Chile is a long, thin, strip of a country along the western coast of South America. It is nearly 3,000 miles long and has a huge variety of ecosystems, ranging from the Andes Mountains, to desert, fjords, fertile valleys and Mediterranean-type sea coasts. It is becoming well known for its wine production and has vineyards that rival those in the United States. Since the repressive Pinochet regime was toppled in the late 1980s, the country has opened its borders and traveling there has never been easier.

When to Go

As Chile is south of the equator, the seasons there are reversed from North America's; summer is from November to February, and winter from June to early September. The country's summer is the high season for travel, with the attendant high prices and crowds. Traveling during the spring or fall offers nice weather and less competition for popular attractions. The winter months have skiing and other snow sports in the mountainous areas, however, the more populous coastal regions generally have a mild climate year-round.

Air Travel

The largest airport in Chile is in Santiago, the country's capital. The Arturo Merino Benitez airport (SCL) accepts regular nonstop flights from a wide variety of cities in the United States and Canada. The trip from New York City takes approximately 10 hours on a direct flight. Travelers from the United States only need a valid passport to enter Chile, however, upon arrival in Santiago, travelers are required to purchase a tourist card for a fee of $140 US, as of early 2011.

Land Travel

While most travelers from the U.S. will arrive in Chile by air, the country has active land border crossings with Peru, Bolivia and Argentina. Buses are available from surrounding countries into Chile, however, the trips can be as long as 10 days. Additionally, minefields are around the borders of Chile; drivers should stick to well-marked roads and not venture off the pavement. No entry fees are charged to U.S. citizens on land border crossings.

Where to Go

Santiago is the largest city in Chile, and has seamlessly meshed Spanish colonial architecture with contemporary buildings. The city is cosmopolitan, and English is fairly widely spoken here, as are German and French, due to mass immigration of Europeans throughout the past two centuries. Santiago is also a common stop on the way to Easter Island, about 2,000 miles to the west. Valpariso, on the coast, is a fishing port and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2002. Finally, Punta Arenas in the Patagonia region in the far southern part of Chile was a gold rush town in the late 1800s and is home to penguin colonies and other wild natural features.

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