Guided Tour of Punta Arenas and Fort Bulnes

We began our excursion by presenting an introduction to the place where we are geographically to explain regarding the history of the place and how the landscape was formed that we can see today when large ice sheets covered Patagonia

Also known as the Strait Park, it was founded in 1843 when the government of the time showed special interest in the Strait of Magellan and surrounding lands. An hour of driving will take us south out of Punta Arenas where we begin to observe the landscape relief, beautiful scenery formed by waters of the Strait of Magellan, Tierra del Fuego Island and Dawson Island, important in our history as well. We will pass by small settlements where families from Punta Arenas have decided to build interesting places that were originally destined for weekend resting places but that each time extended their stays for the beauty of the landscape and the environment. This excursion also gives us the opportunity to do bird watching. Once at the Fort we will take a historical tour and for those who wish we will visit a viewpoint where we access after walking amid the native flora.

One of the most interesting places for those interested in learning or perhaps remembering what they explained to them as children at school. We will present the maritime history from the beginning of time as well as by explorers who through time have been plying seas until passing through this important Strait before the opening of the Panama Canal making it the must pass so as to avoid surrounding Cape Horn considered a cemetery of boats from different places of the world where today there is a monument to the albatross that honors all who tried to cross without the fortune of surviving the terrible climatic conditions that characterize it.

Considered a National Monument with great pride the Magellanics explain to those who visit us is listed among the most beautiful on the planet. A tour between the beautiful cypress avenues and the combination of mausoleums can give the traveler the opportunity to take beautiful souvenir images. The wide combination of nationalities shows what was the beginning of the city of Sandy Point, later translated to Punta Arenas turned into a cosmopolitan city with people from different places in the world with newspapers published in different languages for the resident colony in the early 1900s.

One of the must-see attractions for every traveler is the visit to the Nao Victoria museum with life-size replicas of very important vessels in our maritime history such as being one of the five vessels of Hernando de Magellan’s expedition, the Nao Victoria. Fast forward in time and we find a jewel in navigation the Beagle a type of boat of the Cherokee category known for its navigation, built with the purpose of exploring and recovering data of flora, fauna, geology and the tribes originating in Patagonia. Fast forward to see the James Caird boat built by Ernest Shackleton's crew fascinating story that we will talk about during the tour only to leave you more excited about this beautiful Patagonia that can be said so much. Finally the replica of the Goleta Ancud built in this town of Chile to come and take possession of the Strait of Magellan in 1843

Returning to the pier we make the last of the stops for a tour around the monument to the discoverer of the Canal de Todos los Santos named after Hernando de Magallanes in whose honor it is later named as Strait of Magellan. An interesting explanation related to the type of construction of the buildings in this square, many of them neoclassical style built by French architects to be residences of wealthy families of the Region such as the Braun Palace in one of the corners of our square or the Montes Palace where today is the Illustrious Municipality of Punta Arenas