Everything you need to know about Chile
Travel map of Chile by the tour operator OVERCROSS
- Climate
- Plants
- Animals
- Population
- Medical care
- Languages
- Religions
- Human Rights
- Agriculture and mineral resources
- Cities
- Roads
- Holidays
Summer and winter in northern Chile are relatively mild with temperatures around 15 - 25 °C and only slight seasonal changes. Rain is not an issue for traveling here, as northern Chile is one of the driest regions in the world (despite heavy cloud cover from April to December). Central Chile has much more pronounced seasonal changes with average daily high temperatures of 29 °C from December to February and around 14 °C in June.
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The most precipitation occurs in winter, but only falls on a few days a month. Heading south in Chile, precipitation increases significantly, peaking in June. Summer temperatures in this region are somewhat lower at 20 °C and can drop into single digits in the middle of the year.
Because of the country's enormous extent, various vegetation zones exist in Chile. On the one hand, there is the Atacama Desert, where little to nothing grows; every few years, however, rainfalls transform the Atacama into a sea of flowers. In the Andes region and near the coast, many types of cacti, succulents, and shrubs grow. Wine can be grown starting from the area of the Rio Elqui river.
The huemul, which is—alongside the Andean condor—the national animal of Chile and depicted on the national flag, lives in the Andean regions. Pumas and chinchillas also tend to inhabit the higher areas of the country. Among the animals native to the steppes of Chile are guanacos, which belong to the camel family.
The gigantic Andean condor does not, as its name might suggest, live exclusively in the Andes, but is found throughout Chile and is one of the largest birds in the world. Anyone wishing to observe flamingos while traveling by motorcycle through Chile should try their luck at the large salt lakes.
Around 95% of the Chilean population consists of Chileans. These Chileans are made up of two groups, descendants of European settlers and the so-called mestizos. Mestizos are the descendants of whites and the indigenous population of Chile. The indigenous population, whom we will visit on our motorcycle tours through the country, make up only 4.5% of the total population and are divided into 93% Mapuche, 5% Aymara, and 2% Rapanui.
A valid yellow fever vaccination for all travelers from the age of one year is required when entering from a yellow fever area.
Standard vaccinations should be completed before one of our motorcycle tours to Chile.
Medical care in the larger cities is generally comparable to that in Europe. In rural areas, however, it is far from European standards and is often problematic in terms of hygiene and lacking the necessary equipment.
The official language of Chile is Spanish, but in Chile it sounds distinctly different than it does in Spain and is called Castello. Mapudungun is the language of the Mapuche and the most widely spoken indigenous language in Chile. Aymara and Rapanui also have their own languages.
Even though the law has officially separated church and state since 1925, Catholic influence on society, law, and culture and media remains strong.
In a 2022 census, it was determined that 66% of Chile's residents identify with the Roman Catholic Church. 17% are agnostics (they do not know if God exists), indigenous shamanism is represented among the natives, 1% consists of Jehovah's Witnesses, 1% of Mormons, and 0.1% of Jews.
Chile's indigenous groups repeatedly have to endure human rights violations, mostly concerning their land, which they try to defend against forestry and energy companies. In 2006, police responded violently to a protest by the Mapuche. After their release, the Mapuche stated that they had been tortured.
Agriculture and mineral resources
In Chile, approximately 14% of the working population is employed in agriculture.
Except in the southern part of the country, where sheep are bred, agriculture is mainly practiced along the large longitudinal valley. Wheat, corn, potatoes, fruit and vegetables (especially tomatoes), sugar beets, rice, and oats are cultivated. Fruit is also grown in the travel country Chile, namely grapefruits, melons, apples, peaches, apricots, plums, and cherries. With regard to livestock farming, sheep, cattle, pigs, and horses should be mentioned.
Chile has the world's largest known copper deposits. Crude oil and gas are also extracted. In addition, the country has large deposits of nitrates, iodine, sulfur and coal, as well as silver and gold.
| Name | Population |
| Santiago de Chile | 4,636,000 |
| Puente Alto | 539,000 |
| Viña del Mar | 329,000 |
| Antofagasta | 370,000 |
| Valparaíso | 288,000 |
Chile has a road network of a total of approx. 81,000 km, of which 17,000 km are paved. From gravel roads to highways and from mountains to endless expanses in the Atacama, there is everything here a motorcyclist's heart desires.
January 1 New Year
March/April Good Friday
May 1 Labor Day
May 21 Navy Day
2nd Monday in June Corpus Christi
June 29 St. Peter and Paul
August 15 Assumption of Mary
September 6 National Unity Day
September 18 Independence Day
September 19 Armed Forces Day
October 12 Columbus Day - Day of the Discovery of America
November 1 All Saints' Day
December 8 Immaculate Conception
December 25 Christmas
