Urban center located at the shore of the Strait of Magellan, in Brunswick peninsula, latitude 53º 08' degrees south and longitude 70º 55' degrees west. Punta Arenas, city capital of the Magallanes region and the Chilean Patagonia, was named originally Punta Arenosa, a literal translation of the English name "Sandy Point", given to this small place visited on 18th Century by John Byron and founded in 1848, to become the urban city from which is born the business, cultural and social development which would spread until covering the whole Magellan territory.




At Punta Arenas is possibleto do excursions to main tourism attractions of the region. Resources are mostly natural beauties which may be visited by land, sea or air. There is a range of possibilities, programmed tours by some local travel agencies, but also the opportunity of organizing private travels according to each interest. For it Magallanes has indescribable beauties, resides the attraction of visiting the southern city of the continent up to Antarctic territory.

From PuntaArenas is possible to run the roads to Otway Sound (km. 70 north), a place of tourism and scientific attraction, where is a penguin colony ob about 6,000 individuals of the Magellan species such as Aptenodytes Forsteri, Spheniscus Magellanicus, Pygoscelis Adeliae, Aptenodytes Patagonicus.

The road toRio Verde and Skyring Sound is also attractive for sport fishermen and in general as for a ride watching a varied fauna, specially rheas, condors, swans and flamingoes. This rural area of beautiful landscapes has an assorted offer of agro tourism.

South ofPunta Arenas it is possible follow the central coastline of Brunswick peninsula on the history route by excellence. By it went past some time conquistadores, natives, colonists and pioneers. The same road goes to places like Fuerte Bulnes and Port Famine, loaded with legendary memories.

Text: SERNATUR