A sea­side resort town locat­ed two hours north of the cap­i­tal city of San­ti­a­go, Zapal­lar has long been known as the beach play­ground for Chile’s elite. Luck­i­ly for vis­i­tors, the beach­es here are pub­lic – and while you can­not pic­nic, pitch a tent, or have a bon­fire on the sand, you can sun­bathe to your heart’s con­tent on the soft gold­en sands.

The beach­es in Zapal­lar run along steep hills cov­ered in trees. The enclosed horse­shoe bay cre­ates a qui­et loca­tion to just sit back and enjoy the lull of the waves against the shore­line. There are no high ris­es here, no noisy cafés or restau­rants, and only a cou­ple of low-key bed and break­fasts where you can spend the night. A walk on the town’s ram­bla (stone walk­way) will give you an open view over the man­sions sit­ting high up on the hills.