Viña del Mar Chile Travel Pictures
Viña Chile, Reñaca, Resorts, Beaches
Viña del Mar Chile, on the Pacific coast across the bay from Valparaiso., is called simply Viña by the locals.
Viña Del Mar is preferred over Valpo for resorts, beaches and longstays, with more condos, row houses and B&Bs, You'd be hard pressed to find a room without a great view! (Check for hotels in Vina del Mar). I had lunch just north of Viña del Mar in the town of Reñaca (see traditional Chilean foods and seafood). I came to Viña from Santiago Chile, then went back to fly south to Puerto Varas and Puerto Montt for the flowers in spring (Chile flora in Lake District's Vicente Perez Rosales National Park), then further south still, to Patagonia's Torres del Paine.
Viña Chile Across Valparaiso Bay from Valpo 
The beaches of Viña del Mar and smaller communities along the coast attract visitors from Santiago on weekends and holidays, swelling the ranks of the 300,000 who call it home.
Lovely to look at and stroll along, the Pacific Ocean is a bit chilly for swimming all year 'round, thanks to the Humboldt Current sweeping the coast north from the Antarctic.
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Hillside Homes in Viña Del Mar ~ Narrow lanes and lots of flowers 
Cobblestone lanes wind back and forth around the hills in Vina Del Mar, lined with charming flower-bedecked homes and shops.
A number of these homes now operate as Bed and Breakfasts.
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Hillside Vina del Mar House is a splash of yellow
A closer look at the house above, with its windows covered with ornate iron grill work covered in blooms.
Along with its lovely neighbourhoods and great seafood, Viña's cooler climate, frequent bouts of chill morning fogs and steep streets reminded me of San Francisco, California.
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Two cats on a garden wall in Viña Chile
Cats lazed atop walls, and dogs dozed on sunny sidewalks.
None of these animals 'at large' seemed to take any notice of passing traffic, foot or motor.
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Historic Churches in Viña Del Mar 
This lovely church took up most of a city block. I loved the style of its window arches, but unfortunately, I don't know the name of this church. (If you do, please leave a comment below.)
In a country almost exclusively Roman Catholic (90 percent), there are a great many of these lovely churches.
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Seals on the rocks at Reñaca Chile
The oceanside drive continues north, and rounds yet another cove, so Viña Del Mar seamlessly becomes the town of Reñaca(prnounced Ren-YACKA).
Out in the cove not far from the beach, these seals covered much of the rocks. Other rocks served as rookeries for shore birds.
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Renaca Chile beach early afternoon, November 
The beach across the road from our lunchtime seafood restaurant, El Encanto de Reñaca, looked a lovely spot to spend some time.
The restaurant is a popular lunch stop for larger tour groups, who this day had mainly come from Argentina and Brazil.
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Older Viña Del Mar Apartments
This building with its black diamond detailing seemed to be a series of fantastic and optimistic afterthoughts, going ever higher to get sea views.
January and February are high season; November and March are usually the best times to get a reasonably priced resort or hotel.
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Viña Del Mar's New Condos still being built 
These days, although La Serena, a seaside town a few hundred kilometers north, is taking more of Viña Del Mar's visitors, many condos are still being built.
This area of the Chile coast has direct highway access from Argentina and Brazil via the tunnel through the Andes at Los Libertadores, thus bypassing Santiago.
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