Valparaíso is a commune and city of Chile, capital of the province and region of Valparaíso. It is the historic, administrative, university and main urban center of the metropolitan area of Valparaiso, which together with the municipalities of Viña del Mar, Quilpué, Villa Alemana and Concón. According to the 2017 census, it has an estimated population of 300,000 people and if its metropolitan area is included, the Great Valparaíso, reaches approximately 952,000, being the second most populated metropolitan area in Chile, behind the Greater Santiago and together with the Great Conception.
Valparaiso is the headquarters of the National Congress, the Commander in Chief of the Chilean Navy and other national State institutions such as the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage, the Undersecretariat of Fisheries, the Customs services and the Fishing and Aquaculture. It is the main port of Chile and one of the most important in the South Pacific. The city is recognized for being a great center of higher education, since some of the most important universities in Chile are established, such as the University of Valparaíso, Federico Santa María Technical University, Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso and University of Playa Ancha or UPLA. Geographically, the city is presented in the form of a large natural amphitheater, located in the homonymous bay and surrounded by hills, where most of the population lives, between the foot of the hills and the sea the Plan is formed, administrative, commercial and financial center of the city. While the border is occupied by the port.
Due to its architectural wealth developed mainly at the end of the 19th century, in 2003 its historic center was declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco, becoming the third Chilean site protected by the international organization, after the Rapa Nui National Park and 16 churches of Chiloé.