Starting off 2019 with a new destination to explore and a new camera to capture my travel adventures on. Visiting Chile was the perfect opportunity to try out my new Powershot SX740 HS camera as part of a paid partnership with Canon UK. I’d heard so many great things about Santiago, and after a non-stop 14.5 hour flight from London, I was ready to see what the South American city had to offer.
My 4-night layover was the perfect balance of sightseeing, exploring and adventure. I’ve outlined my favourite things to eat, see and do in this guide.
Eat
Lunch at Mercado Central.
This market is the locals haven for fresh fish, fruit and vegetables. Wander around the stalls and check out the fishermen’s impressive catch of the day before nestling in to one of the restaurants housed inside the market. The fish is taken from the stands and cooked then served up in these restaurants – it really doesn’t get much fresher than this. We dined on calamari, ceviche and dorado. Naturally it was all washed down with a couple of Pisco sours.
See & Do:
Time to burn off lunch with a city hike up the Cerro San Cristobal.
There are numerous hike options (and also a funicular for those wanting a more gentle journey up the hill). We opted for the 1.3km hike which is the shortest and most direct, however it is the steepest. Not for the fainthearted, especially after a heavy lunch. However, it’s most definitely worth it for the views.
My group weren’t ready to slow down either, so it was a real “shoot on the go” as we hiked. I was so impressed with the quality of the images, especially when using the 40x zoom to capture the city below as we ascended higher up the mountain.
When you reach the top of the hill check out the spectacular San Cristobal statue on the mountain top looking over Santiago. It sits on a hilltop 300 metres above Santiago and makes for a stunning viewpoint over the city.
After returning to flat land, go have a well-earned drink in Bella Vista, the colourful and trendy neighbourhood that lies at the bottom of the hill.
There are numerous bars and restaurants to choose from. Patio Bella Vista is a great place to start with an abundance of bars all in one courtyard. For dinner check out Chipe Libre, and if you’re into seafood make sure to try out the grilled octopus and potatoes.
Adventure!
Having been a culture vulture in Santiago it was time to get out of the city and go on an adventure. We hired a convoy of 4X4s and set off on a three-hour drive into the mountains. Embalse El Yeso was the destination of choice.
Winding on mountain roads with the Andes acting as a stunning backdrop the journey was utterly breathtaking. After a slightly treacherous journey we finally arrived at the stunning aqua glacier lake in Embalse El Yeso.
The group divided and did three different hikes up the mountains. There are no actual formed paths here, but whichever route you take the views are guaranteed to be spectacular.
This was the perfect opportunity to try out my new camera in action again. The picture quality is second to none with its 20.3 megapixels and the new PowerShot SX740 HS makes it easy to capture images on the go with its incredible point shoot PowerShot lens.
The 40x optical zoom was also successfully trialled as I managed to capture half of our crew who had made much speedier progress up the mountain. They made it to 1000feet above us.
One of my favourite features is the integrated lens cover. Having lost all my lens caps on previous cameras this is a priceless feature to me. It’s convenient for on the go shooting and being able to seamlessly turn off the camera and continue on an adventure. The Wi-Fi and auto transfer on the camera is also super handy, as I was able to transfer the images to my phone and edit them on journey back to Santiago. This really is the perfect pocket-size compact camera for travel, the flip lens also makes it a perfect vlogging camera and I can’t wait to bring it on a future trip with me.
What a wonderful few days in Chile packed with action, adventure and exploration. I feel like I barely even scratched the surface of what this country has to offer so I’ll definitely be returning for more.
Jess x
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*This is a paid partnership with Canon UK*
