Getting around Chile | First Day Abroad

This information may change. Always check the official source.Last verified: August 2026 by Ondřej Kadlec

The country is 4,300 km long, so fly the long legs and take the excellent overnight buses for the rest. Torres del Paine must be booked months ahead.

Chile is 4,300 km long, so fly the long legs - Santiago to San Pedro is a 22-hour bus or a 2-hour flight, and LATAM, Sky and JetSmart compete hard on price.
Buses are excellent for anything under 10 hours. Turbus and Pullman run modern coaches, and cama or semi-cama means a seat that reclines nearly flat.
In Santiago buy a bip! card for CLP 1,550 and load it; it works on the metro and the buses, and the metro closes around 23:00.
Torres del Paine must be booked months ahead. Park entry goes through CONAF and the refugios sell out by August for the following January - you cannot walk in and find a bed.
Watch the budget airlines' baggage rules. JetSmart and Sky sell fares with no hold bag and charge heavily at the gate.

Chile is 4,300 km long and 180 km wide on average. Santiago to San Pedro de Atacama is a 22-hour bus or a 2-hour flight.
Fly the long legs. LATAM, Sky and JetSmart compete hard and a domestic ticket booked ahead is often cheaper than the bus.
Watch the baggage rules on the budget carriers. JetSmart and Sky sell fares with no hold bag and charge heavily at the gate.
Buses are excellent for anything under 10 hours: Turbus and Pullman run modern coaches, and "cama" and "semi-cama" mean seats that recline nearly flat.
Book buses online or at the terminal. In January and February the popular routes sell out.

The metro is fast, clean and cheap, and it closes around 23:00.
Buy a bip! card (CLP 1,550) and load it; it works on the metro and the buses.
Avoid the metro at rush hour with luggage; it is genuinely packed.
Uber, Cabify and DiDi all work and are the normal way to move at night.
Street taxis are metered and generally fine, but the apps remove the argument.

San Pedro de Atacama: tours are booked in town the day before, and the El Tatio geysers mean a 04:00 start at 4,300 m. Altitude is the issue, not the cold.
Torres del Paine: park entry is booked through CONAF's site in advance, and the refugios and campsites on the W and O circuits sell out months ahead, often by August for the following January.
You cannot walk into Torres del Paine and find a bed. The park checks reservations at the entrance.
Both places are cheaper and emptier in the shoulder months, October and March.

Chile drives on the right and the roads are the best in South America.
Route 5, the Panamericana, is a toll road and the tolls add up; keep coins or a card.
Renting to cross into Argentina needs paperwork from the rental company arranged days in advance, plus extra insurance.
A 4x4 is only necessary for the Carretera Austral and some Atacama tracks, and rental agreements often forbid the gravel ones.
Fuel is expensive and stations are far apart in the north and the far south. Fill up when you can.

Report a change

Getting around Chile: transport and apps