Lighthouse of La Serena, Historical lighthouse in La Serena, Chile

The Lighthouse of La Serena stands on Avenida del Mar, a white tower with red-trimmed windows rising from a walled compound with red battlements, a dark wooden double door reached by red steps, and two small turrets with red domed roofs. Its three levels combine a lighthouse with a colonial fort: access stairways, crenellated bastions, a cannon aimed at the Pacific, and a lantern reached by a metal stair.

The lighthouse was built between 1950 and 1951 at the request of President Gabriel González Videla as part of his Plan Serena, an urban renewal programme for the city. It was designed by Ramiro Pérez Arce and directed by civil engineer Jorge Cisternas Larenas. In April 1953 it was handed over to the authorities, and on 24 October 1953 Mayor Juan Cortés Alcayaga inaugurated it; its lighting system was later removed. On 9 June 2010 it was declared a National Monument for its neocolonial style.

The lighthouse carries the dual identity of a beacon and coastal fortress in local memory. Today it stands as a symbol of the city's maritime heritage and modernization efforts from the mid-20th century.

The building can be reached on foot from La Serena's bus terminal by walking down Francisco de Aguirre Avenue. It is best to walk during daylight hours when the surroundings are clearly visible and other pedestrians are about.

The enclosed room on the first level was built to hold a weapons museum, and a large cannon still points toward the Pacific. The tower's lighting system was removed after its 1953 inauguration, so it survives on nautical charts as a landmark rather than an active beacon.