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You've made it to Chile - to the airport, at least. Your next step is to find transportation from the airport to downtown Santiago. You may ask yourself…Where am I exactly?

How far is the airport from downtown? How can I get into Santiago? What's the cheapest transportation from the airport? What's the easiest way to get downtown? Am I going to get overcharged? What am I doing here? Who am I?

No need to tailspin into an existential crisis - we have the answers for you. First off, Arturo Merino Benitez International Airport is about 16 miles (26 km) away from downtown. Not so far, really.

As for transportation from the airport, you have lots of options at a range of prices. Here's the breakdown of prices and practicality - and how not to get overcharged.

Bus Connections From the Airport:

Two Chilean bus companies offer cheap, direct shuttles from the airport to downtown Santiago. They are safe, inexpensive and easy to figure out.

Centropuerto Bus

Fare: CH1000, about US$2
Time: Every 10 -30 minutes 7am - 11:30pm
Where: To Los Héroes on La Alameda (the major boulevard in Santiago) - from there you can catch the metro (L1 or L2), there are tons of city buses, or taxis. The noisy yellow bus is called a Micro -- it's an experience.

Tur Bus:

Fare: CH$1200, about US$2.30
Time: Running every 30 minutes from 6am to Midnight
Where: Takes you to corner of La Moneda and San Martin - a block off La Alameda, couple blocks away from Los Héroes metro station. Here you can transfer from the Santiago airport Turbus line to all public transportation metro and city buses.

Note: Both bus companies will normally drop people off along route from the airport to the Santiago city center

Metro Station at the Santiago Airport:

Sorry, doesn't exist. Although Santiago has an incredibly advanced underground train system, a metro connection to the airport is still not available. Your best option for cheap public transportation is to take a bus from the airport and transfer to one of the metro stations downtown. From the Los Héroes metro station, you can catch L1 to many tourist spots, where you're likely to find your hotel or hostel.

Mini Bus:

Door to Door service van service
Cost: US$6-9 (CH3200-4500) per person
It's shared transportation, so you have to wait for the van to fill up, and takes a bit longer as you drop off other passengers. But it's cheaper than the cost of an airport taxi, and drops you off exactly where you want to go.

Taxis:

The cost of a taxi from the Santiago airport can vary depending on what kind of cab you take, and how much you are willing to bargain.

A Santiago airport taxi is the more expensive option, costing about US$20-US$28 (CH$10,000-CH$14,500). The price depends on where you are going; taking a cab from the airport to the downtown city center should only cost CH$10,000, while taxi fare to more distant neighborhoods - such as Las Condes, Providencia and La Dehesa - will cost about CH$15,000.

Taxi fare goes down significantly just outside of the airport. A ride to downtown will cost more like US$16 (CH$8,000). Or, if you can haggle with your driver, you may get a cheaper rate. Remember to settle on a price before getting into the cab.

Remember to be wary of getting ripped off in a taxi from the airport. DO NOT pay more than CH10,000 (US$20) for a regular taxi from the airport to central Santiago. Fortunately, there is plenty of competition among the airport cab drivers, so it is unlikely that you will be forced into a higher, unfair rate.

Car Rental

There are many companies offering affordable airport car rental in Santiago. Visit our complete listing of airport rent a car companies in Santiago, Chile