Port guide: Valparaiso, Chile

The “San Francisco of South America” might be dilapidated but bursts with life, colour and street art.

Who goes there

Valparaiso is typically the start or finish point for cruises that link it to Buenos Aires around the tip of South America. It’s also visited on cruises down the continent’s west coast and on some Pacific and world itineraries. Cunard, Holland America, Oceania, Ponant, Seabourn, Silversea and Viking are among lines that visit.

Sail on in

Valparaiso’s location across several steep hillsides provides a great backdrop as you sail towards the city. Its houses seem about to tumble into the harbour. The workaday port in which you dock also provides a spectacle of container ships and cranes. Beware swirling flocks of seagulls that might poop on your head. Later you’ll see seagulls gathered on the quays like extras in a Hitchcock movie.

Berth rites

Valparaiso cruise terminal is a big barn with black-and-white chequered floors, huge spans between pillars, and light flooding in from huge windows onto the bay. It’s simple but functional, with a small cafe and a few souvenir stalls plus a tourist information point with affable staff. A tram stop right outside the terminal will take you a two-stop ride into the city centre.

Before and after

A day out in Valparaiso is sufficient but if you’re staying the night, try Zerohotel, which despite its unenthusiastic name is a pleasant four-star boutique hotel with views of the bay. Most disembarking passengers head to Chilean capital Santiago, a two-hour drive away, which has better and more abundant accommodation options and is nearer the international airport.

Going ashore

Valparaiso is chaotic, ramshackle and graffitied, particularly around the harbour, so you may want to stick to a guided tour if you lack confidence. Others will appreciate its colourful dishevelment, street stalls and buzzing urban life. Even its cemeteries are showcases of busy baroque enthusiasms. Head to Plaza Sotomayor and then climb up to hillside Cerro Concepcion district, whose old mansions have been converted into hotels, cafes and shops. Paseo Atkinson offers great views. Another district, Cerro Alegre, has further charms and Baburizza Palace, a museum of Chilean and European artworks.

Don’t miss

La Sebastiana, former house of 20th-century Nobel Prize-winning writer Pablo Neruda, which is full of eccentric junk, oil paintings, old maps and 1950s knickknacks. It also has a delightful gift shop. Most of all, it has terrific views from its hilltop position over the plunging, multicoloured buildings of Valparaiso onto the bay.

Get active

While Valparaiso’s several historical funiculars are an attraction, you’ll get your heart rate going by hoofing uphill – or up hills – instead. For jogging or cycling, however, head north-east along the waterfront towards Vina del Mar (Valparaiso’s fancy and leafy “new” seaside suburb) or even further to La Salinas beach, where you can also surf and enjoy other water sports. La Salinas is 12 kilometres from the port.

Best bites

Valparaiso’s relatively heavy dishes mightn’t be an attraction for well-fed cruise passengers, but they’re mighty tasty, so perhaps go easy on the breakfast buffet before you dock. Among dishes to try are ajiaco (a soup made from barbecued meat), arrollado de huaso (spicy pork), milcao (potato pancakes with pork filling) and pastel de jaiba (creamy crab pie). Hot dogs and empanadas are ubiquitous street snacks.

Further afield

Shore excursions typically stick to the city itself. Those to Santiago involve a long drive and Valparaiso is far more colourful if you haven’t been before. Some cruise lines will take you to the Casablanca Valley to visit cellar doors and watch displays of horsemanship by Chile’s version of the cowboy.