On board
The strait
Open water both ways
- Outward50 minutes
- On boardCoffee and tea
- Watch forDolphins
Checklist to tick off
The Magdalena Island tour from Punta Arenas, hour by hour
Magdalena and Marta islands penguin trip from Punta Arenas
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All set. Only one thing left: choose the morning you sail out to the penguins.
Book your seatFrom the office door to the penguin trail and back to the main square: every leg of the trip with its listed time, what happens on it, and what to keep in mind if a flight or bus follows.
Editorial team, magdalenaislandtour.com · Updated November 12, 2026 · Reading: 7 min
Key facts
- LengthThe trip is listed at 5 hours from the meeting point.
- Crossing outA coach of 30 minutes, then 50 minutes by boat.
- On the island1 hour of walking among the penguins.
- Marta Island30 minutes of wildlife watching from the boat.
- FinishThe coach drops you at the Plaza de Armas.
How the trip runs from start to finish
The Magdalena Island tour from Punta Arenas is a short, tightly timed outing. Its listing gives 5 hours from the meeting point, and its labelled legs add up to 270 minutes: coach, boat, island, boat, Marta Island, boat and coach again. The operator's own page calls it about 4.5 hours and warns that the total can change with the sea and the weather.1,2
That rhythm matters for planning. Of those 270 minutes, the boat legs take 120 and the coach legs 60, and only 1 hour is spent on Magdalena itself, a limit that CONAF applies to every boat to protect the feeding and breeding of the birds.3 Knowing where each block of time goes helps you dress for it, eat around it and decide what you can fit in afterwards.
The sections below follow the trip leg by leg, with the times the listing gives and the rules CONAF and Chile Travel set for each place. Times are what the listing states, not a promise: the operator notes that the route and the order of the islands can change on the water.4 Treat them as the outline of your morning, and leave a cushion of an hour or so before any appointment that cannot move.
The listed times
Every leg of the trip
| Leg | Listed time | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Coach out | 30 minutes | Office to the boarding point |
| Boat out | 50 minutes | Across the strait to Magdalena |
| Magdalena Island | 1 hour | Walk among the penguins |
| Boat to Marta | 25 minutes | Short hop between islands |
| Off Marta | 30 minutes | Sea lions from the deck |
| Boat back | 45 minutes | Return across the strait |
| Coach back | 30 minutes | Drop at the Plaza de Armas |
Times as the listing labels them; the operator says sea and weather can change them.2
Check-in at the office and the coach to the pier
The day starts on foot. You report to the operator's premises at number 1255 on Jose Nogueira street, in town, with 10 minutes in hand before the departure time. Nobody collects you from your hotel: the boat company covers the shuttle from its premises to the pier, and leaves the trip from your lodging to you.7
From the office a coach takes about 30 minutes to the boat. The operator says its trips leave from Bahia Laredo, north of the city along the strait, rather than from the piers in the centre.4 Use the ride to put on your layers and check your camera, so you are ready to step on board as soon as the coach stops.
Bring your booking on your phone and a printed copy if your battery is old. Put on your warmest layer before you leave the hotel; the tourism board describes Patagonian weather as chilly, gusty and fickle in every season.8 A hat and gloves in a pocket weigh nothing and are hard to borrow on the boat.
Where the time goes
Minutes spent on each leg
- Coach out30
- Boat out50
- Magdalena walk60
- Boat to Marta25
- Off Marta30
- Boat back45
- Coach back30
Leg times as the listing labels them, adding up to 270 minutes.
Crossing the Strait of Magellan
The outward crossing is listed at 50 minutes. The islands lie 35 km northeast of the city, opposite the Cabo Negro area of the strait.12 Chile Travel gives about two hours each way for boats that sail from the Prat or Tres Puentes piers in the city.13 Our trip boards at Bahia Laredo instead, and its listing gives 50 minutes for the way out.4
Which boat you board is decided per sailing, from the operator's own fleet, by the timetable and the head count.14 Its catamarans are 22 m long for 80 passengers and 26.40 m long for 120 passengers, with top speeds of 22 and 23 knots.15 Coffee, tea and cookies are served on board, which makes the cold leg back far more pleasant.1
Queasy travellers do best amidships with their gaze fixed on the coastline, slipping out for cold air whenever the crew says the deck is open. Watch the water on the way out, since Chile Travel notes that Commerson's dolphins often leap beside the boats on this route.16 They are small, fast and black and white, and they tend to appear and vanish in seconds, so keep the camera ready rather than packed.
After the trip
What fits after your sailing
Plan the rest of your day around a trip of 5 hours.
If I fly out in the evening
Sail in the morning
Pack before you sail; the terminal sits 20 km beyond town.9
If I take the bus to Natales
Sail early
The intercity bus covers 250 km on Route 9 in 3 hours.10
If I want lunch in town
A morning trip
Drop-off is in the main square, close to the cafes of the centre.
If I get seasick easily
Plan for the crossings
Expect 120 minutes afloat in total, split between the outward, middle and return legs.
If I travel with small children
Check the walk
The trail is 1.4 km and rated easy; the hour ashore is fixed.5,3
Sea, island, sea
The places your morning passes through
On foot
Magdalena Island
The penguin trail
- Time ashore1 hour
- Trail1.4 km
- Distance2 metres
From the deck
Marta Island
Seen from the boat
- Time30 minutes
- LandingNot allowed
- WildlifeSea lions, cormorants
The hour on Magdalena Island
Landing is the moment the whole trip builds to. You have 1 hour on the island, the maximum CONAF allows, and the guide will call the group back in time for the boat.3 On top of that, the rangers allow no more than 150 people on the island together, plus guides, which keeps the path from turning into a queue.17
The trail is 1.4 km long and rated easy, and its total walking time is the same 1 hour as your landing.5 The first stretch near the landing, about 300 metres long, is where adult penguins pass with food for their chicks, and CONAF asks you to take extra care there and never block their way.11 Keep at least 2 metres from every bird and stay inside the ropes.18
The path climbs gently towards the lighthouse, where rangers keep an information room and a small exhibition, and the island has public toilets.19 It has no shop, café or phone signal to rely on.20 Spend your hour watching rather than filming: penguins standing at their burrows, calling, preening and walking down to the beach are the memory you came for.
Leg by leg
The trip from the office to the square
Before the start
Check in at the office
Arrive 10 minutes early at Jose Nogueira 1255.
First leg
Coach to the boat
About 30 minutes to the boarding point.
Outward
Across the strait
The boat ride to Magdalena takes 50 minutes.
On land
The penguin trail
1 hour ashore on an easy trail of 1.4 km.5
Off Marta
Wildlife from the deck
30 minutes watching sea lions and cormorants.6
Homeward
Boat and coach
45 minutes on the water, 30 on the coach, ending at the Plaza de Armas.
Marta Island from the deck
After the landing the boat makes a short hop of 25 minutes and then spends 30 minutes off Isla Marta for wildlife watching. Nobody goes ashore there: CONAF strictly forbids landing on Marta, which is kept as an untouchable breeding zone for birds and sea lions.21 The boat idles off the rocks instead, and the guide points out the animals and explains what you are seeing while everyone shifts along the rail.
Over the rail you see nesting imperial cormorants and, on the far southwestern rocks, the breeding grounds of sea lions and fur seals.6 Chile Travel describes it as a large sea lion colony watched from the deck.16 Use a zoom lens or binoculars, and brace yourself against the rail when the boat rolls in the swell.
The Marta leg is the one that most depends on the swell. The operator says visits to the island depend on the conditions of the day, and that the order in which the two islands are visited depends on the weather and the sea.4 If the swell is up, the captain may skip Marta and head straight back. That is a safety call made on the water, and the penguin landing, the main purpose of the trip, comes first in the operator's own description.4 Nobody on board can overrule the captain on that point.
Video
A day on the penguin island of Magdalena
Fridtjof Flucke on YouTube · Video data is requested only when you tap play.
On the first stretch of the trail, about 300 metres from the landing, the penguins pass carrying food for their chicks.
Back in town, and what time you are free
Going home takes 45 minutes on the water and 30 on the coach, and you are dropped in the main square, not at the office where you began. Count on the whole trip taking 5 hours from check-in, and allow some slack, since the operator says the total time can vary with sea and weather.2 From the square you can walk to most hotels and restaurants in the centre, or take a taxi if you are tired after the cold.
If you fly out the same day, leave a wide margin. Allow for the 20 km run up to the airport, served by shuttles, taxis and hire cars from the centre.9 A late-morning flight after an early sailing is a gamble; an evening flight after a morning trip is a reasonable plan, as long as your bags are packed and stored before you leave for the office.
If you head to Puerto Natales after the Punta Arenas to Magdalena Island tour, remember that the bus takes 3 hours over 250 km.10 A morning trip followed by an afternoon bus works on paper, but a cancelled sailing would leave you no second try. Our page on doing Magdalena from Puerto Natales covers the order of the journey in more detail, including when a night in Punta Arenas pays off.
Making the most of each block of time
Eat before you go, and eat well. The trip lists no meal, and the island sells nothing, so breakfast in town and a snack in your pocket carry you through.20 Visit the washroom before the coach leaves, keep both hands free for the camera, and tuck spare batteries close to your body where the cold cannot drain them.
On the crossing, stay on deck for the views only if you are dressed for it; Chile Travel says the breezes from the strait can be intense, and a windbreaker matters on the water.8 On the island, slow down. The hour passes quickly, and the guide sets the pace back to the boat. Pick a spot along the ropes, stand still for a few minutes and let the penguins carry on around you; that is when the colony starts to feel alive.
A Magdalena Island tour in Punta Arenas is easy to combine with the rest of a city day. By lunchtime you are back among the cafes and museums of the centre, with a stroll on the waterfront still possible and the evening left for packing, a slow dinner and an early night. Choose a morning sailing if you can, and the afternoon in the city becomes a bonus rather than an afterthought.
FAQ
Questions answered quickly.
How long is the Magdalena Island tour?
Listed at 5 hours.
The legs add up to 270 minutes from the meeting point; the operator says sea and weather can change the total.2
Where does the tour start?
At the office in town.
Meet at Jose Nogueira 1255, Punta Arenas, 10 minutes before the start.
How long does the crossing to Magdalena take?
50 minutes out.
After the landing, 25 minutes take you on to Marta, and 45 minutes bring you back.
How long do you stay on Magdalena Island?
1 hour.
CONAF limits every landing to 1 hour to protect feeding and breeding.3
Do you land on Marta Island?
No, you watch from the boat.
Landing is forbidden on Marta, a breeding zone for birds and sea lions.21
Where does the tour finish?
At the Plaza de Armas.
The coach ends the trip in the main square of Punta Arenas, not at the office.
Is there a toilet on the island?
Yes, public toilets.
CONAF lists toilets, an information room and rangers on Magdalena.19
Sources
- Solo Expediciones (operator page for its own tour) · Magdalena and Marta Island ↩
- Solo Expediciones (operator page for its own tour) · Magdalena and Marta Island ↩
- CONAF, Chile National Forest Corporation (conaf.cl) · Monumento Natural Los Pinguinos ↩
- Solo Expediciones (operator page for its own tour) · Magdalena and Marta Island ↩
- CONAF, Chile National Forest Corporation (conaf.cl) · Monumento Natural Los Pinguinos ↩
- CONAF, Chile National Forest Corporation (conaf.cl) · Monumento Natural Los Pinguinos ↩
- Solo Expediciones (operator page for its own tour) · Magdalena and Marta Island ↩
- Sernatur, Chile National Tourism Service (chile.travel) · Travel guide to Los Pinguinos Natural Monument ↩
- Sernatur, Chile National Tourism Service (chile.travel) · History and Culture in Punta Arenas ↩
- Sernatur, Chile National Tourism Service (chile.travel) · Punta Arenas and Strait of Magellan ↩
- CONAF, Chile National Forest Corporation (conaf.cl) · Monumento Natural Los Pinguinos ↩
- CONAF, Chile National Forest Corporation (conaf.cl) · Monumento Natural Los Pinguinos ↩
- Sernatur, Chile National Tourism Service (chile.travel) · Los Pinguinos Natural Monument ↩
- Solo Expediciones (operator page for its own tour) · Magdalena and Marta Island ↩
- Solo Expediciones (operator page for its own fleet) · Our fleet ↩
- Sernatur, Chile National Tourism Service (chile.travel) · Los Pinguinos Natural Monument ↩
- CONAF, Chile National Forest Corporation (conaf.cl) · Monumento Natural Los Pinguinos ↩
- CONAF, Chile National Forest Corporation (conaf.cl) · Monumento Natural Los Pinguinos ↩
- CONAF, Chile National Forest Corporation (conaf.cl) · Monumento Natural Los Pinguinos ↩
- CONAF, Chile National Forest Corporation (conaf.cl) · Monumento Natural Los Pinguinos ↩
- CONAF, Chile National Forest Corporation (conaf.cl) · Monumento Natural Los Pinguinos ↩
Further reading