Patagonia’s largest city, Punta Arenas is also the regional capital and the traditional port of entry, whether by sea, land, or air. Stretching north–south along the Strait of Magellan, the city boasts an architectural heritage that ranges from the Magellanic vernacular of metal-clad houses with steeply pitched roofs to elaborate Francophile mansions commissioned by 19th-century wool barons. Home to several museums, it’s a good base for excursions to historical sites and nearby penguin colonies.

Punta Arenas’s diverse economy depends on fishing, shipping, petroleum, duty-free retail, and tourism. Historically, it’s one of the main gateways to Antarctica for both research and tourism, but in recent years the Argentine port of Ushuaia has absorbed much of this traffic. Ironically, in a region that grazes millions of sheep, it’s hard to find woolens here because of the influx of artificial fabrics through the duty-free Zona Franca.

Getting There

Punta Arenas has good air and overland connections, and even a few ferries.

By Air: LAN/LanExpress (Bories 884, tel. 061/241232), Sky Airline (Roca 935, tel. 061/710645), Aerolíneas del Sur (Pedro Montt 969, tel. 061/221020), and Aerovías DAP (O’Higgins 891, tel. 061/223340, fax 061/221693, www.aeroviasdap.cl) provide regular air service to Puerto Arenas.

By Bus: Punta Arenas has no central terminal, though some companies share facilities and the Central de Pasajeros (Avenida Colón and Magallanes, tel. 061/245811) sells tickets for all of them. Most terminals are within a few blocks of each other, north of Plaza Muñoz Gamero. Services vary seasonally, with the greatest number of buses in January and February.

The main bus carriers for Puerto Arenas are Bus Sur (José Menéndez 565, tel. 061/227145), Buses Pacheco (Avenida Colón 900, tel. 061/225527, three daily), Buses Transfer (Pedro Montt 966, tel. 061/229613), Queilén Bus (Lautaro Navarro 975, tel. 061/222714), Turibús (Armando Sanhueza 745, tel. 061/227970), Buses Pingüino (Armando Sanhueza 745, tel. 061/221812 or 061/242313), Buses Ghisoni (Lautaro Navarro 975, tel. 061/710329), and Buses Pacheco (Avenida Colón 900, tel. 061/225527).

By Sea: Transbordadora Austral Broom (Avenida Bulnes 05075, tel. 061/218100, www.tabsa.cl) sails from Punta Arenas to Porvenir (2.5 hours) at 9 a.m. daily except Sunday, when sailing time is 9:30 a.m. Adult passengers pay US$7 per person except for the drivers, whose own fare is included in the US$45 charge per vehicle (motorcycles pay US$14). Children cost US$3.50 each. Given limited vehicle capacity, reservations are a good idea on the Melinka, which leaves from Terminal Tres Puentes, at the north end of town but easily accessible by taxi colectivo from the Casa Braun-Menéndez, on Magallanes half a block north of Plaza Muñoz Gamero.

Broom also operates the ferry Cruz Australis to Puerto Williams (32 hours) every Wednesday at 6 p.m., returning Friday at 10 p.m. The fare is US$150 for a bunk, US$120 for a reclining seat.