Browse listings of B&B, Home Exchange, Vacation Rentals (furnished apartments, villas, cottages, condos, farmhouses and other types of accommodations) of Chile:
Last Minute Tips Before you Travel to Chile
- Time Zone: GMT/UTC -4
- Electricity: 220V, 50 Hz (bring an adapter/transformer for your hair drier, laptop, cellullar phone etc.)
- Currency: Peso (Ch$)
- Country Dialing Code: 56
Must See - Properties on UNESCO World Heritage List by
- Rapa Nui National Park
- Churches of Chiloé
- Historic Quarter of the Seaport City of Valparaíso
- Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works
Chile
Location
Southern South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean, between Argentina and Peru
Capital
Santiago
Population
15,980,912 (July 2005 est.)
Regions
13 regions (regiones, singular - region); Aisen del General Carlos Ibanez del Campo, Antofagasta, Araucania, Atacama, Bio-Bio, Coquimbo, Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins, Los Lagos, Magallanes y de la Antartica Chilena, Maule, Region Metropolitana (Santiago), Tarapaca, Valparaiso
note: the US does not recognize claims to Antarctica
Climate
temperate; desert in north; Mediterranean in central region; cool and damp in south
Ethnic groups
white and white-Amerindian 95%, Amerindian 3%, other 2%
Religions
Roman Catholic 89%, Protestant 11%, Jewish NEGL%
Languages
Spanish
Government type
republic
Background
Prior to the coming of the Spanish in the 16th century, northern Chile was under Inca rule while Araucanian Indians inhabited central and southern Chile; the latter were not completely subjugated until the early 1880s. Although Chile declared its independence in 1810, decisive victory over the Spanish was not achieved until 1818. In the War of the Pacific (1879-84), Chile defeated Peru and Bolivia and won its present northern lands. A three-year-old Marxist government of Salvador ALLENDE was overthrown in 1973 by a dictatorial military regime led by Augusto PINOCHET, who ruled until a freely elected president was installed in 1990. Sound economic policies, maintained consistently since the 1980s, have contributed to steady growth and have helped secure the country's commitment to democratic and representative government. Chile has increasingly assumed regional and international leadership roles befitting its status as a stable, democratic nation.
Visitor's Impressions
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Ebook Guide to Chile
