are allowed (9 if Iguazú is being flown to), with a maximum of 2 flight interruptions (stopovers) per country. The flight route must be specified in the ticket and firmly reserved. Flights may be rebooked, but the flight route may not be changed. Children under 12 years of age receive a 25% discount, infants under 2 years of age (without their own seat) 90% discount.

The Oneworld Visit South America Pass is valid on routes operated by participating airlinesAmerican Airlines, British Airways, LAN, Qatar Airwaysand the associated airlines within South America in the following countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. Applicable only to passengers residing outside of South America. Valid for a maximum of 6 months from arrival in South America. The Airpass includes at least 3 coupons. The number of coupons is not limited. A coupon is required for each section of the route. The stopovers are limited to the number of coupons purchased. Children from 2 years of age: no discount. Infants under 2 years of age are free (no seat occupancy). The reservation of the entire route must be made before departure or the ticket is issued. A fee will be charged for each route change or change in the flight date. Cancellation fees: Refunds before departure, No reimbursement after departure. Purchase of tickets / issue before departure in Germany.

Departure fee

There is no airport charge on arrival or departure.

Arrival by car

The Chilean section of the Pan-American Highway begins in Arica and extends to Puerto Montt. The Andean Road connects Peru, Chile and Bolivia. This new tourist route leads from San Pedro de Atacama in Chile through Bolivia to Arequipa in Peru.
The TEPSA buses (Internet: www.tepsa.com.pe) run everywhere in South America and are designed for long distances, even from Ecuador you can travel to Chile by coach. There are connections to Brazil, Argentina and Peru.
Own vehicles can be brought into Chile for 90 days, but are not allowed to remain in the country (sales are not permitted).

Arriving by train

For some rail connections to neighboring countries, buses are also used in sections. There is a connection with the Tren Internacional from Calama in Chile to Uyuni in Bolivia.
The line between La Paz (Bolivia) and Arica (Chile) has been closed.

Arrival by ship

The main Chilean ports are Arica, Valparaíso, Puerto Montt and Punta Arenas.
Cruise lines such as Holland America Line (website: www.hollandamerica.com), Norwegian Cruise Line (tel: www.ncl.com) and Silversea Cruise (website: www.silversea.com) running on Chile.

Transportation in Chile

ON THE GO

Traveling by plane

Regular scheduled flights to major cities, especially on weekdays the connections are good. The south is best reached by plane, booking in advance is recommended. Domestic flights are offered by the Chilean airline LAN Chile (LA) (Internet: www.lan.com) as well as some air taxi companies. LAN Chile also regularly connects Santiago de Chile with Easter Island on the flight to Tahiti. A flight is offered four times a week between November and February; at other times of the year only twice a week. Advance booking is recommended. Flight time: 5 hours 20 minutes.
From Valparaíso and Santiago de Chile there are daily air taxi connections to the Juan Fernández Islands in summer.

Note on air travel

There is no airport fee.

On the way by car / bus

The road network is good and covers 79,593 km. The Panamericana runs 3,600 km from the Peruvian border to Puerto Montt. In more remote areas, you should have spare canisters of gasoline and spare tires with you. Long-distance bus: Intercity buses are inexpensive and reliable. There is a convenient north-south connection. Most long-distance buses have toilets and refreshments. Information from SERNATUR (see addresses). Taxi: Most taxis are metered, but for longer journeys the fare should be agreed in advance. On Sundays after 9 p.m. you pay a surcharge of 50%. The taxis in Santiago de Chile are black with a yellow roof. Rental car are available at airports and in major cities. There is a minimum age of 25 years. Some landlords have also defined a maximum age. The fees consist of the daily rate, mileage allowance and 20% tax. In most cases, large deposits also have to be made. A credit card is required for rental. Fully comprehensive insurance is usually not included. Road maps are available from the Automóvil Club de Chile, Avenida Vitacura 1753, Santiago de Chile. Tel: (02) 431 10 00. (Internet: www.automovilclub.cl). Even motorcycles can be hired.
Traffic regulations:
The use of the motorways is usually chargeable. The toll varies according to the type of vehicle and the length of the route.
Speed limits:
If no speed limit is displayed, it is 100 km / h, in urban areas it is 50 km / h.
Documents: In addition to the national driver’s license, an international driver’s license must be carried with you. This is issued by the respective road traffic authorities.

Traveling in the city

In Santiago de Chile there is a subway system (Internet: www.metrosantiago.cl) with five lines (Line 1: Almeda-Apoquindo; Line 2: from Mapocho train station to the south; Line 4: Plaza de Puente Alto-Tobalaba; Line 4A: La Cisterna-Vicuna Mackenna; Line 5: Baquedano-La Florida). Ticket prices vary depending on the time of day; between 7:15 and 9:00 a.m. and between 6:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., more must be paid. The cheapest option is the multi-trip ticket. In addition to the metro, there are the so-called yellow “micro” buses, black and yellow taxis and shared taxis that operate on fixed routes but without a fixed schedule. The underground trains and buses have standard fares, shared taxis are more expensive. Most other cities also have buses and taxis.

On the go by train

Due to the topography and the distribution of the population, there are only a few routes with passenger traffic (Internet: www.efe.cl).
Long-distance connections:
Santiago de Chile – Temuco; Santiago de Chile – Concepción – Talcahuano daily; Santiago de Chile – San Fernando; (Metrotrene); Santiago de Chile – Talcahuano;
Santiago – Talca – Chillán several times a day, all these trains with modern or reconstructed rolling stock, 2 car classes and all air-conditioned, no sleeping cars. Temuco – Puerto Montt.
Regional connections:
Talca – Constitución narrow-gauge railway, several times a day;
Talcahuano – Concepción – Laja – Renaico several times a day.
Calama – Ollagüe – Oruro (Bolivia) weekly;
Local trains:
Valparaíso – Viña del Mar – Limache every 30 to 60 minutes;
Santiago – Rancagua – San Fernando many trips daily;
Talcahuano – Concepción – Hualquí almost every hour.
Tourist trains:
Tren del Vino
(Internet: www.trendelvinochile.cl): From San Fernando to Peralillo the steam train goes to wineries;
A steam train runs several times a year from Valdívia to Antilhué on Sundays.

On the way by ship

Passenger ships along the coast are rare and unreliable. Some providers of shipping in Chile are Patagonia Connection (Internet: www.patagonia-connection.com), Cruceros Australis (Internet: www.australis.com) from Punta Arenas to Ushuaia, Naviera Magallanes NAVIMAG (Internet: www.navimag.cl) from Puerto Montt to Puerto Chacabuco, Laguna San Rafael and Puerto Natales, Transmarchilay (Internet: www.transmarchilay.cl) from Puerto Montt via Chaitén to Ayacara. Once a month there is a connection from Valparaíso to Easter Island and Robinson Crusoe Island (part of the Juan Fernández Islands). Local travel agencies provide information.