Chile Guide
The Central Valley
Pichilemu
The seaside surfer town of PICHILEMU is built around a wide, sandy bay at the foot of a steep hill. The town dates from the second half of the nineteenth century, when Agustín Ross Edwards set out to create a European-style seaside resort connected to Santiago by railway and has a melancholy air of a faded Victorian seaside resort. The grand old casino – the first in Chile – is perhaps the most evocative of Ross's legacies. It's now in disuse, with broken windows and its imposing nineteenth-century architecture in a sorry state of disrepair. Pichilemu's central streets are crammed with snack bars and schoperías catering to the crowds of young surfers who come to ride the waves – among the best in all of Chile. The most challenging surf is at Punta de Lobos, 6km south, where Chile's national surfing championships are held each summer.
To escape the crowds, 3km south of town are the DunaMar condos, Avenida Comercio ( 
& 
72/841676; Price: CH$35000-50000), a modern resort on the beach that boasts balconies with great views and an excellent seafood restaurant. Back in town, another good choice is the Hotel Chile-España, down towards the sea at Ortúzar 255 ( & 72/841314, 
hotelchileespana@terra.cl; Price: CH$10000-15000), where you'll find simple but neat rooms off a sunny glass-walled corridor dotted with plants and deck chairs. Hotel Rex, Av Ortúzar 124 ( 72/841003; Price: CH$10000-15000) is under the same management and provides similar rooms. Some of the best value residenciales and cabañas catering to the surfers include the welcoming, well-kept Residencial Antmalal at Joaquín Aguirre 64 ( 72/841004; Price: CH$5000–15000) and the clean and secure Cabañas Hecmar at Av Comercio 614 ( 72/841357; Price: CH$5000-10000). The popular Hostería La Gloria ( 72/841052; Price: CH$10000-15000), ten blocks south of the seafront at J.J. Prieto 980, is worth the walk for its excellent and inexpensive seafood, including tasty machas a la parmesana and dressed crab.
For a tiny town, Pichilemu has plenty of nightlife – though most of it tends to be surf parties organized at the last minute. For dancing and drinking try Disco 127 at Angel Gaete 127. Along Avenida Ortúzar there are a number of bars, including Gigi Bar and El Toqui, that get lively during the summer months.