From Wikitravel
Concepción [1] is the second largest
city of Chile with a population
of over 900,000 as of 2002. It is located on the coast of the
Biobio Region.
- For other places with the same name, see Concepcion
(disambiguation).
Understand
Concepción was founded by Pedro de Valdivia in 1550 north of the
Bío-Bío River, at the site which is today known as Penco. At that
time it was given the name Concepción del Nuevo Extremo.
More than once the city has been destroyed by earthquakes and
tsunamis. One in 1570, another on the 25 May 1751, at which point
it was decided to move Concepción further from the sea to its
present location in the Mocha Valley.
Today Concepción is the second largest city of the country. The
Universidad de Concepción, founded in 1919, and with its main
campus in the city became the first private university in Chile.
The neighbouring harbour of Talcahuano holds the largest naval base
in the country.
Get in
By plane
You can fly via "Lan Chile", from Santiago
By car
The famous "Carretera Panamericana", also called "Ruta 5 Sur",
there is a very good route from Santiago, meeting international
standards for the most part. Drive south from Santiago to near
Chillan city (approx 5 hours), then take the "Ruta del Itata" to
west for about an hour.
By bus
You can take buses every half an hour from Santiago from 5000
pesos. Buses are the fastest form of public transport in Chile.
Unlike europe, train services are scarse and the journey take 2-3
times longer than bus.
By train
From Santiago de Chile you can take a
train (EFE), at about 10:00 pm and arrive at Concepción at 8AM,
everyday, but there is only one train per day. Daytime trips are
possible, but the train goes to Chillan City and then you take a
bus (included) to Concepción. The trip begins in "Estacion
Central", located in "Alameda street" (La Alameda) you can arrive
by car, bus or metro (subway) in the "Estacion Central"
station.
- Universidad de Concepción, (Univeristy of
Concepción). A beautiful university with big gardens. Must see
La Pinacoteca.
- Museo Hualpén, (Hualpén museum). A
beautiful old house that was converted to a museum holding the
pieces of Mr.Pedro del Rio Zañartu, a world traveller.
- Old mining operations. 40 km south of
Concepción is an old mining town or Lota that offers tours of an
old coal mine.
- Chivilingo. Near Lota is the Chile´s first electric plant, today a beautiful
museum and picnic area.
- The Huascar, at the naval base in Talcahuano,
the Huascar is a ship that was captured from the Peruvian navy in a
war in the late 1800´s. It is a symbol of Chilean national pride
and is the oldest floating historical relic in the world. Visit the
museum to learn more.
Buy
Concepción is not a turistic city so if you are looking for
cheap and cheerful souvenirs you will have to use your
imagination.
- Mall Plaza Trebol, on the highway to
Talcahuano. Take a bus from Concepción centre or a colectivo. A
large North American inspired shopping mall complete with food
court, cinema and amusement arcade. Home to shops like Zara, Puma,
Lacoste and Lush aswell as several larger department stores. [[2]]
- Galerías, these are various shopping arcades
located within the centre of the city mainly on Barras Arana and
Maipú close to the Plaza de Independencia ( de Armas). Full of
inexpensive little clothing stores, beauty salons, hairdressers and
any other kind of store you can imagine. Clothing etc tends to be
poor quality and the bargain prices reflect this. Popular with
locals and worth exploring on a rainy day.
- La Fuente Alemana, O´Higgins with Rengo (a
block or so from the Plaza de Armas and Cathedral)- the go-to place
to eat the completos which Chileans love so much. (FYI completos =
a hotdog with mayonaise, tomato and avocado). Go downstairs for a
quick snack or upstairs for table service.
- Waya´s Gyros, Plaza Peru, Greek inspired
salads and wraps. Healthy and delicious food. Kuntsmann beer is
also available by the pitcher so bring some friends, grab a table
outside and enjoy!
- Mercado Central, the city´s main market is
full of little restaurants serving up good seafood dishes and other
Chilean traditional meals qith fresh produce. Comfort food in a an
albeit slightly grubby looking location.
- 30 Express, Plaza Peru, empanada specialists
serving every flavor combo imaginable. Good beer is also readily
served up here. Clean, good service and friendly staff.
- La Fina Estampa, San Martin with Angol,
Peruvian restaurant serving good fresh seafood and great Pisco
Sours. Quite a sophisticated place but the pricing is
reasonable.
- Tijuana, On the way to Santa Juana (take a
car/taxi), Mexican food. All you can eat on Thursday nights and
Sunday lunchtime. While the food is more like a Chilean take on
traditional Mexican food, it is delicious and has a great
atmosphere with lively music and friendly staff. Tijuana express is
located in the Plaza Peru - a much smaller venu and limited menu
but just as good.
Drink
Concepción is full of bars and nightclubs so try the traditional
Pisco Sour cocktail, a Piscola or even a beer from the german
settled south of the country.
- Pub Quebec,Janequeo 115, Located next to the
main entrance to the Universidad de Concepción, this place cannot
be missed! Beer deals before 9pm - 2 for 900 pesos and free popcorn
for every table. Full of students and young people. Great
atmosphere.
- Latitud Sur, Víctor Lamas 401, probably one of
the more sophisticated bars in Concepción´s centre. Great artesenal
beers made in the on-site microbrewery, beautiful interior and a
decent food menu. The price reflects the atmosphere though.
- Reggio, great pub located in Pedro de
Valdivia- best night to go is on Thursdays.
- Bar Bonita, Rengo 1624, great bar, you cannot
really notice it's a bar from outside, but once you'll get in
you'll love it. Live music and sketches on Wednesdays for a small
entrance fee.
- Gala, located in the Barrio Estacion, this
place is always packed on weekends and is frequented mainly for
it´s nightclub located in the basement. Usually drinks deals are
available on Piscolas.
- Choripan, probably the only bar with a pub
feel in the Barrio Estacion. Decent live band playing covers of the
Doors, Pink Floyd etc. Drinks can be pricey so come for happy hour
before midnight.
- Pub Neruda, on the Diagonal (close to the
Plaza Peru) a really relaxed bar which is usually full of a lively
young crowd taking advantage of the good prices on litres of beers.
The bar´s interior is inspired by the poetry of Pablo Neruda and
gives the place a chilled, cool atmosphere.
- Blass, Orompello 269, A no frills interior
leads to a relaxed crowd of 18-30s that frequent this place. Happy
hours are extensive and can be found in evenings and in the early
hours of the morning. Their homemade ponche is worth a try. [[3]]
Sleep
Hotel "El Araucano" a very comfortable hotel, located front
central place.(Plaza de armas)
Stay safe
The city is generally safe, however :
- Be aware of pickpockets and avoid wearing
expensive-looking jewelry or watches, even during the day.
- Do not visit Talcahuano 's seaport, Hualpen, San Pedro,
Chiguayante and near areas in the night, especially on
weekends.
- Population is very tolerant and friendly.
- As the rest of country, this city has largely conservative
Catholic and protestant population but Freemasonry
has here, an important influence in culture, education and
business.
- Very strong social movements and political activity, sometimes
heavily polarizated, be careful while discussing such matters.
- Travellers should be aware of the recent political history of
Chile as the country was under the rule of Augusto Pinochet for
many years following te 1973 military coup over the Communist
president Salvador Allende. Foreigners should be respectful when
approaching this topic and in fact it is best avoided unless you
are in the company of Chileans you know well or those who bring the
subject up willingly themselves.
- Tomé, a seaside town about 30 mins from
Concepción centre by bus. Go in the spring/ summer to enjoy the
beautiful beach. the town itself is fairly forgettable.
- Lenga, go and eat seafood in this seaside town
about 15 mins from Concepcion by car and 35 mins by bus (Puchacay,
Line 71). This will take much longer as it doesnt take the highway,
but is cheaper (0,80 USD). Try some seafood empanadas or mariscal
caliente in one of the numerous eating places. La Barca is
recommended.
- Hualpen Museum, located inside "Parque Pedro
del Rio Zañartu" this museum has a big variety of archaeological,
natural and historical pieces of collection. The only way to get
into this place is by car or taxi, do not pay more than 20 USD or
10.000 CLP for a single ride, in this case ask the taxi driver for
"Museo Hualpen".
- Parque Pedro del Rio Zañartu, located 10 mins
from downtown it offers beauty natural landscapes and recreational
places. 5 minutes far you can see the join of Bio Bio river and the
Pacific ocean, you can get into by car or taxi (same fare as
Hualpen Museum)
- Chillan, a ski town located about 2 hours from
Concepción. Home to a large volcano with great skiing so visit in
the winter or enjoy the the thermal spas heated by the volcanic
waters year-round.
- Santiago, the capital is just a 6 hour bus
journey away and buses run frequently so if you need a taste of the
big city life, it´s not too far.
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