Chile is a small, long country packed with a whopping 2,000 volcanoes (not all of them are active, but still, that’s a lot!). It’s a land of extremes, with everything from scorching deserts to icy mountains. While many people rave about its excellent wine, others say the beaches are pretty legendary too. There are just too many interesting and fun facts to discover about Chile that you might not expect!
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20 Surprising Facts About Chile You Should Know
Chile is the Longest and Narrowest Country on Earth
Chile is a long and narrow country in South America. It stretches about 4,300 km from top to bottom but is only about 177 km wide on average. It shares borders with Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina and has a very long coastline of 6,435 km along the Pacific Ocean.
The country has two major mountain ranges: the Andes in the east and the coastal mountains in the west. Its total land area is 743,812 km², but when you include water and islands, it adds up to 756,102 km².
Fun fact about Chile: Chile is approximately 9% larger than Texas. Photo by Hartono Creative Studio on Unsplash
Atacama Desert is the Driest Place on Earth
The Atacama Desert is a very dry area in northern Chile, stretching 1,600 km along the coast and covering about 105,000 square kilometers. It’s the driest desert on Earth, with some parts getting no rain at all. This dryness is caused by two factors: the Andes mountains block rain (this is called a “rain shadow”), and the cold Humboldt Current also keeps moisture away. The only moisture that comes in is from fog, which is called camanchaca.
An interesting fact about Chile: The Atacama Desert is used for experiments to simulate conditions on Mars because it’s similar to the Martian environment. Photo by Marek Piwnicki
Easter Island Has Nearly 900 Moai Statues
Easter Island has 887 giant stone statues called moai, which were carved between 1250 and 1500 CE. These statues are around 4 meters tall and weigh about 12.5 tons on average. The biggest one, named “Paro,” is 10 meters tall and weighs 82 tons. Almost half of the statues are still at the quarry where they were made, while others were moved to platforms around the island. The moai have big heads, which make up almost half of their size.
A fun fact about Chile: Even though they have full bodies, people often call them “Easter Island heads” because their bodies are partly buried. Photo by Олеся Ронжанина
Chinchorro Mummies are Older than Egypt’s Mummies
The Chinchorro mummies are the oldest known mummies in the world, made by the Chinchorro people in northern Chile over 7,000 years ago, long before the mummies of ancient Egypt.
Mummification was a practice done by the Chinchorro people of all social classes. It involved taking out the skin and organs, then putting the body back together with sticks and clay. The faces were covered with masks. Hundreds of mummies have been found since 1917, and in 2021, UNESCO recognized their importance by adding them to the World Heritage List.
Fun fact about Chile: The Atacama Desert is the driest desert on Earth, and this dryness helped to preserve mummies that were buried there a long time ago. Photo by Lokman Sevim
Ojos del Salado is the Tallest Active Volcano
Ojos del Salado is the tallest active volcano in the world, standing at 6,893 meters (22,615 feet). It’s located in the Andes on the border between Chile and Argentina and is also the highest mountain in Chile. The volcano has several craters and lava domes, and it also has the highest lake on Earth, at 6,390 meters. It last erupted around 750 CE but still releases gas today.
Fun fact about Chile: The first successful climb to the summit was made in 1937 by Jan Alfred Szczepański and Justyn Wojsznis. sergejf, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Chile’s World’s Largest Pool Holds 66 Million Gallons of Seawater
The largest pool in the world is at the San Alfonso del Mar resort in Algarrobo, Chile. It’s about 3,323 feet long (over half a mile) and covers 20 acres of land. The pool holds a huge amount of seawater—250 million liters (66 million gallons). It uses special technology to clean and filter the ocean water. It was officially recognized as the world’s largest pool by Guinness World Records in 2006 and is a popular place for tourists, located near Santiago.
Fun fact about Chile: San Alfonso del Mar Pool is so big that it could hold the water from 20 Olympic-sized pools.
Gran Torre Is South America’s Tallest Building
Gran Torre Santiago is the tallest building in South America, standing at 300 meters (984 feet) tall with 62 floors above ground and 6 basement levels. Located in Santiago, Chile, it was completed in 2013 and is part of the Costanera Center complex, which also has the biggest shopping mall in Latin America. The tower was designed by architect César Pelli and includes an observation deck called Sky Costanera on the top two floors.
An interesting fact about Chile: Construction of Gran Torre Santiago started in 2006, was delayed by the 2008 financial crisis, resumed in 2009, and cost around $1 billion to complete. Photo by Willian Justen de Vasconcellos
Valdivia Earthquake Was the Strongest Ever Recorded
The 1960 Valdivia earthquake, also called the Great Chilean earthquake, took place on May 22, 1960. It was the strongest earthquake ever recorded, with a magnitude between 9.4 and 9.6. The quake lasted about 10 minutes and triggered huge tsunamis that affected many places, including Chile, Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, New Zealand, Australia, and the Aleutian Islands. The earthquake’s epicenter was off the coast of Chile, and it was 25 kilometers deep. It caused between 1,000 and 6,000 deaths and produced waves up to 25 meters high.
This earthquake was similar to one that occurred in 1575 in the same area, indicating that large earthquakes might happen there regularly.
Magdalena Island is the Magellanic Penguins’ Favorite Breeding Haven
More than 60,000 Magellanic penguins come to breed on Magdalena Island, in the Strait of Magellan. The island is about 85 hectares in size and is an important home for these penguins, which are medium-sized and can live up to 25 years.
The best time to visit penguins on Magdalena Island is between November and February, which is when they are breeding, or having babies. You can visit the island by boat from Punta Arenas, and while you’re there, you’ll also see other seabirds like cormorants and skuas.
Magellanic penguins eat sea animals like squid and tiny shrimp called krill. Photo by William Warby
Chile Has Over 2,000 Volcanoes
Chile has about 2,000 volcanoes, and 500 of them are still active. Most of these volcanoes are in the Andes mountains. In the last 450 years, 60 of them have erupted, including some well-known ones like Villarrica, Llaima, and Calbuco. The volcanic chain in Chile, part of the Ring of Fire, has the second-biggest group of volcanoes in the world, after Indonesia.
A fun fact about Chile: Chile also has 91 volcanoes that have erupted in the last 11,700 years. Photo by E. Ritt
20% of Chile is protected by National Parks
Chile has designated more than 20% of its land to protect nature. This includes 36 national parks, 49 national reserves, and 15 national monuments, covering a total of 14.5 million hectares. This makes Chile one of the leaders in protecting nature in Latin America. However, most of these protected areas are located in just two regions of the country: Aysén Region and the Chilean Antarctic Region.
In 2018, Chile created a special Parks Network that helped protect over 13.5 million hectares in Patagonia, a region in southern Chile.
Chile is the World’s Largest Copper Producer
Chile is the world’s largest copper producer, responsible for about a quarter of all copper mined globally. Just in 2024 alone, Chile produced 5.5 million metric tons of copper, with major mining areas like Antofagasta and famous mines like Escondida and Collahuasi. Copper is a huge part of Chile’s economy, accounting for 76% of its mining exports. The government-run company Codelco is the biggest producer, but private companies like BHP and Anglo American also produce a lot of copper.
The World’s Smallest Deer Lives in Chile
The pudú is the smallest deer in the world. The southern pudú, which lives in the forests of Chile and Argentina, is only about 35-45 cm tall and weighs between 6-13 kg. It has a reddish-brown coat and small, curved antlers. These deer tend to live alone or in small groups.
Unfortunately, they are at risk because their habitat is disappearing, and they face threats from other animals introduced to their environment. There are fewer than 10,000 southern pudús left in the wild, so they are considered vulnerable.
A cool fact about the pudú, often called the “ghost of the forest” in Chile, is so small and stealthy that it can be hard to spot in the dense, lush landscapes of southern Chile. Image by Angela from Pixabay
Andean Condors Have 3-Meter Wingspans
The Andean condor (Vultur gryphus) is a giant bird with a wingspan of 2.7 to 3.3 meters, making it one of the largest birds that can fly. It lives in the Andes mountains and nearby areas. It weighs up to 15 kg and stands about 1.2 meters tall.
This bird is a scavenger, which means it eats dead animals (carrion) and helps prevent the spread of disease by cleaning up these remains. Besides that, the Andean condor holds cultural importance in South America because it is seen as a symbol of strength, freedom, and power.
The species is sexually dimorphic, which makes males larger than females. Photo by Shanai Edelberg
Chile’s Wine Industry Began in the 1500s
Chile’s wine industry began in the 1500s when Spanish settlers brought grapevines to make wine for religious ceremonies. Over time, in the 1800s, they brought in well-known French grape varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon and Carmenère, which made Chilean wine better and more popular. In the late 1800s, a pest called phylloxera destroyed vineyards in Europe, but because Chile was isolated, its vineyards stayed safe from the pest. This gave Chile a chance to grow its wine exports. In the 1980s, winemakers started using modern methods, like fermentation in stainless steel tanks and aging wine in oak barrels, which made the wine taste even better. As a result, Chile became known worldwide for its wine, and today it’s one of the biggest wine exporters and producers.
A cool fact about Chilean wine is that the Carmenère grape, once thought to be extinct in France, was rediscovered in Chile in the 1990s and has since become one of the country’s signature varieties. Photo by Marina Zvada
Patagonia Was Named After Mythical Giants
Patagonia got its name from Ferdinand Magellan in 1520. He was traveling through what is now the southern part of South America. When he came across the Tehuelche people, he thought they were giants because they were taller than Europeans. Because of this, Magellan called them “Patagones,” which means “giants” in Spanish.
The name might come from a character in an old Spanish novel from 1512, called Primaleón, where there’s a giant named “Patagón”, or it could be based on the large moccasins the Tehuelche wore, which left big footprints. Over time, the idea of giants stuck around and became part of the legend of the region.
Chilean Spanish is Full of Unique Idioms
Chilean Spanish has its own unique slang and expressions that make it stand out. For example, “al tiro” means right away, “bacán” means awesome, “cachai” is like asking “do you understand?”, and “fome” means boring. “Pololear” is the word for dating, and “poh” is used to emphasize something. “Weón” can mean “dude,” “friend,” or even “stupid” depending on the context. They also use words from indigenous languages like “guagua” for baby and “palta” for avocado. Chileans tend to drop the “s” sound and use informal grammar, like saying “tú hablai” instead of “tú hablas.”
Chile Has 300 Clear Nights for Stargazing
Chile is one of the best places in the world for stargazing, thanks to its clear skies with over 300 nights a year. The Atacama Desert, known for its high altitude, dry weather, and lack of light pollution, is home to world-famous observatories like ALMA and the Very Large Telescope. Some top spots to enjoy the stars include San Pedro de Atacama, the Gabriela Mistral Dark Sky Sanctuary in the Elqui Valley, and Cerro Paranal.
Chile has 70% of the world’s big telescopes, making it a great place for stargazing and scientific studies. The best time to see stars is during new moons and the dry season, from December to March, when the skies are clear and dry. This attracts many people who want to visit and enjoy the stars.
A unique fact about Chile: Chile is protecting its dark skies by designating areas like the Elqui Valley as Dark Sky Reserves, where light pollution is reduced to ensure clear views of the stars. Photo by Chris Munnik
Other Unusual Facts About Chile
- The Chinchorro mummies in Chile are over 7,000 years old, older than Egyptian mummies.
- Chile has over 3,000 volcanoes, with 36 considered active, making it one of the most volcanic countries.
- Early explorers believed Patagonia was inhabited by giants due to the tall indigenous people.
- Parts of the Atacama Desert resemble Mars, making it a testing site for NASA rovers.
- Chile has a government department dedicated to studying UFOs due to frequent sightings.
- The Carménère grape was thought extinct but rediscovered in Chile after being mistaken for Merlot.
- In Chiloé, entire wooden houses are moved by oxen or floated to new locations as part of a community effort.
