Planning Your Time

Like the rest of southern South America, Tierra del Fuego [1] and Chilean Patagonia deserve all the time you can give them, but most visitors have to make choices. On Tierra del Fuego, Ushuaia [2] is the best sightseeing base, given its access to the nearby Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego [3], the Beagle Channel [4], and Estancia Harberton [5], with a minimum of three days. Hikers may wish to spend several days more, and fly-fishing aficionados—who prefer the vicinity of Río Grande [6]—can easily stay a week or two.

Exploring Chile’s thinly populated sector requires a vehicle, or even an airplane—connections to Puerto Williams [7], though it’s not far from Ushuaia as the crow flies, can be haphazard except by commercial flights from Punta Arenas [8]. Once you’re there, it takes at least a week to hike the Dientes circuit.

On the Chilean mainland, Punta Arenas can be a sightseeing base, but usually only for a day or two; for those who haven’t seen Magellanic penguins elsewhere, it’s worth boating to Isla Magdalena [9]. Punta Arenas is also the home port for the spectacular shuttle cruise to Ushuaia and back via Tierra del Fuego’s remotest fjords and Cape Horn [10], usually done in a three- or four-day segment. Based on an island in the western Strait of Magellan, summer whale-watching is attracting a small but growing public on three-day excursions.

Puerto Natales [11], the urban gateway to Torres del Paine [12], is primarily a place to prepare for trekking, but its seaside setting, youthful exuberance, and nearby hiking excursions often extend the stay. Parque Nacional Torres del Paine deserves no less than a week, for day-hikers and overnight trekkers alike, but even a day trip is worth the trouble.

Another attraction is the five-night, four-day Skorpios III cruise [13] through the Parque Nacional Bernardo O’Higgins.