Resting in a valley surrounded by the snow-capped Andes and the Chilean Coast Range, Chile’s vibrant, cosmopolitan, the capital city of Santiago is famous for its beautiful parks, a wealth of historical attractions, and exciting arts and music scenes. The Cerro San Cristobal Park, the largest green space in the city, lies on a hill and is reached by a funicular ride. It offers visitors stunning sweeping views of the city, as well as a picturesque botanical garden and two huge swimming pools. The colonial Plaza de Armas, in the old town centre, is a delight to explore with its numerous Neoclassical buildings and museums, most notably the home-turned-museum of renowned poet Pablo Neruda. Visitors can also look forward to wonderful live shows, concerts and exhibitions.
Torres del Paine National Park is a Chilean National Park comprising mountains, glaciers, lakes and rivers. The Cordillera del Paine is the centrepiece of the park. It lies in a transition area between the Magellanic sub-polar forests and the Patagonian Steppes. The park is located 112 km north of Puerto Natales and 312 km north of Punta Arenas. Bernardo O'Higgins National Park is its neighbour to the west, while Los Glaciares National Park is located to the north in Argentine territory.
With its dramatic blue glaciers, vibrant forests, cascading waterfalls, aquamarine lakes, mighty rivers and towering jagged peaks, Chile’s Southern Patagonia is widely considered to be the final frontier of travel with some of the last truly untouched natural areas on earth. The heart of this sparsely populated and ruggedly beautiful area is the Torres del Paine National Park, featuring a massif crowned with otherworldly horn-shaped peaks, surrounded by pristine lowlands where the huaso countrymen, or baqueano, practice age-old cattle herding traditions. Whether you are keen to hike through rugged landscapes, see penguins by the thousands, or horseback ride across the breathtakingly beautiful steppe, Chilean Patagonia is an ideal destination for travellers seeking an unforgettably wild and impossibly scenic adventure.
The southernmost continental city in the world situated on the Strait of Magellan is best known as a departure point for trips to Antarctica and other bioceanic travelling, but the city’s charms, history, tax-free shopping, good travellers’ services and hospitality are making it a popular destination in its own right. It also has much to offer by way of history – visit the Mayorino Borgatello Salesian Museum, the Shepherds Monument, the Patagonia Institute (a research centre for the history and the resources), and the Nao Victoria Museum where visitors can view a full-size replica of the first ship to circumnavigate the world, Ferdinand Magellan’s Nao Victoria.
King George Island forms part of the South Shetland archipelago, which is situated north of the Antarctic Peninsula. Several international bases, among which the Chilean Station Eduardo Frei with its landing strip Teniente Rodolfo Marsh, are located here.
King George Island is also known for being one of the most populated areas in Antarctica with research stations covering areas as diverse as biology, ecology, geology and palaeontology.
Antarctica is a land of extremes: it is the coldest and driest continent on Earth and has the highest average elevation. As the fifth largest continent in the world, Antarctica is also the most Southern, overlying the "South Pole". Scarcely touched by humans, the frozen land boasts breathtaking scenery, broken by only a handful of scientific bases and a "permanent" population of scientists numbering only a few thousand. Visitors to Antarctica generally must brave rough sea crossings aboard ice-strengthened vessels, but those who do are rewarded with amazing scenery and tremendous wildlife.
Antarctica is the only continent with no significant landplant life and no native land mammals, reptiles, or amphibians (polar bears inhabit the North Pole). However its shoreline serves as nesting ground for many species of migratory birds and penguins, and the Southern Ocean surrounding it is home to many fish and marine mammals, including whales.
Although several countries have laid claim to various portions of Antarctica, it is governed by the 1958 Antarctic Treaty, which establishes the continent as a peaceful and cooperative international research zone. There are no cities per se, just some two dozen research stations.
As previously described
As previously described
