Santiago

Considering the cost of living is generally higher than other cities in South America, high quality, modern apartments still represent good value in Santiago with the price for a one bed apartment similar if not lower to what you may expect to pay in say Bogotá or Lima.

For under £900 on Airbnb, you should be able to find a decent one-bedroom apartment. The prices for accommodation appear to drop the further west you venture towards Estación Central, but your attention will likely be drawn to the opposite side of the city, making any savings on cost unwise.

I stayed at the Concepto Best Site - Imagina apartment block, which was clean and well-managed, but I'd advise against the location in the Centro Histórico, which I'll expand on further.

Even though temperatures can reach 30 degrees during summer, air conditioning is not commonplace in residential units, which you may want to take into consideration if intending on working from home.

There are a reasonable number of coworking options across Santiago, with most of the quality options concentrated close to the Tobalaba station in Providencia.

Chile is one of the more expensive countries within South America, and the cost of living in Santiago is, unsurprisingly, the highest in the country. Where I really found a difference between other cities on the continent was in the cost of eating out. Whilst in Lima, Medellín and Bogotá, there were numerous options around the £5-6 mark for a casual, informal local lunch or dinner, there were markedly fewer options in Santiago.

The Chinese restaurants, which can be found all across the city and are particularly abundant in the Centro Histórico, fill out the bottom end of the market but generally bear no resemblance to what you would traditionally expect from the cuisine and aren't appealing prospects for daily dining.

The prices of groceries, especially imported items, again felt particularly steep, and the cost of goods from international brands such as Starbucks and McDonald's felt like they matched or often exceeded what you would expect in parts of Europe. Given salaries are, on average, significantly lower than those in much of Europe, many of these inflated costs didn't quite stack up.

On the contrary, domestically produced wine was exceptionally good value, the metro costs under 60p a ride, and Ubers are generally inexpensive for travel across the city.

If you are just visiting for a couple of nights on holiday, then this should not deter you. Santiago will almost certainly be better value than where you are coming from. But if you are planning a longer trip and intending to eating out regularly, it feels noticeably worse value than other cities in the region.

Where you opt to stay in Santiago will dramatically affect your perception of the city. The downtown area is unquestionably the liveliest part, but after spending two weeks there, it's hard to imagine anyone travelling halfway around the world for what it offers.

The upscale residential areas of Las Condes and Vitacura, while clean, safe and modern, lack any distinctive character or Chilean identity and, depending on where you stay, could feasibly make you reliant on a car or Uber.

When compared to its neighbour, I found that Lima's Miraflores and Barranco districts together offered the right balance between modern amenities and local culture. Despite exploring Santiago extensively, I couldn't find a comparable area that would draw me in for a longer stay.