Chile - The Rough Guide to South America on a Budget - page 374

of Chile, including its Pacific islands.
Once completed, it will become the
longest trekking route in the world, but
progress on the project is currently slow.
Ice climbers will find excellent climbing
routes in the Central and Patagonian
Andes from November to March, with
plenty of accessible glaciers, while the
granite towers of Torres del Paine rank
among the world's most challenging rock
climbs. Middle Chile and the Lake
District, however, have the greatest variety
of climbing and mountaineering spots.
Along with Argentina, Chile has
world-class powder snow, with some
of the best skiing spots found within easy
reach of Santiago (see box, p.392). The
Lake District's Villarica-Pucón and
Osorno give you the opportunity to
whizz down the slopes of volcanoes.

CHILE ON THE NET
W chile.travel The international section
of the of cial website of Sernatur - Chile's
government-run tourist board - covers
regional attractions, places to stay and
restaurants.
W conaf.cl Information on Chile's
protected natural areas (in Spanish only).
W gochile.cl Online travel agency
covering the whole of Chile (available in
English).
W santiagotimes.cl Online version of the
capital's English-language newspaper.
W turismochile.cl Descriptions of
regional attractions (mostly in Spanish).
W conadi.cl Site for indigenous affairs
(Spanish only).
W puntogay.cl Information on gay
nightlife and more.
W dibam.cl Plenty of detail on cultural
attractions and museums.

BIKING
Spectacular biking terrain can be found
from Norte Grande to Tierra del Fuego,
though you will need a sturdy mountain
bike to cope with the potholed trails.
While the best time to cycle around
much of Chile is between October and
March, Norte Chico and Norte Grande
can be explored year-round, though
altitude is often a consideration,
especially if you're planning on exploring
Parque Nacional Lauca. Norte Chico
offers easy and enjoyable coastal rides,
while the Lake District and Chiloé
have the greatest variety of cycling
routes, and the Carretera Austral is a
challenging undertaking that rewards
with amazing scenery.

4

followed by 0, then the country code and
finally the phone number itself. Most
local numbers consist of seven or eight
digits, preceded by the city/area code;
if dialling from the same area, drop
the city or area code and dial the six or
seven digits directly. During 2013, the
government will complete the roll-out of
a new numbering system, adding a 2 to
the start of every fixed line number, so
beware that some businesses may not
have updated their details. Mobile phone
numbers start with 07, 08 or 09, followed
by seven digits; drop the 0 when calling
mobile-to-mobile. Calls abroad from the
numerous centros de llamadas to most
European countries and North America
cost around CH$150 per minute,
although prices vary from area to area.
Setting up a Skype account is cheap and
convenient, as many internet cafés in
Chile are Skype-equipped. Alternatively,
get a Chilean SIM card for an “unlocked”
mobile phone for around CH$6000, and
all incoming calls are free.
Internet is widely available across Chile.
Most towns and villages have broadband-
equipped internet cafés , where access
costs around CH$500 per hour, although
on Isla Navarino and Easter Island it is
considerably pricier.

COMMUNICATIONS
Overseas mail sent from any part of
Chile via Correos de Chile, Chile's
postal service , generally takes two or
three weeks to reach its destination.
Important shipping to Chile is best sent
via registered mail. The larger post offices
have a lista de correos (alphabetical list) for
collecting poste restante (general delivery).
Chile has a number of different
telecoms operators, and in order to
make an international call , you dial the
three-digit carrier code of the telecom,