Chilean coverage runs down the entire length of Chile. It starts at the Atacama Desert and stretches down towards Tierra del Fuego. The easiest way to identify Chile is to pan down. Chile’s environment can be divided into three sections. In the north of the country, is the Atacama Desert. This area is sandy, undulating, without vegetation and very dry looking. The central part of Chile, around Santiago, is more Mediterranean looking. It has plentiful grass, a low to moderate amount of trees and looks rather picturesque. The southern part of Chile, reaching down towards Tierra del Fiego, is cold, lacking any vegetation other than short grass and is essentially featureless. The houses in this southern section are colourful, wooden and normally have corrugated iron roofs. The Andes Mountain range runs right along the entire east side of the country. A good tell that you are in Chile is that mountains are to your east. A unique feature of Chile is that it is essentially the only place in South America that doesn’t use yellow road lines. Most Chilean roads have white lines which can make Chile easier to detect. Chile only uses yellow lines sparingly within the southern part of the country near snowfall. Out of the South American countries, only Argentina rarely has white central lines but the other countries typically don’t. Chilean utility poles are unique looking and have a vertically running indent and a number of small, drilled holes near the top of the pole. Chile stands out if you pan down. Chile stands out in South America as its roads have a white middle line across most of the country. This contrasts the yellow middle lines of the rest of South America. There are some caveats- southern Chile, where it snows, has yellow lines. Also, small parts of Argentina have a white middle line. If you see a continuous (as opposed to dashed) white, centre line in South America, you must be in Chile. The far south of Chile, where it snows, has yellow road lines. This contrasts the white middle lines found across the rest of Chile. Northern Chile is home to the Atacama Desert. It features sandy landscapes and undulating land. Central Chile, around Santiago, is fairly green and Mediterranean looking. Due to the Andes flanking the eastern border of Chile, you will often see mountains to the east of you. There are a number of unpaved roads in Chile. Chile is renowned for having lots of planted forests, especially in the region south of Santiago. These forests feature the same trees of roughly the same size, in a grid formation. Chilean utility poles have an indent that runs up the pole. Additionally to the indent, there is a column of small, vertically aligned drilled holes near the top of Chilean utility poles. Chilean road signs are held on these thin poles that remind me of paddle pop sticks (Popsicle sticks). Houses in central Chile are more likely to have terracotta tiled roofs. Houses in the south of Chile tend to be wooden, painted a range of bright colours and have slanting roofs made from corrugated iron. These bus stop shelters are found right across Chile. Surprisingly, you will often see them in heavily rural areas and they can be a great way to confirm that you are indeed in Chile. National roads in Chile are the major roads that run throughout the country. They are called ‘Ruta’ and commonly feature the letter ‘R’ prior to the road number (as pictured). National road number 5 is the longest road in Chile. It begins near the Peruvian border and runs right down to Quellon. Roads to the west of National road 5 are generally even numbered and roads to the east are generally odd numbered. National roads in Chile can also be referred to simply as ‘Ruta’. This shield shape denotes Chilean National roads on the map. The shield shape is also commonly seen on signs in Chile denoting a National road. Using local roads in Chile is one of the best ways to pinpoint. Local roads in Chile will begin with a letter from ‘A’ through to ‘Y’ followed by a dash and a number. The letter informs you of where in Chile you are located. The further south you travel, the further in the alphabet the local roads are named. ‘A’ roads occur in the north of the country. As you progress south, sequentially the letters increase from B, C, D…. until Y roads in the very south of Chile. For example if I see a Chilean road beginning with ‘S’, I will look towards the south of the country. The number following the local road letter is also relevant. Local roads to the west of National road 5 are generally even numbered and local roads to the east of National road 5 are generally odd numbered. 

Chilean road lines are either all white, or all yellow:

All white road lines are most common. Within the Americas, they are a good clue for Chile, though not completely unique.

All yellow road lines are seen in National Parks or areas of high snowfall. Within the Americas, these all yellow road lines are essentially unique to Chile.

You will almost never see a combination of the two colours, apart from a few rare exceptions.

It is important to note that Argentina has a decent amount of roads with all white road lines.

Chile uses square concrete poles with an indent on both sides. They are somewhat similar to Brazilian poles, however have fewer horizontal supports in the indent. The upper part typically has small pinholes.

Wooden poles are also fairly common.

Regular vehicles have white licence plates, while commercial and taxi vehicles have orange plates.

Orange plates can also be seen in Ecuador. Brazilian commercial plates are red, but can look similar in some lighting.

Slots can often be seen at the top of signposts.

Chilean bollards are similar to Spanish style bollards, with a white reflector at the front and a yellow-orange reflector at the back. They are not super common.

While regular bollards are somewhat rare in Chile, you may sometimes find this orange, temporary bollard, with two white stripes at the top.

Bridges in Chile often have red painted fence posts.

Chile is very unique. It’s the only country in South America that uses a white divider line. However, this changes in the south where the centreline is yellow and in Tierra del Fuego, where all lines are yellow (for visibility during snow).

Road Signs:

Most signs use a blue background with white text. Its also clearly in Spanish.

The other version of this is the Green sign with white text. These do exist and can be right next to some of the blue signs!

Road Numbering System:

Chile has national and local roads. The local road numbers follow a pattern – the letters in front of the number go alphabetically from A-Y from the north to the south of the country. More info: Chile Road Numbering System

Electricity poles:

These poles are larger at the base and taper to a point at the top of the pole. It feels like the light itself is barely attached to the top of the pole.
Its important to note that these are not the only one, but this tapered pole is very common. Keep an eye out for it!

License Plates:

Its clear that these plates are generally different from the surrounding countries.

General Look:

The general look above is from the Tierra del Fuego. Its pretty unique and easy to tell where you are.

This general look is from the North of the Country. The Further north, the more of a desert feel. The further south you go, the greener the area becomes.
