Strait of Magellan Chile
Chile
96
Cruises availables
At departure or passage at this port
Carnival Cruise Line (1 Cruises)
Celebrity Cruises (6 Cruises)
Holland America Line (26 Cruises)
ms Nieuw Amsterdam
9 Cruises
| 7 October | 41 days | One-way from Vancouver to Buenos Aires |
450-628-6241
Call us
|
| 12 October | 36 days | One-way from San Diego to Buenos Aires |
450-628-6241
Call us
|
ms Nieuw Statendam
9 Cruises
| 7 October | 41 days | One-way from Vancouver to Buenos Aires |
450-628-6241
Call us
|
| 12 October | 36 days | One-way from San Diego to Buenos Aires |
450-628-6241
Call us
|
Lindblad Expeditions (5 Cruises)
National Geographic Resolution
3 Cruises
Ponant (4 Cruises)
Scenic Cruises (30 Cruises)
Scenic Eclipse
15 Cruises
Scenic Eclipse II
15 Cruises
Seabourn Cruise Line (24 Cruises)
Seabourn Pursuit
18 Cruises
| 16 August | 82 days | One-way from Broome WA to Ushuaia |
450-628-6241
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|
| 26 August | 72 days | One-way from Darwin to Ushuaia |
450-628-6241
Call us
|
Seabourn Quest
6 Cruises
Frequently Asked Questions
No, there is no berth in the strait itself: this is scenic cruising. The passage is experienced from the deck, bundled in a coat, looking out at shores few humans have walked. Some itineraries do include a call at Punta Arenas.
Usually 24 to 36 hours depending on weather, over roughly 570 kilometres. The wind drops and rises without warning, and the timing announced the night before can shift: Patagonia decides.
Because Ferdinand Magellan opened the route in 1520 and this corridor served for nearly four centuries as the main link between Atlantic and Pacific, avoiding the dreaded storms of Cape Horn. The Panama Canal, opened in 1914, drew commercial traffic away.
Commerson's dolphins, small and two-toned, sometimes escort the hull. Cormorants and albatrosses patrol, and around Cape Froward humpback whales surface in southern summer. Magellanic penguins, which gave the species its name, nest on some islands.
Early. The open decks become the meeting point for early risers, since low morning light sculpts the relief better than any other hour. To the west, the most mountainous stretch reveals glacier tongues hanging between the summits.
In layers, with a genuine windbreaker. Binoculars and a camera complete the kit. Patagonia sets the pace and the weather, never the other way around: better one layer too many than one too few.
Yes, generally. Announcements from the bridge identify the capes, glaciers and historic bays. They change the experience considerably: without them, one grey shoreline looks much like another.
The hopes and disasters of the crews. Useless Bay, Port Famine, Cape Desire: these names come from an expedition that left Spain with five ships and returned with one. Reading them on the chart while sailing past changes the whole day.
It depends on the itinerary. Several lines call at Punta Arenas, roughly midway. This Chilean city prospered when every ship in the world passed its quays, and its coloured metal roofs still tell that story.
Yes, provided you are willing to go outside. Late in the day, as the coast darkens and the birds return to their cliffs, you appreciate the luck of crossing in comfort a passage that cost so much to those who found it.
