Barrio Lastarria

Barrio Lastarria — Santiago's Intellectual Soul

Lastarria is the district that shows Santiago at its most elegant. Around the eponymous Calle José Victorino Lastarria, bookstores, design cafés, independent cinemas, and galleries line up. The district has the charm of a Parisian quarter — only with an Andean view.

Highlights: The Museo de Bellas Artes (free entry, Chilean and international art in a magnificent Beaux-Arts building from 1910 — a copy of the Petit Palais in Paris), the Museo de Artes Visuales (MAVI) (Chilean contemporary art, 1,000 CLP), and the antiques and crafts market on Plaza Mulato Gil de Castro (especially lively on Saturday and Sunday).

Lastarria is also the best place for Chilean craft coffee — the specialty coffee scene is booming. Café Colmado (Flat White 3,200 CLP), Café de la Barra, and Juan Valdez offer top-notch coffee in stylish settings. And in the evening, the wine bars turn into cozy meeting places: Bocanariz (José Victorino Lastarria 276) is Chile's best wine bar — over 400 Chilean wines by the glass, organized by region and grape variety. A must for wine lovers. Tasting Flight (5 wines) from 12,000 CLP.

Museo de la Memoria (Tip)

Just a few minutes' walk from Lastarria is the Museo de la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos (Matucana 501, Metro Quinta Normal) — Chile's most important dictatorship museum. The harrowing, brilliantly curated exhibition documents the crimes of the Pinochet dictatorship with original film, personal items, and testimonies. The audio guide (also available in German) is excellent. Free entry. Plan 2–3 hours. Emotionally heavy, but essential for understanding Chile.