Punta Arenas

No reviews yetCity Region of Magallanes, Chile

Avenida Cristóbal Colón, Punta Arenas, Magallanes, Chile, Punta Arenas, Region of Magallanes, Chile

Punta Arenas con nieve, Punta Arenas, Region of Magallanes, Chile

Hotel plaza Plaza Muñoz Gamero punta arenas 2018 11 13 3, Punta Arenas, Region of Magallanes, Chile

Punta Arenas (3), Emilio Kovacevich street, Punta Arenas, Region of Magallanes, Chile

About Punta Arenas

Punta Arenas faces the Strait of Magellan with the wind at its back and Tierra del Fuego on the horizon. Founded in 1848 as a Chilean settlement on the strait, it became one of the great ports of the far south, and the wool boom of the late 19th century filled it with French-style mansions, merchant houses and a cemetery grand enough for a European capital.

The city remembers that era proudly. The palaces of the Braun and Menéndez families now hold a club and a regional museum, the Salesian museum tells the story of the Selk'nam, Kawésqar and Yagán peoples, and full-size replicas of Magellan's Nao Victoria and Darwin's Beagle stand by the shore. A climb to the Cerro de la Cruz viewpoint shows the colourful roofs running down to the water.

Punta Arenas is also a gateway: boats leave for the penguin colony on Magdalena Island, flights connect to Antarctica and Puerto Williams, and buses run north to Puerto Natales and Torres del Paine. Pack layers, because the weather can change several times in one day.

Best seasonNovember to March, the southern summer, when days are long and the penguins are on Magdalena Island

Ideal stay2-3 days

ArrivingFlights to Presidente Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Airport from Santiago and Puerto Montt; buses from Puerto Natales

12 Ways to Experience Punta Arenas

Landmarks 3

Plaza Muñoz Gamero

The leafy main square of Punta Arenas is ringed by the mansions of the wool era, including the Sara Braun palace, and centred on a...

Palacio Sara Braun

Built at the turn of the 20th century for Sara Braun, one of the wealthiest figures of the wool boom, this French-designed mansion...

Cementerio Municipal Sara Braun

Often called one of the most beautiful cemeteries in South America, this municipal cemetery is laid out with avenues of clipped cy...

Museums 3

Museo Regional de Magallanes

Set in the Palacio Braun-Menéndez, a mansion built for Mauricio Braun and Josefina Menéndez, this museum keeps the original rooms...

Museo Salesiano Maggiorino Borgatello

Run by the Salesian order, which played a large and controversial role in the region's missions, this museum holds extensive colle...

Nao Victoria Museum

North of the centre along the strait, this open-air museum displays full-size replicas of historic vessels you can climb aboard, i...

Viewpoints 2

Cerro de la Cruz Viewpoint

A few blocks uphill from the centre, this mirador offers the classic view of Punta Arenas: a patchwork of coloured tin roofs slopi...

Costanera del Estrecho

The seafront avenue runs along the Strait of Magellan with a walking and cycling path, sculptures and old piers where cormorants a...

Wildlife 1

Magdalena Island

In the Strait of Magellan north-east of the city, Magdalena Island is protected as the Los Pingüinos Natural Monument and hosts a...

Nature 1

Reserva Nacional Magallanes

Just west of the city, this national reserve protects forests of lenga and coigüe beech with hiking trails, viewpoints over the st...

History 1

Fuerte Bulnes

South of the city along the strait, this wooden fort recreates the settlement Chile founded in 1843 to claim the Strait of Magella...

Shopping 1

Zona Franca Punta Arenas

Punta Arenas has a large duty-free zone on the north side of the city, with a shopping mall and warehouses selling electronics, ou...

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