Chile has increased its preference as a tourist destination in the last 4 years

• 52% of respondents say they "have references of Chile and would like to visit it". The country has also increased its perception as a safe destination.
• Among the cities surveyed, Shanghai showed the most interest, with 81%, followed by Sao Paulo (74%) and New Delhi (69%).

With a 10% increase in preferences, Chile reached 52% of travel intentions among the main destinations in South America during 2024, only surpassed by Argentina and Brazil. The data comes from the Longitudinal Study of Priority Markets conducted by the Fundación Imagen de Chile, which analyzed responses from people in Sao Paulo, Mexico City, New York, Seoul, Lima, London, Berlin, Paris, Madrid, Shanghai, Tokyo, New Delhi and Dubai, defined as priority markets.

Regarding the desire to visit the country in the next five years, Chile had the largest positive variation in preference since 2020, going from 42% to 52% in 2024, and only 3% behind the leaders in travel intention, Brazil and Argentina.

"Chile is advancing in its positioning as a leading destination in South America, sustained by its incredible landscapes, its diverse and lively culture, its gastronomy and its people. We are an amazing and unique route, but we must work harder to make ourselves known. That is what we are working on at Imagen de Chile, together with the Undersecretary of Tourism and Sernatur," said Rossana Dresdner, executive director of Imagen de Chile .

Travel intention and main barriers

When asked about the intention to travel to Latin America in the 13 markets surveyed, the Chinese city of Shanghai was the one that declared the greatest interest in visiting Chile, with 81%. This was followed by Sao Paulo (74%) and New Delhi (69%).

"We view the case of Shanghai with special interest, not only because it is the one that declares the most interest, but also because China has shown increasing favorability towards our country, something that is also seen in the press coverage of that country towards us," Dresdner added.

Distance remains the main barrier to visiting our country, rising from 29% in 2020 to 39% in 2024. On the other hand, the perception of safety in Chile has improved notably in the last four years, dropping from 22% in 2020 to 14% in 2024.