What are the best beaches on the Pacific for this summer?

Start the summer season y Chile It is one of the most sought after destinations for Argentines who want combine beachfront vacations and shopping tourism. And especially this year, when the trans-Andean country was once again a magnet for its pricesmuch more convenient than those on this side of the Cordillera, especially in clothing and appliances.

The beauty of the landscape of the coasts on the Pacific Ocean, with mountains, cliffs, golden sand beaches, spectacular sunsets with a sun that hides in the sea, and delicious fish and seafood gastronomyare more than attractive reasons to decide to vacation in the neighboring country and enjoy the Pacific beaches.

Only in the Valparaíso area, just over an hour by car from the capital, Santiago de Chile, are there 23 beacheswith all tourist services. Of course, we must keep in mind that they are more for relaxing in the sand or walking than for bathing, because the water of the Pacific is colder than the Atlantic: in Viña del Mar the average water temperature is 14 degrees.

From Argentina there are more than 70 crossings to Chile if the option is to go by car, although the main access is via Route 7 in Mendoza, crossing the Christ the Redeemer international tunnel (Argentina) and Los Libertadores (Chile), which links the Mendoza town of Las Cuevas with the Chilean town of Los Andes. From there you can take Route 57 south to reach the Chilean capital, Santiago, or continue west on Route 60 to go directly to the coast.

Between Mendoza capital and Santiago de Chile there are 365 kilometers, but takes much longer than the distance would indicatebecause in the high mountain area it is a straight route, with many curves and countercurves, tunnels, snails on the Chilean side and a double yellow line that prohibits overtaking for much of the route.

In addition, traffic is usually very intense, with an average of more than a thousand trucks coming and going at all hours, and about 40 buses a day, so arriving a Santiago carries, under normal conditions, between six and seven hours. Although on key days – December 30 or 31, Fridays, long weekends – there are usually long delays at customs in Los Libertadores. The good thing is that in summer the border crossing is open 24 hours.

The Fifth Region, in central Chile, is the closest to Santiago, and is also where they are the most popular beaches and most visited by Argentines. The main one is that of Vina del Mar405 km from Mendoza and 1,440 km from the city of Buenos Aires.

Close to Viña it is Valparaisoan ancient city that used to be the main port of the country and is a spectacle of colors and slopeswith its houses and stairs painted in all shades and old elevators or funiculars that climb the hills. Among its various treasures is The Sebastianaone of the residences that the poet Pablo Neruda had in Chile.

“Due to the short distance between Santiago or the mountain range and the main beaches, in Chile you can have breakfast in the mountains and enjoy the sunset over the sea“, describes Claudio Yañez, director of the National Tourism Service (Sernatur) of the metropolitan area of ​​Chile.

The beaches of Viña -El Sol, Las Salinas, Reñaca- are crossed by the picturesque Jorge Montt coastal boulevard, which to the north changes its name to Av. Borgoño and on which there are imposing apartment complexes with swimming pools and amenities facing the sea ​​to Concón in the north, where, among high cliffs, the restaurants of exquisite sea cuisine (seafood and fish) and beaches with inns that attract especially young people.

There, the beaches generally have bars and showers and you can rent lounge chairs, kayaks or pedal boats.

The port of Valparaíso, where tourist cruise ships dock, is the scene of a great celebration of fireworks to welcome the New Year facing the sea, an unmissable event that can also be enjoyed from the beaches of Viña and Reñaca: in Chile the sale of fireworks is not allowed, there are only “official” fire shows, and they are spectacular.

The coastal edge is a typical recreation area. Has wide sandy beaches sea ​​bream, paradores, dunes, bars and clubs, fast food businesses, cafes and restaurants specializing in seafood gastronomy.

In the interior communes of the Fifth Region, meanwhile, typical Chilean “inland” cuisine predominates, ranging from corn cake al roast meatthe casserole and the peach and barley drinkwhich is a very traditional drink from the country composed of a mixture of caramelized peach juice with wheat flavour, and dehydrated peaches.

Among the beaches of Viña del Mar, the favorite of Argentines is usually Reñacawhich is 8 km north of the center of Viña. Another 8 km along the coast and it appears Conconwhere the Amarilla and La Boca beaches are located.

And Valparaíso, although it is a port city, also has its beaches: Las Torpederas, San Mateo and Los Placeres, smaller but no less picturesque.

In all the communes of Valparaíso, you can also practice adventure sports such as trekking or cycling, skating or skating. On the coasts there are tour operators offering surfing, body boarding, stand up paddle, canoeing and paragliding experiences.

Las beaches with forestas those that are known are known further north of Viñaabout 55 kilometers away, are characterized by their beauty and tranquility, and are highly chosen by families and groups of young people.

It is about love, Cachagua, Zapallar y Papudowhich are also destinations in high demand by Argentines who choose Chilean beaches for their vacations.

Zapallar beach is characterized by the blue of its waters and its yellow sand, although what is most striking are the lush forests of native trees that surround it.

The large beach of Cachagua is ideal for walks along the seashore, and its waves are ideal for surfing. In this coastal area you have to try the sole and the croaker and visit Las Cujas beach, a fishing cove with turquoise waters and white sand of thin shell.

About 400 km north of Viña there is another important focus of each summer: the extensive beach of The Serena It is about 15 kilometers accompanied by a beautiful coastal avenue with bars and food stalls and rentals and, on the other side, tall apartment towers for tourist rentals, in addition to a slightly warmer sea (18 degrees average in summer) and a good variety of shopping centers.

In this area there are other very picturesque and visited beaches, such as Pichidangui, Tongoy, Guanaqueros, Morrillos and Totoralillo; ideal for practicing water sports. In addition, from La Serena you can take board excursions to visit the Humboldt Penguin National Reservemade up of three islands, on one of which – Damas Island – you can usually see dolphins and whales in a surprising sea of ​​clear waters.

Towards the mountain range, one hour from La Serena, the beautiful Elqui Valleythe land of the poet Gabriela Mistral, where you visit the Pisco Route and practice astrotourism in one of the clearest skies on the planet, with about 360 clear days a year.

In addition to housing several astronomical observatories – some exclusively scientific and others for tourism: in this area of ​​​​northern Chile alone there are three private observatories and 17 municipal ones, which offer nighttime stargazing experiences.

The Elqui valley, in addition, is considered a energy huband there are esoteric communities that associate it with ufo phenomena. Another must-see is Vicunahometown of the poet Gabriela Mistral where you can visit the museum dedicated to her and her work, very close to the Mamalluca educational observatory.

Besides, the valley is populated with vineyardsamong them those of Viña Cavas del Valle, considered the highest vineyard in Chile. There are also pisco producers -“winks”- like that of the famous pisco Capel, and along route 41 you reach the Agua Negra international crossing -at 4,780 meters above sea level-, which leads to Rodeo, in San Juan.

• By car: from Buenos Aires to Viña del Mar it is 1,440 km along Route 7 to the international tunnel and, once in Chile, along Route 60.

• By plane: Aerolíneas Argentinas, LATAM, Jetsmart, SKY and KLM fly to Santiago. Round trip in January, from $519,000.

• By bus: from Retiro via CATA Internacional to Santiago, (10 p.m.), $90,000 one way. From there to Viña, US$6.70 (2 hours, www.flixbus.cl).

The central beach area is the most touristy in the country, so there is a wide variety of accommodation of all types; from hostels and cabins to 5-star hotels.

A double room with breakfast in a three-star hotel starts at $70 per night, while an apartment for 4 costs from US$55 to US$110 per night, depending on the area and the amenities it includes.

The advantage of almost exchange rate parity with our country – one thousand Chilean pesos are equivalent to 1.03 dollars, against 0.98 in Argentina – is today convenient for hiring vacation rentals and excursions, and eating.

On Chilean beaches, on average, a starter, main, drink and dessert menu costs from US$16. And a pizza with a drink costs between US$7 and US$10.

Shopping tourism, which is all the rage in Santiago, also extends to the beaches of the Fifth Region, which have a wide range of malls of different types and sizes.

Just between Viña del Mar and Concón there are six large complexes: Mall Marina, Mall Paseo Ross, Plaza Reñaca, Viña Outlet Park, Arauco Outlet Carauma and Paseo Viña Centro, and several more in La Serena and Coquimbo.