Chile's national zoo occupies the lower slopes of Cerro San Cristóbal, inside the Parque Metropolitano. The collection focuses heavily on South American fauna — Andean condors, guanacos, pumas, tapirs, vicuñas — alongside the standard international collection. The setting is excellent: the enclosures are carved into the hillside and the zoo walks feel like trails through hilly terrain rather than flat concrete avenues.
The condor enclosure is the highlight. The Andean condor — with a wingspan of up to 3.3 metres, the largest soaring bird in the world — is here in numbers large enough to give a real impression of the animal's scale. It is a significant conservation programme: the species is endangered and the zoo is part of the captive breeding effort. Open Tuesday to Sunday; separate from the Parque Metropolitano entrance, so there is a zoo admission fee.