landmark
Fuerte Bulnes
A reconstructed 1843 timber stockade on a bluff over the Strait of Magellan, the fort by which Chile claimed the strait. The road there runs south toward the continent's southern tip.
52 km · about 60 min drive
Region of Magallanes, Chile · South America
Punta Arenas sits on the route: 45 minutes from Porvenir, 52km from Fuerte Bulnes.
Punta Arenas is a city located in Region of Magallanes, Chile. With a population of 117,430, it is an important destination in South America.
On a road trip, Punta Arenas sits in Chile, where you drive on the right. It's in the America/Punta Arenas time zone. Below you'll find where to stay, things to do nearby, and everything you need to add Punta Arenas to your route.
Punta Arenas (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈpunta aˈɾenas], historically known as Sandy Point in English) is the capital city of Chile's southernmost region, Magallanes and Antarctica Chilena. Although the city officially was renamed Magallanes in 1927, its name was changed back to Punta Arenas in 1938. The city is theRead more
largest south of the 46th parallel south and the most populous southernmost city in Chile and the Americas. Due to its location, it is also the coldest coastal city with more than 100,000 inhabitants in Latin America. Punta Arenas is one of the world's most southerly ports and serves as an Antarctic gateway city. Punta Arenas is the world's southernmost city with more than 100,000 inhabitants and claims the title of southernmost city in the world, although that title is also claimed by Ushuaia in Argentina, which lies farther south but is slightly smaller than Punta Arenas.
Since 1977, Punta Arenas has been one of only two free ports in Chile, the other being Iquique in the country's far north. Located on the Brunswick Peninsula north of the Strait of Magellan, Punta Arenas was originally established by the Chilean government in 1848 as a small penal colony to assert sovereignty over the Strait. During the remainder of the 19th century, Punta Arenas grew in size and importance due to increasing maritime traffic to the west coasts of South and North America. The city's growth was also due to waves of European immigrants, mainly from Croatia and Russia, attracted by a gold rush, and sheep farming boom in the 1880s and early 20th century. The largest sheep company, which controlled 10,000 square kilometres in Chile and Argentina, was based in Punta Arenas, and its owners lived there.
Since its founding, Chile has used Punta Arenas as a base to defend its sovereignty claims in the southernmost part of South America. That led to the Strait of Magellan being recognized as Chilean territory in the Boundary Treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina. Punta Arenas' geopolitical importance has remained high in the 20th and 21st centuries due to its logistic significance in accessing the Antarctic Peninsula.
Since 2017, the city and its region have been on their own time zone, using summer time throughout the year (UTC−3). The city is supplied with water from the San Juan River.
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Punta Arenas is located in Region of Magallanes, Chile, South America. The coordinates are -53.1628 latitude, -70.9092 longitude.
Punta Arenas has a population of approximately 117,430 people, making it a city in Chile.
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1 notable place within an hour's drive.
landmark
A reconstructed 1843 timber stockade on a bluff over the Strait of Magellan, the fort by which Chile claimed the strait. The road there runs south toward the continent's southern tip.
52 km · about 60 min drive
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