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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Airport (Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport)

  • Leaving the airport: We recommend taking an official taxi (taxi oficial) when leaving the airport, and not a rideshare service. The official taxi drivers are usually wearing a uniform that states “taxi oficial.” When leaving customs before leaving the airport, you will see options for transportation, including the official taxis, but also shuttle services and other taxi services. We do not recommend leaving the airport and negotiating with taxi drivers outside.

  • Timing: Expect to spend an hour to get through customs and retrieve your baggage. An official taxi to Hotel Plaza San Francisco will take 30-60 minutes depending on traffic.

  • Return flight: We recommend arriving at the airport three hours before your scheduled departure. Recommended schedule:

    • 4 hours before departure: call a taxi for the airport

    • 3 hours before departure: arrive at the airport

Museum of Memory and Human Rights

  • On Thursday June 22, after the Public Humanities Network's session at the auditorium of this museum, you will have a chance to experience a self-guided tour through the museum itself. The museum recommends downloading this app (QR code to the app) on your phone ahead of time, and also to bring headphones for the audio portions of the self-guided tour. To search for the app directly in your app store, the name is MMDH App.

Off-site meetings, tourism, and nightlife

  • Barrios: We recommend seeking out cafes, bars, and restaurants in Barrio París-Londres and also Barrio Lastarria. We do not recommend going to Barrio Bellavista at night on your own because it can be dangerous if you don’t know the area. It is also a relatively quick Metro ride to Providencia and Las Condes, where there are many other dining options.

  • Recommendations for dinner:

  • Note that the Metro ends at 10:30pm and it is also difficult to get a taxi at night time.

Weather and attire

  • We recommend wearing a mask on public transportation and other dense areas of the city, as there is a winter cold going around.

  • Come prepared with extra layers for our conference in Casa Central. Other than Hotel Plaza San Francisco, you should not expect places to be heated.

  • Be prepared for light to moderate rain, but you should not expect snow. On rare occasions, there is freezing rain.

  • The temperature can reach below freezing, but during the day the temperature feels relatively mild.

  • If there is a pollution warning for the city, we will communicate that to you during the conference. During a warning, it is recommended not to do exercise outdoors.

Casa Central, Hotel Plaza San Francisco, and surroundings

  • The nearest metro station is between Casa Central and the hotel. The station is called Universidad de Chile, and connects to Line 1 and Line 3.

  • Casa Central and the hotel are located on the south side of the street (Av. Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins, known locally as “la Alameda”), and you will see the statue of Andrés Bello in front of Casa Central, which is colored yellow. Note that the north side of the street is quite crowded because it is a commercial area.

  • Nearby recommended cultural sites:

    • Centro Cultural La Moneda

    • La Moneda

    • Cerro Santa Lucía: we recommend not visiting or climbing this hill alone.

    • GAM (Centro Cultural Gabriela Mistral)

    • Museo de Bellas Artes and Museo de Arte Contemporáneo (a little further)

Local transportation

  • Rush hours are typically 6-9am, 12:30-2:30pm, and 6-9pm. The Metro ends at 10:30pm and it is difficult to get a taxi at night time.

  • Rideshare: Uber does work in Santiago, but we recommend using the app Cabify as well.

  • Google Maps: this works well in Santiago.

  • Metro: this is Santiago’s subway/train system, and it is very reliable particularly in the central area where we are located. There are signs in English, but we recommend paying attention to every stop because the train does not always announce the name of each station. It does get crowded during rush hours. To ride the Metro, you can buy individual tickets or a bip card, which you can purchase at the metro station. The bip card costs around 5,000 CLP, and the ticket office only takes cash but there are ATMs at the station.

  • Micros: this is the local bus system, which is also called Red Bus or Transantiago. Be aware of your surroundings if riding a micro. Try not to take out your personal belongings. You need to pay with a bip card to ride a micro; they will not accept cash.

  • Taxi: Unlike traveling from the airport, it is not necessary to choose an official taxi when traveling within the city. We do recommend choosing taxi companies that are listed in the Cabify. You will see the Cabify sign/sticker on the windshield of taxis that are listed in the app.

Registration desk

The registration desk will be located at Casa Central and will be staffed approximately an hour before activities start. We expect most to check in and pick up their materials on the first two days of the conference, but feel free to approach staff at any time for assistance. Our University of Chile graduate student team includes Bernardita Cubillos, Camilo Valdés, Constanza Iturriaga, and Anita Acuña. In addition to staffing the registration table, they will be available throughout the conference to help with wayfinding and transitions, including walking us from one location to the next. Thank you so much, students!

Interpretation ear pieces

For most of you who wish to listen to the interpretation of Spanish or English throughout the conference, we recommend arriving ten minutes early to each session to check out your ear piece. You will have to check out the device prior to each session and return it following each session. Please note that only registered attendees will have access to this service.

Cell phones

  • SIM card: we recommend visiting local shops in the city center to buy a SIM card in person from one of the three major telephone companies. You may also find SIM cards for purchase at a Jumbo store, the closest of which is Av. Independencia 565.

    • Movistar (Huerfanos 1332)

    • EnTel (Amunátegui 72)

    • Wom (Huerfanos 727)

  • e-SIM card: it is becoming more popular for travelers to use an app that provides an e-SIM service, which you can set up prior to arriving in-country, and activates upon contact with the local networks. The most popular service currently is Airalo, which for example provides 7GB of data for 5 days in Chile for $11 USD.

COVID-19

  • There are no COVID-19 restrictions as of June 1, 2023.

  • We recommend bringing your vaccination card just in case instructions change during your stay in Chile. If you want to be very safe, there is a QR code associated with your vaccination status, usually accessed through your health records or insurance, and you can prepare that as well.

Excursion to Casablanca Vineyards

For those registered for the excursion on Saturday, the weather is often cloudy and windy at this time of year, with chances of rain.

Questions during the conference

  • For immediate questions, you can contact Constanza Rivano, CIEFAH staff, on Whatsapp ‭+56 9 8277 0777‬.

  • During the hours of the conference, there will be staff at the registration desk at Casa Central.

  • You can also email info@chcinetwork.org for any questions and we will try and reply ASAP.