Guide · Arrival

Punta Arenas airport, and how to get here

Punta Arenas airport is how most trips to the whales, the penguins and Torres del Paine begin. Here are the flights, the airlines, the ride into town and what to know before you land.

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Editorial team, puntaarenaswhalewatching.comUpdated October 22, 20266 min read31 sources

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Quick answer

01Location: 20 km north of the city.¹
02From Santiago: Daily flights of about 3.5 hours.¹
03Airlines: Aerovías DAP, JetSMART, LATAM and Sky.²
04Into town: Bus, taxi or shuttle for the 20 km.³
05Code: PUQ.¹

The airport at the end of the continent

Punta Arenas airport sits 20 km north of the city and has daily flights from Santiago, with connections from Puerto Montt.¹ It is the main gateway to the Magallanes region: from here you reach the whale boats, the penguin islands, the ferries to Tierra del Fuego and the road north to Puerto Natales. Keep your onward plans simple on arrival day, and leave the long excursions for later in the week.

The terminal is run under a public concession. Red Aeroportuaria Austral holds it, owned 70% by Concesionaria de Aeropuertos del Sur and 30% by COINTER Chile, under a public works decree of 22 January 2021.⁴ For a traveler, what matters is the short ride into town and the flights it connects.

The weather station that feeds the climate figures on this site stands at the airport too. Its 1991 to 2020 averages give January a high of 15.3 °C, so even in summer step off the plane with a jacket in your hand luggage.⁵ Wind is the other thing to expect: the city and the strait are known for it, and the airport is no exception.

Arrival day

From Santiago to the strait

Departure

Leave Santiago

About 3.5 hours to Punta Arenas.¹
Landing

PUQ terminal

20 km north of the city.¹
Transfer

Into town

Bus, taxi or shuttle.³
Evening

Prepare

Lay out warm layers for the boat.
Next morning

Whale day

Start at José Nogueira 1255.

Flights to Punta Arenas

Most flights to Punta Arenas come from Santiago. Chile Travel lists direct flights from the capital and seasonal connections to Argentina.³ The airlines named by the airport are Aerovías DAP, JetSMART, LATAM and Sky.²

Domestic routes also link the city with Puerto Montt, which helps if you are traveling down the length of Chile in stages.¹ International visitors usually connect in Santiago, so allow a comfortable layover there, especially if you are checking bags through. If your international flight lands in Santiago in the morning, an afternoon connection south usually makes a smooth day.

Book early for the summer months. December to March is the peak of the humpback season around Isla Carlos III, and it is also the busiest time for travel to Patagonia in general.⁶ Morning arrivals give you time to settle in before an early start on a boat the next day. The long daylight of summer also means you can arrive in the evening and still see the city in daylight.

Travel times

Hours from Punta Arenas, by route

hrs

Approximate times as Chile Travel gives them for each route.¹ ⁷ ⁸ ⁹

Routes

Getting to and from Punta Arenas

Route	How	Time
From Santiago, direct	Direct flight	About 3 h 27 min
From Santiago via Puerto Montt	Flight with a stop	About 4 h 45 min
Airport to the center	Bus, taxi or transfer	20 km
Punta Arenas to Puerto Natales	Bus on Ruta 9	A little over 3 hours
Punta Arenas to King George Island	Expedition flight	About 2 hours

Times and distances as Chile Travel gives them; check your own booking for exact schedules.¹⁰ ³ ¹¹ ⁸

Into town

Three ways from the terminal

On a budget

Shared bus

Shared ride

Distance: 20 km
Best for: Solo travelers
Luggage: Fine

Check the tour

Late arrivals

Taxi

Door to door

Distance: 20 km
Best for: Late arrivals
Luggage: Fine

Check the tour

Day trips

Rental car

Your own schedule

Distance: 20 km
Best for: Day trips
Luggage: Fine

Check the tour

Decision helper

How should you plan your arrival?

A few quick choices

I land late at night I want to explore the coast I go to Torres del Paine first I come from Puerto Montt I want Antarctica too

Take a taxi

The city is only 20 km away.¹

Rent a car

Some reserves have no public transport.¹²

Bus north

Puerto Natales is about 3 hours away.⁷

Fly direct

PUQ has connections from Puerto Montt.¹

Fly from PUQ

Expedition flights take about 2 hours.⁸

Santiago to Punta Arenas

The trip from Santiago to Punta Arenas is a long flight down the spine of the country. Chile Travel puts the nonstop flight at roughly 3 hours 27 minutes, while a stop in Puerto Montt stretches the trip to about 4 hours 45 minutes.¹⁰ Another page of the same board rounds it to about 3.5 hours.¹ Fares vary widely by date, so compare a few days around your plan before booking.

On a clear day the views on the way south are spectacular, with volcanoes, lakes and then the ice fields of Patagonia. Ask for a window seat if the forecast is clear, and watch for the strait on the approach. Bring something warm to wear on board, as cabins can be cool on long flights.

Overland travel from central Chile to Magallanes is a journey of several days, so for a whale-watching holiday the flight is the sensible choice. Use the time you save for a spare day on the strait.

Map

From Punta Arenas to the whales, the penguins and beyond

The strait south of the city to Cabo Froward and Isla Carlos III, the penguin islands and Tierra del Fuego, and the wider south from Torres del Paine to Ushuaia.

Map of the Strait of Magellan south of Punta Arenas with Fuerte Bulnes, the San Isidro lighthouse, Cabo Froward and Isla Carlos III in the western channels — South along the strait

Map of the eastern strait with Punta Arenas, Isla Magdalena and Isla Marta, Porvenir, Parque Pingüino Rey on Bahía Inútil and the Primera Angostura crossing — Penguin islands and Tierra del Fuego

Map of southern Patagonia with Punta Arenas airport, Puerto Natales, Torres del Paine and Ushuaia — Southern Patagonia

1
Punta Arenas
Capital of the Magallanes region, founded in 1848.¹³ ¹⁴
In Google Maps ↗
2
Fuerte Bulnes
Inaugurated in 1843; a national Historic Monument 58 km south of the city.¹⁵ ¹⁶
In Google Maps ↗
3
San Isidro lighthouse
70 km south of Punta Arenas and more than 100 years old.¹⁷
In Google Maps ↗
4
Cabo Froward
Where the American continental landmass ends; the whale boat passes it for 30 minutes.¹⁸
In Google Maps ↗
5
Isla Carlos III
Humpback presence around the island peaks from December to March.⁶
In Google Maps ↗
6
Isla Magdalena
About 7,000 pairs of Magellanic penguins nest here, 35 km northeast of the city.¹⁹ ²⁰
In Google Maps ↗
7
Isla Marta
Sea lions and imperial cormorants; landing is prohibited.²¹ ²²
In Google Maps ↗
8
Porvenir
About 2 hours by ferry from Punta Arenas.⁹
In Google Maps ↗
9
Parque Pingüino Rey
King penguins at Bahía Inútil, 115 km from Porvenir.²³
In Google Maps ↗
10
Primera Angostura
The 20-minute ferry crossing to Tierra del Fuego.²⁴
In Google Maps ↗
11
Punta Arenas airport
20 km north of the city, with daily flights from Santiago.¹
In Google Maps ↗
12
Puerto Natales
About 250 km north of Punta Arenas by paved road.²⁵
In Google Maps ↗
13
Torres del Paine
National park since 1959, 112 km from Puerto Natales to the Sarmiento entrance.²⁶ ²⁷
In Google Maps ↗
14
Ushuaia
293 km beyond the San Sebastián border.²⁸
In Google Maps ↗

Open the map in Google Maps

Checklist

Before you fly south

Book

Flights early for the summer peak
A spare day before your flight home
A hotel near the center

Carry on

A warm jacket
Passport or ID card
A waterproof layer

Video

TRIP REPORT | JetSMART | Airbus A320 | Santiago to Punta Arenas | Economy

The video stays switched off until you hit play.

From the airport into town

The ride into Punta Arenas is short. Chile Travel suggests a bus, a taxi or a transfer for the 20 km to the center.³ Arrange a transfer in advance if you land late, so you are not left waiting in the cold.

Note that the booked whale tour does not include hotel pickup and drop-off; it starts from its office at José Nogueira 1255. Choose a hotel within walking distance of the center if you can, because the whale day starts early and ends late. Look for a room within a few blocks of the main square, close to the tour offices and restaurants.

If your plans begin in the north, you may not need the city at all on the first day. Buses north to Puerto Natales need a little over three hours on Ruta 9.¹¹ Some travelers do Torres del Paine first and come back to Punta Arenas for the whales and penguins before flying home. Coming back south at the end of the trip, the same bus brings you to Punta Arenas in time for an evening in town.

Car rental at Punta Arenas airport

Car rental at Punta Arenas airport makes sense if you want to explore on your own schedule. Several sights near the city are hard to reach without one: Reserva Nacional Magallanes has no regular public transport, so you need a private or rented vehicle.¹² Pick up the car at the airport and you can be on the road north or south within an hour of landing.

A car also opens the coast road south. Fuerte Bulnes lies 58 km south of Punta Arenas, and the lighthouse at San Isidro 70 km.¹⁶ ¹⁷ Heading north, Puerto Natales is about 250 km away on paved road, and Pali Aike National Park is reached by a 168 km concrete road and 28 km of gravel.²⁵ ²⁹

Drive carefully. Distances are long and wind across the open steppe can push a light car around. Rent through a known company, check what the insurance covers on gravel, and keep the tank topped up. Daylight is long in summer, which makes driving easier, but in winter plan to be off the road before dark.

Onward from Punta Arenas

The airport is also a starting point for the far south. From Punta Arenas, expedition flights land at the Teniente Marsh aerodrome at Base Frei Montalva on King George Island in Antarctica; the flight takes about 2 hours and is booked through a tour operator.⁸ The Antarctic tourist season from Chile is concentrated between November and March.³⁰

Tierra del Fuego is closer. The ferry from Punta Arenas to Porvenir crosses the Strait of Magellan in about 2 hours.⁹ For Ushuaia, the road route crosses at Punta Delgada and then runs about 120 km to the San Sebastián border, with Ushuaia 293 km beyond it.²⁸ Ferries and border posts keep their own hours, so check them before you set off.

Whatever comes next, plan your flight home with a margin. Boat trips on the strait depend on the weather, and a cancelled whale day is easier to rebook if you are not flying out that evening. One king penguin tour states plainly that guests should not book a flight or bus on the same night. A buffer day also takes the stress out of connecting flights in Santiago.

Building your days around the flights

A good Punta Arenas itinerary has a soft first day. After a long flight, spend the afternoon on the waterfront and the main square, then sleep early. The whale tour is a 12-hour day, so put it on your second or third morning rather than straight after landing.

Keep the riskiest outings early in the trip. The booked whale day offers free cancellation up to 24 hours before and reserve now, pay later, which makes it easy to move if a forecast looks poor. Penguin trips to Isla Magdalena run from October to mid-April and fill quickly in summer, so book them before you fly.³¹

Finally, leave the last day open. If a boat day was cancelled for wind, that is your second chance; if everything went to plan, it is a day for museums, the cemetery and a last walk by the strait before the 20 km ride back to the airport.¹ Either way, you fly home without a race to the terminal.

Pick your date