The Teleférico de Santiago began operations in 1980, replacing a funicular that had shuttled pilgrims and sightseers up Cerro San Cristóbal since 1925. Its two-stage cable system spans 800 horizontal metres, lifting passengers from Avenida El Cerro in Providencia to the summit sanctuary at 880 metres above sea level. The lower station sits beneath jacaranda canopy at 580 metres; the mid-station at Tupahue Terrace serves the zoo and amphitheater complex; the upper terminus deposits visitors 60 paces from the 14-metre marble statue of the Virgin Mary, consecrated in 1908 and visible from most eastern Santiago neighbourhoods. On clear winter mornings the Andes fill the frame behind the monument, snow-clad peaks rising another 5,000 metres beyond the city grid. San Cristóbal Hill anchors Parque Metropolitano, Latin America's largest urban park at 722 hectares. The cable car route traverses drought-resistant scrubland — acacia, quillay, and litre bushes — planted during Depression-era reforestation campaigns. Below the gondolas, switchback trails carry runners and cyclists; above, the botanical garden's Chilean palm collection crowds the ridgeline. The teleférico's cabins hold six passengers and depart every 90 seconds during peak hours. Mid-station access connects to the Jardín Japonés, the Pío Nono funicular base, and the National Zoo's native Andean condor aviaries. The summit platform offers 360-degree city views: Costanera Centre's 300-metre Gran Torre Santiago due south, the Mapocho River corridor threading west toward Cerro Santa Lucía, and on exceptional days, the Pacific horizon 100 kilometres distant. The sanctuary's white stone terrace, paved in 1987, hosts open-air mass each December 8. A small chapel interior holds votive candles and colonial-era religious art. Descent options include the cable car return, the eastern funicular to Pedro de Valdivia Norte, or the 3.2-kilometre walking loop via Camino Real, which drops 300 vertical metres through eucalyptus groves to Bellavista's muraled streets.