Shopping

Shopping at Termas de Chillan and Nevados de Chillan is very limited. There are more shops located in the town of Las Trancas, but these are small and they don’t provide much variety.

Nevados de Chillan Ski Shops The best ski shop is at the Gran Hotel. The store is medium sized selling outerwear from Salomon and a brand called Tsunami. The range of jackets and pants is large by Chile standards, but the choice is still limited. The shop also sells various ski accessories, but once again, the choice is limited. No hardwear or boots are sold at the shop. For international guests staying at the resort, any goods charged to your hotel room are not subject to tax.

Up at the main Nevados de Chillan base there is a small La Bolsa Del Ski shop. The shop is so small that the chances of finding what you’re after are also small.

There are lots of little ski shops in Las Trancas. They are mostly rental shops but they generally have a little retail area as well. The range is very limited and the ski or board clothing brands are unfamiliar to gringoes. The Rossignol shop is an exception to this. The Test Center Powder Chile is a small shop selling second hand demos skis as well as new skis. God forbid, they even sell fat skis, an amazing rarity in Chile.

Just before the unpaved road up the hill there are a series of roadside huts selling a colourful array of inferior gloves, beanies, scarves, toboggans, snow-bikes, headbands, and goggles. They might even have a 2nd hand snowboard or two for sale, and don’t be surprised if the salesmen are standing out on the road trying to selling their wares.

Souvenir and General Shopping In addition to various bits of junk that the roadside huts try to sell, there are real Termas de Chillan souvenirs available at the shop at the Gran Hotel. There are lots of different ways to boast about your visit to Nevados de Chillan with mugs, caps, shot glasses and polar fleece tops.

There is also a tiny boutique at the Nevados de Chillan selling jewellery, hats and scarves.

Grocery Shopping For those staying in one of the apartments at Nevados de Chillan, it’s probably best to stock up on groceries at one of the many super-mercados in Chillan. As an alternative there is a mini market in Las Trancas and a mini market near the base of Nevados de Chillan. There are only very basic groceries available at these mini-markets.