Tindall's Guide to the Best of Chile [Paperback]

Margaret Kelly Tindall (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1999

This book is designed to provide both practical and interesting information for the inquisitive traveler to Chile. The term "best" does not necessarily mean the most expensive. Traveling from one ultra expensive hotel to another requires little imagination. The term "best" as used in this guide includes a range of criteria including most representative, most charming, greatest value, best available, most Chileno, and similar considerations. The recommendations in this book have been carefully researched and, with few exceptions, personally inspected by the author. Each destination is organized to provide information on the practical "Getting Around,:" followed by principal sights, "Of Monumental Importance,: followed by information on daytime and nighttime activities, "Roamin' Around Town," and then personal suggestions for hotels and restaurants. Maps are minimal as local maps are free and always available. This is not a history book on Chile nor a political analysis of the Allende and Pinochet years. The Chile I write about is embracing the new world economics, and globalization, and is rapidly moving beyond the civil unrest of the '70s and '80s. I am certain that travelers to Chile will also embrace the charm of this country.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Upon graduation from Emory University in 1995 with a major in Spanish, I had the privilege of living and studying in Chile. During that time I traveled the length of that country, exploring the mountains, the beaches, the deserts, and the cities. I soon found myself falling in love with Chile, with her people, culture, and incredible landscape. At the same time, I was not very satisfied with the available guidebooks and believed that most guides failed to appreciate the beauty and true essence of the country that I had experienced as a visitor. I was determined to write an entirely new guide to capture what I had witnessed and enjoyed. This book has taken three years to complete. Time for reflection, return trips to Chile for further research, writer's fatigue, and rejuvenation were all part of the journey to completion of the final product.

Product Details

• Paperback: 237 pages
• Publisher: Herring Press (October 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 091700115X
• ISBN-13: 978-0917001154
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,992,369 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical advice for a great adventure in Chile, March 21, 2000

By 

Scott and Kelli Parsons (Murray, KY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tindall's Guide to the Best of Chile (Paperback)

This book captures the real spirit of Chile. The author invested time and energy in learning Chile from the inside. From colorful characters to tasty wines, she shares her genuine appreciation for the country and its people. We found the book to be accurate and informative. We especially enjoyed the wine lover's guide--a virtual wine class--refreshing and useful in navigating the complexities of Chilean wines. Tindall provides personal recommendations in categories ranging from sports activities to favorite restaurants frequented by locals. She replaces typical "tourist traps" with sound advice for enjoying an authentic journey to a fascinating land.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Disappointment!, November 27, 2000

By 

[e-mail] (Rocklin (Sacramento), CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tindall's Guide to the Best of Chile (Paperback)

I received this book as a gift and it was the only guidebook I had in Chile. Boy! Was that a mistake! Tindall's book is extremely limited in scope. It only covers major cities and regions so if you go off track, you are left with nothing to refer to. And what I mean by off-track is essentially if you are driving off Ruta 5, the main highway in the country. If you go on Ruta 2, for instance to the coast from Temuco to get a feel of some of the Mapuche Indian culture in cities like Nueva Imperial, Carahue, Victoria, Chol Chol, etc. you were out of luck.

I can understand the author wanted to take a different approach and not drown the potential tourist with too much information. So she made a point of focusing on the really best of the country. But frankly, that's not enough for me.

Additionally, my friend and I found that despite the fact the the book has a copyright of October 1999, some of the recommendations are already out of date. For instance, in Valdivia, only one of five Artesan stores she listed even existed anymore. In Osorno, her recommendation of Casa del Altillo as a place to eat good French food no longer existed. It is now Bell'Italia amd serves Italian cuisine.

We were there in the off season, (November) and found that even her listed high season prices for rooms in many cities were way off and the hotels and other lodging recommended were much more expensive than the author quoted. We got the idea these hotels knew they were listed in American guidebooks and had therefore recently raised prices for American tourists. Fortunately, my friend is a Santiagan so she was able to get better prices for being a Chilean.

I did find the author's guide to Chilean wine extremely good and found it to be a godsend when we were in a restaurant and were not familiar with the wine names.

So I guess my recommendation would be: Don't do what I did. If you get the Tindall Guide, you definitely need to supplement it with another guidebook that's more comprehensive. That way you'll be covered if you want to do anything that's the least bit out of the normal for a typical tourist.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tindall's Chile, July 7, 2000

By 

ela acosta (Houston, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tindall's Guide to the Best of Chile (Paperback)

This is a well written portrayal of the country, people, wines and food of Chile. I found this book to be most helpful in planning my trip and was pleased with the author's choice of accomodations while visiting. It was entertaining and easy to read -- the information was well-organized. I would highly recommend this to anyone planning a trip to Chile.