Santiago is Chile’s most significant and capital city, where history, nature, and culture meet. The city is found among the towering peaks of the Andes and Chilean Coast Range, offering endless opportunities to experience for yourself the breathtaking views and fresh air. The colonial core is located side by side with Santiago’s financial district, Sanhattan, with neoclassical architecture, large parks, and museums. After a day of partying in Santiago’s vistas or exploring the historic streets, you’ll fall in love with the vibrant restaurants, trendy cafes, and exhilarating bars. So, be sure to indulge in some authentic Chilean dishes! When you’ve done all that, it’s time to find the best hostel in Santiago. Scroll down to find your favorite hostel as here we have the best hostels in Santiago de Chile for all kinds of travelers!
By Lizzy
Top 4 Hostels in Santiago:
- 1. Rado Boutique Hostel
- 2. Ventana Sur Hostal
- 3. Hostal Forestal
- 4. Che Lagarto Hostel Santiago
The 4 Best Party Hostels in Santiago
Rado Boutique Hostel
Price: $18 to $27
Rado Boutique Hostel is located in the middle of Santiago’s most lively streets. It’s in the area of Barrio Bellavista and is just a short walk from some of the city’s best restaurants, activities, and nightclubs. Public transportation is also not far away, and the Baquendo Metro Station is just 200 meters from the hostel. The hostel also has a variety of common areas, including a shared kitchen, a living room, and several lovely terraces. The rooftop also offers a beautiful view of the city. There is a lot of space where you can chill and socialize with other guests.
The hostel also has a very charming boutique feel, and it has a beautiful design and comfortable setting. Aside from that, it is located in a four-story building, and there are both private rooms and dorms available. Twin, double, and three-bed private rooms are also available as well as four and six-bed dorms. Also, female-only and co-ed rooms are both available. Read more..
- Great location to party
- Accessible to public transportation
- Social atmosphere
Ventana Sur Hostal
Price: $10.51 to $17.79
Ventana Sur Hostal is situated in an old townhouse just a few blocks from Metro St. Isabel. It is next to Bustamante Park in Providencia, and you can walk to many of the area’s best tourist attractions. Nearby sights include Bellavista, St. Cristobal, and St. Lucia. It is a very safe area with many restaurants and bars nearby.
The hostel offers a peaceful setting where it’s easy to meet other guests, and there are a pool and patio where many guests enjoy chilling out. They also organize Asados, or BBQ nights, every Friday, which is the perfect time and place to meet fellow guests.
The staff can also help you out to arrange any day trips that you want. They can also recommend various attractions, from the more popular destinations to obscure areas.
Also, the hostel has private rooms, including singles and doubles. Dorms sleep six or eight people. Read more..
- Great location to explore the city
- Fun activities
- Helpful staff
Hostal Forestal
Price: $10.13 to $46.55
Hostal Forestal is another affordable hostel in Santiago. It’s a popular place to stay for backpackers and budget conscience travelers who want to be in a central location. It’s close to many places you might want to visit, and it makes an excellent base for seeing the city’s attractions.
The hostel has an amiable ambiance with a diverse crowd of international travelers. The staff is also very helpful and friendly, and the rooms have simple decor but are still comfortable. Also, dorms can accommodate six or eight people, and there are several private rooms available, including singles, twins, doubles, three beds, and four bedrooms. There are also different level rooms with varying levels of amenities. Read more..
- Very affordable
- Friendly vibe
- A lot of room options
Che Lagarto Hostel Santiago
Price: $9
Che Lagarto Hostel Santiago is in a central location near the cultural district of the city. It’s a few minutes from Cerro Santa Lucia and is close to public transportation, restaurants, and nightlife. The hostel offers suites that include a full private bathroom, a flat-screen television, and heating. Breakfast is included in the price of the room, and there is wi-fi throughout the hostel.
If you want to do any day trips or excursions, the hostel staff can help you with any arrangements. They can also recommend nearby restaurants or clubs that you might enjoy.
The hostel has several common areas including a terrace with a grill and tables. There’s also a television room, a kitchen, and a “playroom” with a pool table and a ping pong table. It is a fun place to stay if you want to meet new people and enjoy a friendly vibe.
Also, double private rooms are available, and dorm rooms can accommodate up to eight people. Female only and co-ed rooms are also available.
- Great amenities
- Good location
- Chill vibe
How is the Nightlife in Santiago?
Bars and clubs are found all over Santiago, but only a few streets have a concentration of party venues that they look like block parties on the weekends. You can also do pub crawls along Avenida Pío Nono and neighboring streets in Bellavista, where you can find bars and clubs aimed at a younger crowd (the drinking age in the country is 18). Across the river and further west of the city, Lastarria has a bustling nightlife scene. To the east of the city, in Providencia, the area around Manuel Montt and Tobalaba metro stations attract a slightly older and higher-spending crowd.
What you should wear should be based on your destination. Bellavista has a blend of styles spanning from blue jeans to simple black. Also, the dress gets fancier the farther east you go, but it’s still casual.
You should also know that establishments often called as “nightclubs” are usually female strip clubs. The signs in the windows typically make it quite obvious what goes on inside. The same is also true for some cafés with blacked-out windows, described by locals as “cafés con piernas” (literally: coffee with legs).
The Best Bars and Clubs in Santiago
1. La Piojera
La Piojera, which was named after the Chilean president Alessandri visited and exclaimed that the bar was a ‘piojera,’ which is possibly the most famous bar in Santiago. Also, the hostel itself has been a bar since 1896, and it has been a favorite meeting place among the locals since then. Group toasts, spontaneous singing, and heartwarming conversations are common at this friendly bar. The must-try drink at La Piojera, particularly for those that like sweets, is the brain-freezing terremoto. It is Chile’s national drink, and it is generally reserved for Independence Day celebrations. The drink is made with pineapple ice cream, pipeño, and fernet.
2. Sarita Colonia
Known for its ‘transvestite Peruvian cuisine,’ or preferably Peruvian Asian cuisine, Sarita Colonia is a unique resto-bar in Santiago. The Sarita Colonia resto-bar, which honors life, death, friendship, and excellent food, attracts customers of all types of backgrounds and styles who crowd around the bar area and jam-pack in the rooftop terrace. The resto-bar is both quirky and a bit kitsch, with a remarkably religious décor such as wooden confessionals and stained glass windows, Sarita Colonia will surprise, amuse, and welcome everyone who steps through the door.
3. BocaNáriz
Chile’s wine is world-famous, so what better place to get to taste it than in Santiago’s best wine bar? Located in the artsy Lastarria district, the classy BocaNáriz features a selection of nearly 400 national wines on its menu, which has been selected as among the best wine selections in the world for three consecutive years by the Wine Spectator, an international magazine. They also have a menu of more than 40 dishes that accompanies the wine selection, offering a full course meal, which emphasizes the flavors of their carefully preserved wine. For the wine connoisseurs traveling to Santiago, BocaNáriz is a must-visit bar.
4. Chipe Libre
Aside from wine, Chile is famous for making pisco, a local Chilean drink. However, this much-loved brandy is often the cause for a much-heated debate between Chile and its long-term rival, Peru. Still, when visiting Chipe Libre, a self-proclaimed ‘Independent Republic of Pisco’, there is only admiration for the drink throughout all of its forms. Chipe Libre is among the best places in the city to try and learn more about the variants of the drink since the bartenders are prepared to explain their differences. So, you should Chipe Libre and see which country’s pisco has a better taste.
5. Liguria
Liguria is among the old favorites in the city, whose fame allowed it to open two more locations, each one filled with character and adorned with vintage posters and Chilean memorabilia. Since Liguria is a resto-bar that serves superb traditional Chilean dishes, it is typical for locals to have dinner here and stay longer for the live music till late into the night.
About Santiago
Santiago is the capital, largest city, and economic hub of Chile. With its various events, museums, theaters, bars, restaurants, and other cultural and entertainment opportunities. Aside from being the cultural center of the country, it is also its political heart. The city’s central location in the country makes it an excellent base for visiting other destinations, and you can choose to ski in the nearby Andes and later be on the beach in the same day.
Santiago is also a thriving city in the Santiago Región Metropolitana, located in the central valley of Chile in between the Coastal Range to the west and Andes mountains to the east. Also, the city’s metropolitan area has about 7 million
residents.
The city was founded in 1541 as Santiago de Nueva Extremadura by the Spanish conquistador Pedro de Valdivia. Since then, it has been the heart of the country since colonial times. It has transformed into the cosmopolitan city that it is today. For tourists, it’s both the gateway to the country and an excellent destination in its own right with a wide-ranging architecture, a vibrant culinary and cultural scene, surrounded by the mighty Andes welcoming skiers, trekkers, and friends of wine.
Lizzy
Traveler & Blogger
Hi, I’m Lizzy! In the past 10 years I’ve travelled 60 countries and I’m still counting. While I was backpacking I could not find a website that provides valuable information about hostels. After months of thinking, doubting and brainstorming, hostelstobook.com was born.
I hope to make your trip easier, so you’d only stay in the best hostels around the globe. Do you have any questions? Don’t hesitate to send me a message.
Related Questions
Santiago de Chile is a safe and beautiful city to visit if you are watchful enough and practice your common sense. The threat of crime exists, and if you want to avoid issues, minimum safety precautions are enough.
Yes, English is widely spoken in most established tourist destinations, so it’s not essential. Visit Santiago, Los Lagos, or tour the Chilean wine country, and tour guides will speak English. Locals are always delighted when visitors make an effort to speak their language, though.
Prices for dinner have a much more extensive range, depending on where you go. There are so many options in Santiago that it’s easy to find something for everyone’s budget. At the best fine-dining restaurants in the city, you can expect to pay anywhere between $60 – $100 for a full course.
The national dish of Chile is curanto, a stew that mixed meat, seafood, and vegetables. It is composed of every meat and seafood ingredient that you can think of, and it’s trendy at various events. It is typically prepared through a hole dug in the ground, and the bottom is covered with stones, heated in a bonfire until it is ready.
With ten days at your disposal, you will have enough time to explore all the attractions in the city. You can visit the best of Santiago, Valparaiso, the beaches, and the wine region yet still have enough time to wander around one or two of Chile’s major destinations. You can also head to the Atacama and the Lake District on this 10-day Chile trip. If you have a couple more days to spare, you can even explore nearby cities like Sao Paulo and Cusco.