Places to Go in Chile

We have already discussed lots of wonderful places that you can go in Santiago, Valparaíso, and Viña del Mar, but we have yet to talk about tourist destinations in Chile in general. There are a bunch of places within the country for you to go visit, most of which give you two choices for transportation: bus or plane. Usually transportation by bus is much cheaper, but it takes much longer to get from point A to point B. Obviously, it's up to your preferences and finances as to which you take and to where you are going.
So, where should you go? For starters, if you are here with a program (like International Studies Abroad [ISA]) and they are offering to take you somewhere, go. That is the best piece of advice that I can give you. Them taking you is one less trip that you have to arrange for yourself. Throughout this semester, ISA has taken us to all of the houses of Pablo Neruda, Pomaire, a historical tour of the dictatorship of Pinochet, and we are about to head out to Pucón, in the southern part of the country.
As far as adventures on your own, there are a lot of places to go. The favorite of most people is San Pedro in Atacama, a desert in the north. The skies are very clear and wonderful for stargazing at night. From Valparaíso, it is about a 24 hour bus ride. This is one where I would recommend going by plane. It takes two hours to get to the airport, wait an hour for your flight, which is only a couple of hours, and you will be all set to adventure. If you want to go to Atacama and stay in a hostel or hotel, you should look into them at least a month before you go on your trip. Places to stay in San Pedro book up quickly because it is such a popular location.
Another place to go would be Valle de Elqui which is also in the north, but not quite as far away as Atacama. Valle de Elqui is also well known for having very clear skies and even offers star tours. This bus trip is only about eight (8) hours long, or you can go by plane which is only an hour long. The hostels and hotels also book up quickly in this area, so book early.
Also, as a general note for anywhere you visit in the northern part of Chile, do it in a time other than the middle of summer. The north is mainly desert and is much closer to the equator than the rest of the country. It gets very hot during the day, so keep water and sunblock with you at all times in this area.
And for the southern part of Chile, I recommend visiting Chiloe and Patagonia. Yes, all of the places that I have listed are very touristy, but they are definitely places that you should go to visit. They are beautiful and if you stop and ask a local what they would recommend you trying, you will get a much better picture of the area than just the tourist things.
If you have the money and want to visit the most touristic part of Chile, you can go to Easter Island (Rapa Nui). The area has wonderful history, and you would have to go by plane, but it is very costly. You can see statues from the Island that were given to specific areas on the mainland if that is what you are wanting to see.
There is of course much more to go see, but these are all of the places that my fellow ISA students have recommended.