Shopping in Chile
Chile offers plenty for the shopaholic in its large malls and huge shopping centres in main cities. If you venture beyond these large centres you'll discover treasures in smaller more specialised stores. Chile's rich cultural and artistic heritage has resulted in a wonderful variety of arts and crafts that make for great souvenirs.
The handicrafts of each region differ greatly from others, so you can pick up a little something from the small gift and handicraft shops in every area you visit.
Our Chile shopping guide below will give you many reasons to stop and enjoy the local goods on sale. We'll help you get the best deals and tell you the best places to shop in Chile. After finding that perfect bargain, take a break and stop for some finger food, or relax in one of Chile's great restaurants. Find out about the local shopping scene by clicking on our links below:
Shopping in Chile
Today, Chile is well linked to the rest of the world and most amenities and supplies are easily available here. Interestingly this modernisation has not come at the cost of losing touch with the roots and rich cultural tradition of the country and this means that Chile really does offer the best of both worlds.
If you're planning an outdoor vacation and need to stock up on supplies, Santiago has plenty of stores selling climbing gear, camping equipment and other sports supplies. You should also be able to find similar stores in other larger towns near camp sites or sports centres.
Most towns have traditional local markets or handicraft stores that peddle local hand made goods alongside more famous Chilean exports like alpaca jumpers and sweaters, handcrafted silver ornaments or even Andean style Lapis Lazuli jewellery at highly competitive rates.
Malls and Department Stores
Capital city Santiago is flooded with eateries and stores to shop at. While it may be tempting to stick to the larger malls in Santiago, do make the effort to hunt out smaller shops and local markets to experience the real Chile.
Chilean malls have a few distinctive features. For one, mall chains like Mall Plaza and Parque Arauco all have some additional space outside the malls earmarked for children and youngsters. This zone is usually near the parking area and has a number of cafes, pubs and restaurants where the youth meet and mingle with friends. In addition to the international chains like Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks, there are restaurants making Japanese, Italian, Indian and Chinese food. There are also specialist vegetarian eateries and ice cream parlours and charming cafes. Another must visit in the malls in Chile is the gaming zone where there are bowling alleys, video game arcades and sometimes even skating rinks.
An outing to the malls of Santiago is like a social event; a place to meet family or friends over a meal, stocking up on groceries for the week, shopping for the latest accessories or gadgets or playing a game at the bowling alley. Some malls that are popular are in Las Condes and Vitacura and the bigger ones usually have outlets of big name department stores like Almacenes Paris, Falabella and Ripleys.
Handicrafts
Shopping in Chile for handicrafts is a pleasure and choosing them is a memorable part of any visit to the country. If you can, try and visit a craft fair or ‘ferias artesenales' - this is where you will be able to pick up little pieces of art or handicrafts which have an unusual legend or myth behind their origin or are just iconic in Chile's traditions. Some things that are commonly available at such fairs are clothing made of alpaca wool (ropa de lana de alpaca) Rapa Nui statues and cobre or copper items.
Unlike other tourist hubs in the rest of the world, the handicrafts made in Chile are not just of ornamental value and for the cash rich tourists. Instead, the locals use most of the goods produced here in their daily life. The handicrafts are therefore not the mass manufactured, cheap imitations that tourists often have to sift through. Even great bargains found in the most obscure shops in Chile are usually the real thing, making any buy from here a real ‘find'.
A classic craft fair has on offer items like copper souvenirs (cobre), alpaca wool clothing (ropa de lana de alpaca), and Rapa Nui statuettes which are miniatures of the monoliths found on Easter Island.
Lapis Lazuli
The intense blue Lapis Lazuli is one of the rarest semi precious stones and is found in only two places in the world - Chile and Afghanistan. Local artisans fashion unusual ornaments and figurines out of it, while jewellers embed it in silver to create exquisite silver earrings, necklaces and rings.
Wine
Chile made its first bottle of wine under the guidance of French masters in the 19th century. The central belt of the country between Region VIII in the south and Region III in the north has climes ideally suited to the production of some great white and red wines.
Books in English
If you're on a long trip and find you're out of reading material - don't fret! Santiago's book shops have a range of English books that should help you stock up for the rest of your stay.
Grocery Shopping
Smaller shops in Chile are called minimercados, supermarkets go by the name supermercados and larger supermarkets are called hipermercados. There are plenty of the mini and supermercados while hipermercados are fewer.
Organic and Specialty Foods
Don't expect to find a huge variety for the products on offer in supermarkets in Chile. Be prepared to live without your favourite international brands of food while on holiday in Chile, but do check with the larger stores - you never know what you might find!
Bargains and Street Vending
The best shopping in Chile is found in Bellavista on the stretch near Pio Nono. The stalls are bright, cheerful displays and sell everything from art, handicrafts, music, and used books to things for your home. Get set to bargain because the vendors are keen to sell their goods and often happily cut their rates even if they may already seem low to you.
