The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about 7,000 km (4,300 mi) long, about 200 km (120 mi) to 700 km (430 mi) wide (widest between 18 degrees South and 20 degrees South latitude), and of an average height of about 4,000 m (13,000 ft).
Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated by intermediatedepressions. The Andes is the location of several high plateaux – some of which host majorcities such as Quito, Bogotá, Arequipa, Medellín, Sucre, and La Paz.
The so-called Altiplano plateau is the world's second-highest plateau following the Tibetan plateau. The Andes extends to seven countries, in alphabetical order: Argentina, Bolivia,Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, some of which are known as the Andean States.