This guide is for you if you are in Santiago and want one day on the coast. It covers the choices to make before you book: which day of the week, what to wear on the hills, how the funiculars fit in, and whether to end the day at a cruise ship, a winery or the airport.
Pick the day of the week first
La Sebastiana, Pablo Neruda's house on Cerro Bellavista, opens Tuesday to Sunday. On a Monday we leave it out and give the hills more time. If the house is the reason you are going, avoid Mondays.
Opening hours at the house are set by the Fundación Neruda, which runs it. Check its official site before you go, and see whether guided visits are offered on your date.
The season matters less than the day. Summer, from December to February, is the main time for trips from Santiago to the beaches of Viña del Mar and Valparaíso, so the seafront is at its fullest then.
Why the hills look the way they do
It helps to know what you are looking at. UNESCO listed the historic quarter of Valparaíso as a World Heritage site in 2003. The city sits in a natural amphitheatre: a bay, a narrow coastal strip, much of it built on reclaimed land, and steep hills cut by ravines. On the flat ground the streets follow a grid. On the hills, houses, stairways and alleys fit the slope as best they can.
For a long time Valparaíso was the first and most important merchant port on the Pacific coast of South America, on the sea route round the Strait of Magellan. Its influence lasted from the 1880s until the Panama Canal opened in 1914. After that, trade moved elsewhere and building slowed down, which is a large part of why the old port and its hills survive.
Cerro Alegre and Cerro Concepción, the two hills where you spend the late morning, were largely planned and built by German and English immigrants. Look for the squares, the lookouts, the promenades and the stairways that join one level to the next.
The funiculars
The locals call them ascensores. Valparaíso has had up to 30 of them. Sixteen survive, but not all of them run at any one time: several have been under restoration for years. The first was the Ascensor Concepción, opened on 1 December 1883. Its lower station is off Prat Street, opposite the Turri clock tower, and the car climbs 69 metres of track to the Paseo Gervasoni on Cerro Concepción. It was out of service for restoration from 2016 to 2019.
The tour goes up or down the hills by one of the old funiculars. The fare is not included, so carry local cash for it. Which one you ride depends on what is running that day.
How the day fits together
You leave at 07:00. The coast is about two hours by motorway, and you start in Viña del Mar at around 08:45, while the seafront is still quiet. The flower clock there was made for the 1962 football World Cup, when Viña del Mar was one of the host cities; its original mechanism came from a clockmaker in Neuchâtel, in Switzerland. You also see the Wulff Castle on the rocks and walk along the front.
From 10:30 you are on foot on the hills of Valparaíso. The car cannot follow you up the lanes, so it waits below. Lunch is at 12:30, on the hills or by the port, and is not included. At 13:45 you reach La Sebastiana.
The house began as an unfinished building by a builder called Sebastián Collado, and Neruda turned it into a home full of stairs. His study is on the fourth floor, with a view of the bay and the city climbing around it. The rooms are filled with things he brought back from his travels. Streets around it are narrow and parking is scarce, which is one reason not to drive there yourself. The entrance fee is not included.
You start back at 15:15, through the Casablanca valley and its vineyards, and reach your hotel at about 17:00.
On your own or with a driver
You can do this day without a car once you are on the coast. La Sebastiana can be reached by colectivo or taxi, or by the Ascensor Espíritu Santo and about ten minutes' walk along calle Ferrari. If you have two days, staying overnight and wandering slowly is a good way to see the hills.
With one day, a private car saves the two-hour transfers and the work of linking Viña, the hills and Neruda's house. It also lets you change the order on the day. Because the car is yours, it can start or end at the cruise terminal in Valparaíso, finish at the airport if you tell us your flight time, or stop at a winery in the Casablanca valley on the way back. A tasting there is paid at the winery and makes the day a little longer. The price depends on the size of your group; see it on the tour page.
What to wear and bring
- Flat shoes with grip. The hills are steep, with cobbles and long flights of stairs.
- Sun cream and a hat for the lookouts.
- Local cash for the funiculars, a coffee and small purchases on the hills.
Who it suits
It suits anyone with a single free day in Santiago who wants the sea, and cruise passengers with a day in port. Think twice if anyone in your group struggles with steps. The hills are walked, not driven, and Neruda's house has several floors joined by stairs. Tell us when you book and we can keep the walking short and spend longer in Viña.
If the mountains appeal more than the coast, our guide to day trips from Santiago compares this day with the Cajón del Maipo and Portillo.
Questions people ask
Can we cancel?
Yes. Cancel up to 24 hours before pick-up and you are refunded in full. See our cancellation page.
What if we are more than 16?
You travel in two vehicles on one booking. Message us through the contact page and we will price it.
Booking the day
Choose a day between Tuesday and Sunday if La Sebastiana is on your list, and wear shoes you can climb in. The timings and what is included are on the Valparaíso and Viña del Mar private day trip page, where you choose the size of your group and book.
