Public Transportation

Here in Chile, public transportation is the most common and easiest way to get around. When trying to get from point A to point B (depending on where you are going, of course), you can either use the metro (subway), micro (bus), or colectivo (a cab that drives a specific route). You can also call a cab or see if someone can get you a ride, but more often than not, the public mode of transportation is much easier.

There is a metro that runs between Viña del Mar and Valparaíso. More than likely, there will be a stop near where you are staying. In one direction, you can go to the Port (in Valpo) or you can go to Limache (in Viña) which has buses that can take you to other destinations. The most you should ever have to wait for a metro is around 12 minutes, and that only later at night, weekends and holidays. Otherwise it is about a 5 minute wait.
If there is not a metro stop near where you are staying, you can always take a micro. These buses run much closer to the houses and up the cerros (mountains/hills) practically 24/7. The drivers can get a bit crazy, but you will make it to your destination, and in a pretty timely manner. The micro costs less than a dollar to take in one direction, so it's a pretty good deal. If you don't know where you are suppose to get off, just keep bugging the driver to let you know when you need to get off. Just tell them where are you going and that you don't know when that is. Most of them will help you, I have yet to meet a driver that would not help me. Like the metro, the distance between each bus to your destination depends on the time of day and if it is a holiday, but there are always buses. If you cannot find a bus that is going in your direction, you can always ask a bus that stops if they know when one that you need will be coming by or if they can take you part of the way there. Now if you look closely at the picture of the micros, you will see that there are numbers and other words in the windows. The words are of cities or locations (like a mall) that the bus is suppose to route to. Each route has a number, and there are usually multiple numbers that go to and from the same location, there is just a slightly different route in between.
And then there are the colectivos. A colectivo is a cab that you share with strangers. There is a "collection" of passengers going in the same direction and getting off at different stops. It has a similar system to the micros, but it costs a little more and the drivers are a little more willing to drop you off specifically at your destination, especially the later at night that it gets. As you can see, they also have a number and a list of locations that they drive to. Just like the micro and the metro, the frequency depends on the time of day and if it's a holiday.


As I said before, what you want to take depends on where you are going. The metro is a great way to get between Viña and Valpo, but it definitely won't get you to Santiago. The buses and colectivos practically go everywhere, but they will not leave the Valpo-Viña area. You will have to buy a bus ticket to leave the area. If you plan on traveling, you need to look for bus companies that will take you to those places, or at least to the airport so that you can fly to those places.