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Chiloe Island: what to see? what to do? how to arrive?

Chiloe Island: Where is located?

Chiloé is a different place in Chile. A land of captivating legends, traditions and incomparable architecture. Chiloé is an island of surprising cultural and natural wealth where you can discover its picturesque architecture of stilt houses, with its colorful houses built on the water.
Chiloe is characterized by its colorful wooden churches, 16 of which were declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The local gastronomy is also an obligation: the traditional curanto, is a preparation of seafood and other ingredients such as the Chiloe potato, cooked in a hole with hot stones.
But Chiloé is also nature. The island offers us unique landscapes A great idea is to travel the various paths of the island to enjoy activities such as trekking or kayaking through its wonderful channels. The Chiloé and Tantauco National Park are also an important attraction, with their evergreen colors. But first we will see how to get to Chiloe.

Chiloe Island: How to get to Chiloe Island?

To be exact, we have to say that Chiloé is not an island, it is an archipelago. Indeed, Chiloé is a large archipelago located in Chilean Patagonia with a large number of activities to do and enjoy. The Isla Grande de Chiloé is the most visited of them. As we already said, and we will see later, it has national parks, beaches, small rural towns that preserve ancient traditions, the construction of houses on pillars in the water called palafitos and the famous churches that are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. But how to get to the Chiloe Archipelago?

How to get to Chiloe?

Well, you can arrive by air to the local city of Castro. Castro, the main city of the island of Chiloé, can be reached by plane from Santiago de Chile. LATAM Airlines has four weekly frequencies and the flight duration is two hours. You can also travel to Puerto Montt, the head city with Puerto Varas, of the Lakes District. And from Puerto Montt or Puerto Varas, access to the Chiloé Island.

You can reach Chiloé Island from Santiago or Puerto Montt by bus. From Santiago de Chile: it is about 17 hours, the bus makes the journey at night, arriving in the cities of Ancud and Castro in the morning. From Puerto Montt you will find more frequency of buses to the island of Chiloé and many companies that provide the service. Also, there is the option of taking a plane or bus from Santiago to Puerto Montt and then from here the bus to Chiloé.

How to get to Chiloe if you´re visiting the Carretera Austral?

Another amazing destination in Chile is the Carretera Austral. Part of this wonderful route is located in front of the Chiloe archipelago, so the visit to Chiloé can be a side trip for you. There is an option to get to the island by ferry, from Puerto Chacabuco, Chaiten or Puerto Cisnes to the port of Quellón, in the south of the island of Chiloé.

Chiloe Island: What to see?

Chiloe is an amazing place and there are many interesting places to visit and to see during your trip to the island. Check some of the most important points of interest in Chiloe Island:

What to see in Chiloe Island? Castro and the architecture of Palafitos

Without a doubt, the stilt houses of Castro are one of the things you have to see in Chiloé. The palafitos are wooden piles on the water where the traditional colorful houses of the island are supported. These constructions were made to take advantage of the spaces to the sea at the time of the great industrial and fishing expansion that the island had.

You can not only see the palafitos in various places in Castro, but you can also stay in one of them, since many houses were converted into hotels.
The constructions are worth seeing both at high tide and at low tide, as the photography changes a lot.

What to see in Chiloe Island? The amazing Churches of Chiloe

The island is very famous for the churches built with wood from native trees in the area. They were made by Jesuit missionaries during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and are characterized by being very colorful on the outside. Scattered throughout the Isla Grande de Chiloé, and in some smaller ones close to it, there are more than 50 churches, of which about 16 are World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. Some of these 16 churches are located in the towns of Colo, Dalcahue, San Juan, Tenaún, Rilán, Castro, Chonchi, Nercón and Vilupulli.

See more about the Chiloe Churches!

What to see in Chiloe Island? Chiloe National Park

Another attraction to see in Chiloé is the most recognized national park on the island. Ideal for nature lovers, you can trek through the area, walking through the forests and spot the native flora and fauna. One of the main places within the Chiloé National Park to visit is Cole Cole beach, with a huge extension and surrounded by small dunes. It is an oasis of tranquility with the sound of the sea in the background.

What to see in Chiloe Island? Penguins in Puñihuil colony

If you go in the summer season, one of the places you have to see in Chiloé is the Puñihuil penguin colony. For this, the two ways to get there are by car passing through Ancud or by means of an excursion.

Puñihuil is a protected area of rocky islets on the west coast of Chiloé. This place is visited in the summer season by the Humboldt penguins to reproduce and raise the young.

What to see in Chiloe Island? Tantauco Park

The flora and fauna of Chile attract many nature lovers to our country. Among the tourist packages within Chile, the most popular are those that involve outdoor activities, trees, mountains and dream landscapes. For those people, Parque Tantauco is definitely a must see, not only in Chiloé, but in all of Chile. Get to know it thoroughly by clicking here.

What to see in Chiloe? The Dalcahue Kitchens

Chiloé cuisine combines Mapuche cuisine with Spanish cuisine and seafood, although potatoes and meats are also essential to prepare dishes such as the classic curanto. In Dalcahue’s kitchens you can try this dish, as well as chicken casseroles, marshals, various native fish and potatoes that are characteristic of Chilote folklore. Definitely it´s a must-do!

Weather in Chiloe Island: When to go?

The island of Chiloé is located in the temperate oceanic zone of Chile. The climate of the island of Chiloé is characterized in the first place by a cool, humid and rainy climate during most of the year. Temperatures, on the other hand, do not suffer great daily and seasonal variations. For example, in the city of Ancud, located along the west coast of the island, the average daily temperatures vary between 15 ° C in January (warmest month) and 7.5 ° C in July (coldest month). Again in Ancud, the average maximum temperatures reach 17.8 ° C in January and February and then drop to 9.4 ° C in July. Average minimum temperatures reach 10.9 ° C in January and finally drop to 5.2 ° C in July.

The western side of the island, the one facing the Pacific Ocean, is rainier and wilder. In this area of the island there are beautiful tropical forests and inhabited centers are scarce. Precipitation in this area also exceeds 3,000 mm per year. In the city of Ancud, which is located in the extreme north along the western coast, the average annual precipitation shows values of 2,540 mm. So, when to go to Chiloe Island? What´s the best season?

When to go to Chiloe Island? What´s the best season to visit Chiloe?

Well, the best time to travel to the Chilean island of Chiloé is during the summer months, between December and March. In this period, the temperatures reach the highest values, which however always remain very mild. In this period, rainfall is in its minimum period. In fact, it is the relatively dry season, although on average there are still between 11 and 14 days of rain per month, even in this period. So, definitely, this season is the best to visit this unique archipelago.

What to do in Chiloe Island?

Well, if you decide to stay in Chiloe, you will find many great activities to do. But, you also can visit Chiloe Island in a full day trip from Puerto Montt or Puerto Varas, while you´re visiting the lakes district in the chilean Patagonia. Check our Full Day tour to Chiloe Island

Patagonia Tours: Visiting Chiloé, the Lakes District in Argentina and Chile

We have different options to visit the northern portion of Patagonia. Check the following list of Patagonia Tours, including Peninsula Valdes and the Lakes District in Chile and Argentina

Argentina and Chile in 12 nights – I: Buenos Aires, Bariloche, Puerto Varas, Santiago
The Lakes District of Patagonia – 6 nights
1-day Lakes Crossing from Bariloche to Puerto Varas
1-day Lakes Crossing from Puerto Varas to Bariloche
2-day Lakes Crossing from Bariloche to Puerto Varas
2-day Lakes Crossing from Puerto Varas to Bariloche