Travel Spanish for Chile

What Spanish is spoken here?

Chilean Spanish is considered one of the hardest in Latin America: very fast, with swallowed final syllables and lots of slang (chilenismos). Endings in '-ado' often become '-ao' (e.g. 'cansao' instead of 'cansado'). A distinctive voseo verb form is common ('¿cachái?' instead of '¿cachas?'). In the south there are Mapudungun influences, and many place names come from Mapuche.

Country & culture

Chile is an extremely long, narrow country stretching over more than 4,000 km along the Pacific. It ranges from the Atacama Desert in the north through the central wine country to the fjords and mountains of Patagonia. Highlights for backpackers are the starry skies of the Atacama, Torres del Paine National Park and Easter Island.

History in brief

Before colonial times, the Mapuche lived in the south, long resisting the Spanish conquest successfully. From 1541 the Spanish founded Santiago, and in 1818 Chile gained its independence. The 20th century was marked by the overthrow of Salvador Allende in 1973 and the military dictatorship under Pinochet until 1990. Today Chile is considered one of the most economically stable countries in the region.

Country & people

• About 19.6 million inhabitants (2025).
• A stable presidential democracy with peaceful transfers of power; in 2022 it elected Gabriel Boric, one of the world's youngest presidents.
• One of the wealthiest and most open economies in Latin America.
• Copper (the world's largest producer) and lithium, wine, fruit, salmon and forestry.

Food & drink

• Empanada de pino — A baked pasty filled with mince, onion, egg and olive.
• Completo — A Chilean hot dog piled high with avocado, tomato and mayonnaise.
• Pastel de choclo — A corn-purée bake over a meat filling, popular in summer.
• Cazuela — A hearty stew with meat, squash, corn and potato.
• Pisco sour — A cocktail of pisco, lemon and sugar, a popular aperitif (Peru claims it too).
• Terremoto — A sweet mix of white wine, pineapple ice cream and grenadine that packs a punch.
• Vino chileno — Chilean wine, especially bold Carménère and Cabernet, world-renowned.

Useful words & slang

• „cachái" — get it? / understand?
• „weón/huevón" — mate/bloke (used among friends, depending on tone)
• „bacán" — great, cool, brilliant
• „po" — filler word at the end of a sentence (from 'pues')
• „la raja" — great, top-notch (colloquial)
• „fome" — boring, dull

Example sentences from the app

• „¿Dónde encuentro un taxi al centro de Santiago?" — Where can I find a taxi to downtown Santiago?
• „Lléveme a mi hostal, por favor." — Take me to my hostel, please.
• „¿Cuánto cuesta el viaje desde el aeropuerto?" — How much is the ride from the airport?
• „¡Hola! ¿Cómo estái?" — Hi! How's it going? (very Chilean)
• „¿Todo bien? ¿Cachái?" — All good with you? Get it? (slang)
• „¡Qué bacán!" — That's really cool!
• „Hagámoslo al tiro, ¿ya?" — Let's do it right away, yeah?
• „¡Sí po, weón!" — Yeah sure, man! (colloquial)
• „Disculpe, ¿dónde está la estación de metro?" — Excuse me, where is the metro station?
• „¿Qué línea va a la Plaza de Armas?" — Which line goes to Plaza de Armas?
• „¿Esta micro va al Cerro San Cristóbal?" — Does this bus go to Cerro San Cristóbal?
• „¿Cuánto cuesta un colectivo hasta allá?" — How much is a shared taxi there?
• „Voy a tomar un bus a Valparaíso." — I'll take a long-distance bus to Valparaíso.
• „¿Qué ascensor me sube al cerro?" — Which funicular takes me up the hill?

Travel tip

Chile is considerably more expensive than its neighbours; cashless payment is widespread, so budget accordingly higher.