Muelle Prat is the small passenger pier at the edge of Plaza Sotomayor, where lanchas (small wooden motorboats) depart for half-hour tours of the harbour. Valparaíso is one of the most important ports in South America — a vast complex of container terminals, grain elevators, and drydocks that processes a significant fraction of Chile's imports and exports. Seeing it from the water puts the city's hills and painted houses in their proper context: this is, first and foremost, a port city.
The harbour tours run throughout the day when there are enough passengers; the cost is very low. The boats pass close to container ships, cruise vessels, and occasionally naval ships from the Chilean Navy's base here. The view back toward the hills from the water, with the funiculars climbing the slopes and the murals visible on the house facades, is one of the classic perspectives of Valparaíso. Boats also run across to Viña del Mar's port area.