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Ascensor Concepción
Built in 1883, it originally ran on steam power and is the city's oldest elevator. Also known as Ascensor Turri, it climbs the slopes from the corner of Prat and Carreño, across from the landmark clock tower known as the Reloj Turri up to Cerro Concepción. This is one of the most delightful of all Valparaíso's neighborhoods, with its brightly painted corrugated iron facades and pitched roofs. Along with the equally magical Cerro Alegre next door, this area has undergone a renaissance.
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Ascensor El Peral
Ascensor El Peral starts from near the Tribunales (Law Courts) just off Plaza Sotomayor and continues to Cerro Alegre, which is home to the Palacio Baburizza (1916), which now houses the city's Museo de Bellas Artes.
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Ascensores
It's possible to spend hours riding the 15 ascensores (also known as funicular elevators), built between 1883 and 1916, that lead up into the hills and meandering back alleys of Valparaíso. Some of the ascensores are remarkable feats of engineering. From the flat city center the ascensores creak at an improbable angle up to the tumbling chaotic cerros (hills), with their steep labyrinthine roads, crumbling mansions and kaleidoscopic rooftops.
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Cerro Concepción
Cerro Concepción is one of the most delightful of all Valparaíso's neighborhoods, with its brightly painted corrugated iron facades and pitched roofs. To get there, take the city's oldest elevator, Ascensor Concepción (also known as Ascensor Turri) from the corner of Prat and Carreño, across from the Reloj Turri (clock tower).
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Congreso Nacional
At the east end of downtown, opposite Plaza O'Higgins and the bus terminal, the most imposing landmark is the controversial Congreso Nacional built in 1990. Mandated by Pinochet's 1980 constitution, which moved the legislature away from the Santiago-based executive branch, this was the last major public-works project of the dictatorship, at a cost of US$100 million. The edifice was built on the site of one of Pinochet's boyhood homes.
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El Mercurio de Valparaíso
Topped by a mansard roof, the neoclassical El Mercurio de Valparaíso, built in 1903, is the home of the oldest continuously published Spanish-language newspaper (since 1827, pre-dating the building itself).
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Feria de Artesanía
The Feria de Artesanía is a lively place on weekends. It sells handicrafts.
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Iglesia Catedral de Valparaíso
The Iglesia Catedral de Valparaíso is the town's largest church, which overlooks the Plaza Victoria.
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Iglesia Matriz
Plaza Matriz is Valparaíso's historic core, directly uphill from the Mercado Central, where El Plan narrows and the distinctive hills' architecture starts to take shape. The plaza's major landmark is the Iglesia Matriz, a national monument dating from 1842. This is the fourth church to occupy this site since the construction of the original chapel in 1559. Be on your guard in this area as robberies are not uncommon.
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La Sebastiana
Pablo Neruda probably spent less time at La Sebastiana, his least-known and least-visited house, than at La Chascona or Isla Negra, but he made it a point to watch Valparaíso's annual New Year's fireworks from his lookout on Cerro Bellavista. The house is still very much in his style, however, with a madly eccentric layout, some beautiful knick-knacks and trinkets, and some lovely stained-glass windows.
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Mirador Diego Portales
Above the Feria Persa Barón (flea market), sits the Mirador Diego Portales; it's reached by Ascensor Barón and offers a panorama of the city towards the west. Nearby, the bell tower of the historic Iglesia San Francisco (1845) served as a landmark for approaching mariners who gave the city its common nickname 'Pancho' (a diminutive of Francisco).
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Museo a Cielo Abierto
Between 1969 and 1973, students from the Universidad Católica's Instituto de Arte created this museum, which comprises 20 brightly colored abstract murals that cover numerous hillside sites. To reach it take the Ascensor Espiritu Santo (sometimes called Ascensor Bellavista), near Plaza Victoria.
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Museo de Bellas Artes
The Museo de Bellas Artes is housed in the Palacio Baburizza (1916). Designed for an Italian nitrate baron but named after the Yugoslav who purchased it from him, the Art Nouveau palace is noteworthy for imaginative woodwork, forged-iron details and a steeply pitched central tower. Set among attractive gardens, the building and grounds alone justify a visit. From here, it's possible to loop over to Cerro Concepción, or vice versa.
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Museo de Historia Natural
The neoclassical Palacio Lyon (1881), once a private mansion, now houses the Museo de Historia Natural. The exhibits here are not that inspiring, but the upper exhibition halls have vivid dioramas on Chile's pre-Hispanic cultures.
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Museo del Mar Lord Cochrane
The Museo del Mar Lord Cochrane was built in 1842 for the dashing Scottish naval hero Lord Thomas Cochrane (who set up Chile's navy), but was never occupied by him. The building, a tile-roofed, colonial-style house above Plaza Sotomayor, held Chile's first astronomical observatory. There are few exhibits, but the patio has a stunning view over the harbor. To reach it take the Ascensor Cordillera (located one block north of Plaza Sotomayor) to Cerro Cordillera, then walk east to Merlet at the top of the ascensor .
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Museo Naval y Marítimo
This is an excellent but jingoistic military museum - it seems strange to an outsider that the exhibits still crow about Chile's 19th-century victory over Peru in the War of the Pacific. There are major displays on the famous Captain Arturo Prat, as well as the romantic figure of Lord Cochrane (nicknamed the 'sea wolf' by Napoleon, one of his admirers). One fascinating display studies the history of voyages around Cape Horn.
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Parque Cultural Ex-Cárcel
The Parque Cultural Ex-Cárcel is a sporadically open former prison, now the hang-out for artists and actors. It is also brightly decorated within, and holds regular gigs and concerts. You will find the oldest building in Valparaíso in its grounds, an old gunpowder storehouse. Take the Ascensor Reina Victoria to get here.
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Plaza Matriz
Valparaíso's historic core, Plaza Matriz is directly uphill from the Mercado Central, where El Plan narrows and the distinctive architecture of the hills begins to take shape. The plaza's major landmark is the Iglesia Matriz, a national monument dating from 1842. It's the fourth church to occupy this site since the construction of the original chapel in 1559.
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Plaza O'Higgins
The Plaza O'Higgins is the site of the Teatro Municipal (Municipal Theater) and hosts one of the city's best antiques market on weekends.
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Plaza Sotomayor
The Plaza Sotomayor is the naval heart of the city, dominated by the impressive blue-colored palatial Edificio de la Comandancia Naval (Naval Command Building). In the middle of the square lies the Monumento a los Héroes de Iquique, a subterranean mausoleum paying tribute to Chile's naval martyrs. The Aduana Nacional (Customs House) and Estación Puerto, the terminal for Merval commuter trains, are also nearby. Muelle Prat, the pier at the foot of Plaza Sotomayor, is a lively place on weekends.
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