Vina Del Mar Facts

Like many other Chilean coastal towns and cities, Viña del Mar consists of two areas: one of winding streets and houses clinging precariously to the hills, while the other, lying between the hills and the sea, is built along the strict formality of the colonial era grid plan. Viña, often called the tourism capital of Chile, has an area of 172 square kilometers and just over 300 thousand inhabitants.

Cerro Castillo (Castle Hill)

The Cerro Castillo (Castle Hill) of Viña del Mar has been the home of the Presidential summer residence since 1931. Today, in this area, you can find the dramatic, seaside Castillo Wulff , now the Museum of Maritime Culture. Cerro Castillo is also where you can find...

...The city was founded in 1874 as a weekend retreat and garden residence for the wealthy elite from Valparaíso and Santiago, and it has remained a top destination for Santiaguinos ever since, although the ultrafashionable are now electing to build their second home in less-developed and therefore more exclusive coastal areas such as Tunquen and Quintay. Viña's manicured lawns, monolithic 1960s apartment buildings, and sandy beaches filled with sunbathers are an extreme contrast to the ramshackle streets of Valparaíso. Most Chileans call Viña del Mar simply "Viña"; you'll call it "chaos" if you come any time between December and late February, when thousands of vacationers arrive, crowding beaches...