Updated Oct 2026 · Prices and times checked Oct 2026
Chiloé penguins nest on the Puñihuil islets near Ancud, where Humboldt and Magellanic penguins breed side by side from mid-October to March. You watch from a small boat about 50 m away; the boat costs CLP 7,000–10,000 (≈$7–11) cash.
The one bookable tourOur pickPuñihuil is one of the few places where Humboldt and Magellanic penguins nest together.
Viewing is by small boat only, about 50 m from the islets; landing is not allowed.
One bookable tour: from Castro, 6 h, from $161 per person at 2 travelers.
On your own from Ancud: 25–28 km by road, then a cash boat ride of CLP 7,000–10,000.
Season runs mid-October to March, with most penguins in December and January.
One tour · or your own way
Book the Castro day tour if you are staying in Castro or arriving there by cruise ship and want transport and a guide: 6 hours, from $161 per person at 2 travelers. Go on your own if you have a car or are staying in Ancud, because the boat at Puñihuil costs only CLP 7,000–10,000 (≈$7–11) in cash and leaves through the day.
Three ways to reach Puñihuil
Only one Chiloé penguin tour is bookable on GetYourGuide: a 6-hour day from Castro, rated 5.0 from 13 reviews, from $161 per person at 2 travelers. It drives about 2 hours to Puñihuil for a 30-minute boat trip around the islets, and its title adds Fort San Antonio in Ancud. It needs at least 2 participants, so a solo traveler cannot book it alone.
1 / 4Best for Castro stays and cruise passengers.
“Boat trip to the penguin islands. Excellent commentary by Jonathan.”
GetYourGuide review · February 2026
Source · GetYourGuide listing, price and rating checked Oct 2026.
Seeing Chiloé penguins without a tour is simple once you reach Ancud. Puñihuil cove is 25–28 km away, and the last stretch is unpaved but passable by a standard car. The monument has free entry from 9:00 to 17:00, boats circle the islets every 20 minutes according to chile.travel, and the ride costs CLP 7,000–10,000 (≈$7–11) per person, paid in cash.
Get to Ancud, 85 km north of Castro on Ruta 5 Sur.
Drive road W-20 (Camino Lechagua) for about 12 km, then the unpaved W-220 to Puñihuil cove — or take a transfer for about CLP 15,000 (≈$16) per person, boat not included.
Arrive about 20 minutes early and pay for the boat at the cove in cash.
Ride for less than an hour around the three islets; a combined penguin and whale ride was reported at CLP 10,000 (≈$11).
Prefer a guide and transport? The Castro penguin day tour
Pay for the boat at the cove in cash.
Source · chile.travel (2023), Postcards from the World and operator pages (undated); CLP at ≈945 per USD, Oct 2026.
Castro → Ancud → Puñihuil cove
Road lines from OpenStreetMap routing · the inset shows Puñihuil cove · Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors · Open in Google Maps
Puñihuil is one of the few places where Humboldt and Magellanic penguins nest side by side, according to chile.travel, on three islets facing Puñihuil cove near Ancud. The islets have been a Natural Monument since 1999 and nobody lands, so you compare both species from a small boat about 50 m away, the distance Sernapesca sets for boats near penguins.
Want Humboldt penguins nearer Santiago or La Serena instead? Compare Cachagua penguins and the Humboldt Penguin National Reserve.
From Puerto Varas or Puerto Montt, Chiloé penguins take a full day: about 10 hours on the day tours operators run, including the Pargua–Chacao ferry, a crossing of about 30 minutes and up to 45 in swell. Pargua is about 60 km from Puerto Montt, and the Chacao bridge is not expected before 2028. The Puerto Varas day tours on GetYourGuide (checked Oct 2026) do not mention Puñihuil, so check any listing for the penguin boat.
Ferries every 15–20 minutes from about 7:00 to 23:30; up to 45 minutes in swell.
An optional stop on the way.
Including the boat trip; the boat fee is usually paid on the spot in cash.
An 18th-century fort on the town's highest point.
The same evening.
Base yourself in Castro and use the Castro day tour, or check any Chiloé listing in the GetYourGuide widget for the penguin boat.
Book the Castro penguin day tour · from $161The best time for Chiloé penguins is December and January, when the colony is fullest and chicks hatch. Penguins arrive in October to breed and return to sea near the end of March; one operator runs from mid-October to mid-March and reports fewer sightings from February. From April to September the penguins are at sea, so the trip is not worth it for them.
Your travel month
Exact dates live in the booking widget · Source · chile.travel (2023), Swoop Patagonia, Nomades and Postcards from the World (undated).
The Chiloé penguins boat trip is short: 30 minutes on the Castro tour and under an hour on the boats at the cove. Small boats leave Puñihuil cove with a local guide who explains the two species and their protection. Weather and sea state can cancel or shorten trips, and later departures are more often affected, so aim for the morning.
Reviews of the Castro Chiloé penguins tour are few but consistent: 13 reviews and a 5.0 rating. Guests praise the guide's communication before the trip, his patience with cruise ship timings and his translation on the boat. None of the reviews we read mentions seasickness or a canceled boat, but 13 reviews are too few to rule either out.
13 reviews · the Castro penguin day tour
Verified GetYourGuide bookings · tap a card to open that tour
Jonathan was a wonderful tour guide! His communications prior to our arrival were prompt and he patiently waited for our cruise ship to arrive in Castro. He took us to the two scheduled stops and also took us to other requested stops (a coffee shop, a fruit and vegetable market, and the Castro Church.)
The extensive and friendly guide, who knew how to answer every question. Watching the penguins was fun, the man on the boat couldn't speak English, but our guide was able to translate everything well for us and even had extra things to say.
Source · verified GetYourGuide reviews, Oct 2026 · in the reviewers' own words, cut only at a sentence end
Pack for rain and wind for Chiloé penguins whatever the month: a waterproof layer, a windbreaker and seasickness tablets if you need them. Bring Chilean pesos in cash, since the boat is paid at the cove, and binoculars or a zoom lens, because boats stay about 50 m from the islets.
Book the Castro penguin day tourRules at the colony
Worth it if you are already on Chiloé between mid-October and March: the boat costs about $11 or less and shows two species in under an hour.
They are not worth a special trip if you want to walk among penguins, because the boat stays about 50 m off; Magdalena Island near Punta Arenas puts you on a trail through the colony instead.
Puñihuil · about 50 m from the boatNine short answers, all open — tap a question to fold it.
Book the Castro tour · from $161They nest on the three Puñihuil islets, opposite Puñihuil cove, 25–28 km from Ancud. Castro is 85 km further south on Ruta 5 Sur.
No. The islets are a Natural Monument and landing is not permitted, so every visit is by small boat, about 50 m from the penguins.
The boat at Puñihuil costs CLP 7,000–10,000 (≈$7–11) per person in cash, and monument entry is free. The guided day tour from Castro is from $161 per person at 2 travelers.
No. The penguins are on the islets from about mid-October to the end of March and at sea for the rest of the year.
Not on GetYourGuide: the Puerto Varas day tours listed there (checked Oct 2026) do not mention Puñihuil. Operators elsewhere run 10-hour days with the Pargua–Chacao ferry and the boat fee paid separately.
About 30 minutes on the Castro tour and less than an hour on the boats at the cove.
No. The tour needs at least 2 participants; a solo traveler can reach Ancud and take the cove boat instead.
Sometimes. A combined penguin and whale ride has been reported at CLP 10,000 (≈$11), blue whales are most frequent from December to April, and no sighting is guaranteed.
Usually yes, since rain falls in every season on Chiloé; poor weather and sea conditions can still cancel or shorten boats, so go early and ask at the cove.
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Our pick · Castro penguin day tour · live dates and prices
Our pick · Castro penguin dayfrom $161 · ★ 5.0 (13)
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