Viña del Mar is a good place to spend a week's holiday by the sea, enjoying the sun and the beaches. There aren't many monuments to see, and what I liked best was the flower clock near the promenade.
One of the things I like best about the town is the abundance of cheap sushi restaurants.
Viña del Mar is also famous for its music festival calledFestival Internacional de la canción de Viña del Mar. It's held every year in February. I have never been there but have heard lots of good things about it.
Though the cities of Viña del Mar and Valparaiso stand side by side, they are nothing at all alike. In fact the inhabitants of Viña del Mar will warn you against visiting Valparaiso: "a dirty place", "dangerous", "beggars in the streets", etc. One thing is certain: the city of Pablo Neruda does indeed have the swanky high-rise blocks of Viña del Mar right next to it.
Viña del Mar is Chile's best-known coastal resort and has the advantage of being located very close to the country's capital, Santiago. This has made it very popular as a holiday resort with the Chilean people. Even though the water here is glacial (and that's putting it lightly), tourists flock in droves to Playa de Reñaca, which is the beach located in the city's most affluent area. If you don't happen to be much of a sunbathing fan, I recommend having a look around both the Fonk Museum and Quinta Vergara, a stately old house that has been converted into a museum of fine art. In the evening, enjoy an ice-cream as you stroll down Avenida Peru as the sun goes down.
Though Viña del Mar does not have the charm of Valparaiso, it is an ideal place for the whole family to holiday at when visiting Chile.