Just when you think you have come to the end of the earth, a magnificent city appears before your eyes. It is Punta Arenas (“sand point”), whose coloured houses and roofs happily punctuate the winter snow and point up the intense blue of this southern sea.
The surrounding area provides endless places to visit and marvel at. They range from dramatic sites like Fuerte Bulnes (Fort Bulnes) and Puerto del Hambre (Hunger Port) to delicate and seductive spots like Magdalena Island and the location on the gulf known as Seno Otway to which over 6,000 Magellanic penguins flock.
For centuries, Punta Arenas has been a haven for sailors from around the globe. The first arrived innocently in search of new trading routes and opportunities. Later comers knew that they would face the famous fury of Cape Horn. Those who survived it would find themselves in the Strait of Magellan, a 583-kilometre canal linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and separating the American continent from Tierra del Fuego.
