Antofagasta tourist information
Antofagasta is the largest city in Chile's Far North and the country's fourth most populous, with 235,000 inhabitants. It is also the capital city for the namesake region, as well as a major shipping port for the region's output of copper, nitrate and other minerals. Its economy is based on the provision of services and support for the mining industry, and on a sizable fishing industry. Perched on a long, narrow strip of land at the foot of the Coastal Range, Antofagasta has some renowned universities, several beaches in the vicinity, balmy weather and well-tended parks. It is a good base from which to explore the string of beaches to the north, following the coastal Ruta 1 up to Iquique. The desert inland of Antofagasta is dotted with ghost nitrate towns, easily accessible from the Pan-Am highway or from the Ruta 25, which links the Pan-Am Highway with Calama and San Pedro de Atacama. In the Altiplano reaches of this region is fabulous Salar de Atacama, with quaint pre-Columbian villages and Inca ruins scattered throughout the Sierra.
Antofagasta lies just south of the Tropic of Capricorn, at about the same latitude as Sao Paulo, Brazil. If the surrounding desert strikes you as somewhat less leafy than the Brazilian coastal area, it is solely due to lack of water: rain is here almost unheard of (less than 4 mm -0.16 in- per year). Summer highs hover around 26°C (79°F) and lows dip to 18°C (64°F), while winter highs and lows are 18°C and 14°C, respectively (64°F and 57°F).
Same as Iquique, some parts of Antofagasta do not look so typically Latin American, as the city's British residents during the saltpeter heyday left some clear marks of their influence. The Plaza Colón has a clock on the square donated by the British community. (The bandstand came from the local Slav community.) Around the square are the Cathedral church, erected ca. 1920, and the more recent Municipal Theater.
Some of the wooden buildings in the Barrio Histórico (Historic Quarter), located between Plaza Colón and the old harbor, date from between 1870 and 1910 and were built in Georgian or Victorian styles. In the old harbor you may see the only remaining original wharf for loading saltpeter. It was at this wharf that the Chilean troops landed in 1879 to take the town. It is closed to visitors due to its poor condition.
The former Port Authority building (Gobernación Marítima) sits near the head of the wharf. It is protected under National Monument status, as is the former Customs house located across the street. Built of Oregon pine in 1866, the Customs house used to stand at the port of Mejillones. It was disassembled and reassembled here in 1888 and it now houses the Regional Museum, which concentrates on the region's history from the earliest inhabitants to the saltpeter days.
Across from the Customs house on Bolivar there is another interesting place: the restored former Antofagasta-La Paz railway station. The ground floor dates from 1887; the upper floor, from 1900. It is not open to the public.
Near the fishing terminal there is another building (housing now the Soquimich offices) dating from the same period as the railway station. Both buildings are illustrative of the architectural style of the pioneer days.
The Universidad de Antofagasta has a very interesting Museo Geológico containing a collection of fossils dating from the time when the Atacama Desert was partly covered by the ocean and the rest was lush forest roamed by dinosaurs.
Antofagasta's Costanera (the waterfront avenue) is one of Chile's longest. Following it to the south, you will pass by university campuses and the beaches of Poza Chica, Balneario Municipal and Las Almejas. In this part of town are the imposing ruins of Huanchaca, a silver smelter built in 1889 and which ceased to operate in 1912.
The main shops and bank offices are located on the three-block pedestrian section of Arturo Prat street. On the side of the Mercado Central, at the Plaza del Mercado (Manuel A. Matta between Maipú and Uribe) there is a handicrafts market selling Altiplano (High Plateau) objects.
Antofagasta aerial map
Please click on any icon on the Antofagasta aerial tourist map, to find close by places, offering hotels and tourist information. You can zoom in and zoom out our touristical map as well as switch between satelite and map view of Antofagasta.
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