Border Crossings
Chile is very strict with regards the importation of animal and plant products which may have the ability to contaminate the natural ecosystem. After a few border crossings, our experience is that the definition of what is prohibited and what not is not clear or uniformly applied but in general the following cannot be brought across a border:
- Meat (frozen or unfrozen)
- Vegetables & Fruit
- Honey
- Muesli
- Nuts and seeds
- Untreated wood
If you are unsure whether you have any prohibited products, it is best to declare that you do have and then when the agricultural officer inspects the vehicle they can determine if it is allowed or not. If it is not, they will confiscate it with no other consequences. If you don’t declare we believe it can result in a fine.
Cellphones & Data
Obtaining a SIM card was relatively straight forward once you find a kiosk or shop that sells them. Initially we tried an actual cellphone operator outlet but they only seem to do devices and monthly contracts. Thereafter we tried many kiosks and small stores until we come right, the main issue for us was we wanted an ENTEL sim and many stores didn’t have that whereas they did have Movitell etc.
We were told ENTEL gives the best coverage in Patagonia and overall we did have good reception.
The prepaid SIM come with a small amount of Data which allowed us connect and then purchase more data online. Unlike in Argentina, Chile (ENTEL at least) accepted a foreign credit card for payment.
VERY IMPORTANT FOR ONGOING USE OF YOUR CELLPHONE: Chile has a requirement that any foreign device connecting to one of their mobile networks be registered within 30 days of first use, if you don’t do this then after 30 days your device will be blocked from use. This only applies to a device into which you insert a Chilean SIM card. Registration is free.
The process to register is a little cumbersome but not overly difficult. Visit www.multibanda.cl and follow the steps. You will need photos of your passport and the page with your Chile entry stamp. You also need a screenshot of your phones IMEI number which you can obtain by dialing *#06# on your phone.