Place

Santiago, Chile

General Information

Santiago is located at the northern end of Chile's central basin, extending from the foot of the Andes toward the coastal range at an altitude of 1,800-2,000 feet. The older and central part of the city was built on both sides of a small river, the Mapocho (a tributary of the Maipu, one of Chile's largest rivers), which repeatedly broke its banks, flooding and seriously damaging parts of the city; it is now to large extent enclosed and contained. Snow-capped peaks of the Andes, reaching altitudes of over 20,000 feet, rise above the city. Some of these peaks are extinct, truncated, cone-shaped volcanoes. The backdrop of high mountains gives Santiago a natural landscape of great beauty.

Despite its rapid growth, its cosmopolitan nature, and the occurrence of several highly destructive earthquakes, the city has preserved much of its original rectangular pattern, as laid down during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. From the time it was founded (1541) it has been the most important and active European settlement in Chile because of its favourable central location and pleasant climate.

The city is spaciously laid out with large garden suburbs and wide avenues and streets. The centre of Santiago, which has preserved the original Spanish colonial pattern, is a mixture of older buildings, some dating from the eighteenth century, and modern skyscrapers. Greater Santiago and its surroundings are Chile's main industrial centre, with approximately 60 percent of the country's industrial plants and 56 percent of the industrial workforce. 

Climate

Extending over 38 degrees of latitude, from the tropics to the vicinity of Antarctica, and from sea level to altitudes of over 20,000 feet, Chile has a wide variety of climatic conditions. Extreme aridity prevails over the northern part of the country; the average annual rainfall in this region is 0.04 inches. Temperatures are moderate along the coast throughout the year and more extreme inland, especially in the central basin. The average temperatures for the hottest (February) and coldest (July) months are 72F and 60F.

Central Chile (30-40 degrees latitude) has a Mediterranean type of climate, with cool and rainy winters (April to September) but without a completely dry season. Average annual precipitation increases substantially and temperatures decrease toward the south. The average temperatures for the hottest (January) and coldest (July) months at Santiago are 68 F and 46.6F, respectively. The average annual precipitation at Santiago is approximately 15 inches.

The climate of the southern region is cool and rainy the year round. It is characterized by abundant low clouds. The average temperature for the warmest (January) and the coldest (July) months are 57F and 40F respectively.. The average annual precipitation is 119 inches. The changes of the snow line on the westward-facing slopes of the Andes can serve as an indication of the variation in climatic conditions with latitude and altitude. The line of permanent snow is approximately 18,000 feet in Chile's extreme north. It descends to 14,000 feet opposite Santiago and to 2,200 feet at Tierra del Fuego.

University information

The Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (UC) was founded on June 21, 1888, to offer training in traditional professions and in technological and practical fields such as business, accounting, chemistry, and electricity. On February 11, 1930, Pope Pius XI declared it a Pontifical University, and in 1931 it was granted full academic autonomy by the Chilean government. It is a private (but with some public support), urban, multi-campus university. It is one of six Catholic universities, and one of 25 institutions within the Chilean university system.

Its 18 Faculties are distributed on four campuses in Santiago and one regional campus located in southern Chile. The technical training centres affiliated with the University are: DUOC, the Rural Life Foundations, the Baviera Foundation, the Catechetical Home and the San Fidel Seminary. These centers carry out technical-academic extension activities in rural and agricultural areas.

More information can be found on the University website at: http://www.puc.cl/

Travel-airports and access

Santiago Chile has two modern airports: National and International.

They are only a few steps apart. From here you can get to most every major city in Chile.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Road: Taxi: Official taxis, marked blue with official identification, are available from outside the airport’s ground floor at both terminals, running to destinations such as Providencia, Las Condes, Viña del Mar and Santiago city centre. Limousines: Limousines are available from Lujoleasing (tel: 231 2495; website: www.lujoleasing.cl)

Bus: Buses serve uptown and downtown Santiago. The CentroPuerto bus stops at the Los Héroes bus terminal, close to the Los Héroes subway station, runs from both terminals. The Tour Bus stops at the Alameda bus terminal and downtown Santiago (journey time: 30 minutes). Minibuses departing from the airport offer a door-to-door service throughout Santiago and are operated by TransVip and TransCity; representatives are stationed throughout the terminal and tickets can be purchased in the baggage reclaim area.

More information can be found at http://www.aeropuertosantiago.cl/ingles/index.php

Some delegates may be required to pay an entry fee. Please check when applying for your visa.

Hotel Accommodation

The conference hotel is the Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza Santiago, in midtown Santiago. For further details, visit the hotel website at http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/cp/925/en/hd/sclco

Currency and exchange rates

Chilean Peso (CLP). Current exchange rates can be found at http://www.xe.com/ucc/

Time zone

Standard time zone: UTC/GMT -4 hours. Daylight saving time: +1 hour

Other useful links

• The official language of Chile is Spanish
• Airport parking and airport hotels - car parking at Gatwick, Heathrow, Stansted, Manchester and all major UK airports

Dialling codes

The country code for Chile is 56, for further information on dialling Chile see http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/dialing.html?p2=232

Map