Fodor's Expert Review Monumento Natural Los Pingüinos

Punta Arenas is the launching point for a boat trip to see the more than 80,000 Magellanic penguins at the Monumento Natural Los Pingüinos on Isla Magdalena. Visitors walk a single trail, marked off by rope, and penguins are everywhere—wandering across your path, sitting in burrows, skipping along just off the shore, strutting around in packs. The trip to the island, in the middle of the Estrecho de Magallanes, takes about two hours. To get here, you must take a tour boat. If you haven't booked in advance, you can stop at any of the local travel agencies and try to get on a trip at the last minute, which is often possible. You can go only from November to the end of March; the penguin population peaks in January and February. Almost all cruise ships that stop at Punta Arenas visit the colony. However you get here, bring warm clothing, even in summer; the island can be chilly, and it's definitely windy, which helps with the occasional penguin odor.