Why Visit Now: Valparaíso
From big cultural initiatives to a thriving art scene, Valparaíso offers a window into Chile's past and future. Discover why now is the time to explore the city of 42 hills.
Every inch of wall, every lamppost, every staircase in the labyrinthine Valparaíso tells a story. The painted streets of Cerro Alegre and Cerro Concepción, just two of Valpo’s 42 hills, form the heart of Chile's cultural capital. Together with the Barrio Puerto, these neighborhoods are a UNESCO-designated World Heritage Site.
Valparaíso is a year-round destination with mild winters and hot summers cooled by the Pacific Ocean. Flat shoes are a must – as is a sense of adventure. Although it’s one of Chile’s top tourist destinations, the “Vale of Paradise” is a working city and a little rough around the edges.
Both the Chilean Navy and the National Congress are headquartered in Valparaíso. Containers shuffle through the port around the clock. Chileans pile into town to commence their studies at one of the city’s prestigious universities every March.
In essence, this is a locals’ city where international travelers are welcomed with gusto. Here’s how you can get to know Valparaíso like a Porteño.
1. “Jail time” at the Valparaíso Cultural Park
A former prison has found a new lease of life – in the most Valpo way possible!
On the summit of Cerro Cárcel, an old jailhouse wraps around a grassy park popular with Porteño families. The oldest part of the Valparaíso Cultural Park serves as a memorial, a renovated wing has an art gallery and theater, and smaller units are used for workshops. A community garden is under development on the east side.
Hannah Cooper
Theatrical performances include music, dance, circus, and Spanish-language plays. There are often pop-ups and buskers dotting the plaza in front. Standing a tad higher than Cerro Alegre and Cerro Concepción, Cerro Cárcel offers incredible views of the port city.
2. An open-air art exhibition
Valparaíso’s artsy legacy dates to the 1960s when the poet Pablo Neruda invited Mexican muralists to Chile. Under the Pinochet dictatorship, street art became a form of protest and unity.
New pieces are added daily. Many reflect the political landscape, some are homages to Chilean heritage, others capture nuances in Chilean humor. Chinchineros (street musicians) and hip hop stars are common subjects. Chilenismos (Chilean slang) are scribbled outside cafes.
Maxi Zamora, one of the most prominent artists, portrays children indulging in wholesome pastimes. Replacing his painting of boys charging carts down the near-vertical city streets, Zamora’s latest piece on the Papudo Street steps shows a girl playing hopscotch.
On walking tours, guides share the nuances behind every piece and explain how muralists collaborate as teams. Some excursions journey to the Open Sky Museum (Museo a Cielo Abierto) which preserves the oldest murals.
3. Four seasons of festivals
Chile’s cultural nucleus hosts festivals ranging from literary events in Spanish to music and art for everyone to enjoy. Every 18 September, Fiestas Patrias is celebrated at a fondo (fair) in La Convencional on Victoria Street where traditional food is served alongside live music and games.
The Independence Day celebrations are followed by the Thousand Drums Festival parades in early October. Viña del Mar Music Festival – held the third week of February – is the biggest music event in Latin America.
Tocatas Porteñas is a new pilot circuiting musicians around the bars of Cumming, Bellavista, and Ecuador streets with pop-up banners advertising their whereabouts. Orchestras and jazz acts perform in Plaza Victoria throughout the year.
Otherwise, the Ministry of Culture, Art, and Heritage in Plaza Sotomayor is the best place to check what’s on. This center has free exhibitions and weekly tango classes.
4. Peek into Chile’s poetical past
Seduced by its quirky architecture, Neruda purchased La Sebastiana on Cerro Florida. There’s no need to be a literary scholar to appreciate the panoramic views and peer over the bar where the poet rustled up cocktails for his guests.
Hannah Cooper
Bronzes of Pablo Neruda, Vicente Huidobro, and Gabriela Mistral decorate the Plaza of Poets outside the museum. The latter pipped Neruda to the post as the first Latin American to claim the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1945 while Huidobro founded Creationism. Mistral and Neruda were known to hang out in what has since been renamed Café del Poeta in Plaza Anibal Pinto.
Valparaíso is a base for El Litoral de los Poetas (the Poet’s Coast) which may be visited as a day trip or spread over several days. Neruda’s Isla Negra beach house is also a museum, as is the Vicente Huidobro House Museum in Cartagena. Plans are underway to transform the Las Cruces house of “antipoet” Nicanor Parra into a cultural center.
Valparaíso continues to attract creatives from Chile and overseas: poets, artists, musicians, and more.
5. Pick up a spray can (or a pencil)
A handful of operators run experiences shadowing local artists where you’ll try your hand at street art. They handle any permits, leaving you free to unleash your creativity.
More Matisse than Bansky? An exciting new business, Art and Wine Chile, hosts regular “Paint and Wine” classes in Valparaíso (and Viña del Mar). These events include all equipment and unlimited wine. Each session has a theme which so far have included Van Gogh, Monet, pets, and partners.
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6. Wade into maritime history
The Naval and Maritime Museum chronicles Valparaíso’s seafaring history and the establishment of the Chilean Navy. One gallery on the upper level is dedicated to Chilean Antarctica. Non-Spanish speakers may prefer a tour; only a quarter of the exhibition is translated.
Harbor tours depart from Muelle Prat where Chile’s battleships are docked and prestigious vessels berth on occasion. Most recently, the Chilean Navy moored the barquentine Esmeralda and the Italian Navy docked their training vessel, Amerigo Vespucci, as part of its world tour.
Hannah Cooper
From higher ground, you’ll gain a better view of the port’s iconic dry dock. Sociber replaces two predecessors lying sunken on the seabed.
The Feast Day of St. Peter is celebrated at the port in June through parades and dockside fried fish. Caleta el Membrillo hosts a Fisherman’s Bonfire in September as part of Independence Day.
7. Dance along to cueca
Chilean cueca sees a couple parody a rooster courting a chicken along to flute and guitar music. Men don riding apparel, women sport a full-skirted huasa dress, and both partners swirl a handkerchief above their heads during the routine.
oscargutzo
Cueca is often performed in public plazas in small Chilean towns, particularly in summer and around public holidays. As cueca was declared the national dance under the Pinochet dictatorship, it briefly fell from grace. Now, Chileans are reclaiming it – and Valparaíso is driving the charge with weekly cueca parties.
Visit Bar Liberty on a Thursday, Rincon de las Guitarras on a Saturday, or La Isla de la Fantasia on a Sunday to experience cueca in Valparaíso. Either watch the pros or join in – there’s no pressure either way.
8. Comfort food and elevated dining
Invented for famished sailors, chorrillana is the must-eat dish in Valparaíso. This hefty dish loads French fries, carne mechada (slow-braised beef), sausages, and onions onto a plate topped with fried eggs. Fear not, the hills outweigh the cholesterol.
J Cruz, a nondescript alleyway bar, is credited with the original recipe. However, the dish is reproduced in every Valparaíso restaurant. Close to the port, Bar La Playa on Blanco Street serves classic chorrillana while Gato En La Ventana on lively Cumming Street excels at chorrillana vegetariana.
Otherwise, the Porteño diet draws heavily on seafood. Cocineria Nacional in Plaza Victoria is a locals’ haunt serving classic dishes including locos con mayonesa (premium Chilean abalones with mayonnaise) and caldillo de congrio (fisherman’s stew – and Neruda’s favorite).
Paseo Dimalow, is where to find traditional and modern dishes with a view. Fauna and El Internado serve upscale fusion cuisine overlooking the port.
9. Try the wine at harvest time
Famed for their Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, the Casablanca, Leyda, and San Antonio valleys are closest to Valparaíso. It’s also possible to visit the Maipo and Aconcagua valleys if you’re more team vino tinto than vino blanco.
Wine tours run all year although smaller estates may reduce their hours during winter (June through August). March and April is a fun time to visit the Valparaíso region to experience Chilean harvest festivals.
Wineries host activities at their estates but vendimias are generally held in the central plazas of wine region towns. Again, Casablanca is the closest option where around 15 vintners gather in Plaza de Armas to a merry backdrop of live music and cueca contests.
10. Ride vintage funiculars and trolleybuses
Valparaíso’s emblematic ascensors date to the 1880s. Seven of the original 30 remain on duty. A ride on Concepción, Reina Victoria, El Peral, Cordillera, Espíritu Santo, Barón, or Larraín will set you back a mere 300 Chilean pesos – around 30 cents.
On a practical note, funiculars close periodically for maintenance. Queues thicken from midday so you’ll want to make this your first stop of the day. Ascensor Cordillera in Barrio Puerto sees fewer tourists.
Milosz Maslanka
Valparaíso also preserves the second-oldest trolleybus system in South America. Electric buses have replaced most services; however, route 802 still operates a 1952 tram between Avenue Colón and the Port of Valparaíso.
11. Swap the hills for wetlands
Valparaíso works as a base for the Valparaíso Region (the Fifth Region). Just south of the Poet’s Coast, the San Antonio commune is a beautiful destination for nature.
Tricao Park offers lakeside walking paths, mountain biking, and kayaking. Native birds including the namesake tricao (adapted from the Mapuche word chucao for “mountain bird”) may be spotted around the lake. Latin America’s largest open-sky aviary is a sanctuary for 50 exotic species rescued from captivity.
Another new conservation initiative, the Río Maipo Wetland Park, conserves coastal lagoons, grasslands, and dunes vital for migratory shorebirds.
