Chile Tourism

The Pinochet years saw a dramatic decline in tourists from the USA and Western Europe. The number of visitors from neighboring Latin American states remained fairly constant; South Americans with a closer knowledge of Chile's political culture were aware that much of the violence was state-directed and aimed at Chileans, not tourists. Since 1988, tourists have returned and Chile has been making more of its stunning Andean scenery, its immensely long coastline and a number of exceptional sites, including Chuquicamata, the world's largest copper mine, the Elqui Valley wine-growing region, and the spectacular glaciers and fjords of southern Chile. Easter Island in the Pacific is another major attraction.