Why the Chilean fjords are South America's greatest overlooked treasure

Telegraph

09-03-2025

Stretching for nearly 1,000 miles towards South America's tip lies an intricate network of waterways, chiselled into the continent's western flank by the relentless creep of glaciers from the Andes mountains.
These are the Chilean fjords, a breathtaking wilderness of deep gorges, intertwining channels and soaring mountains where the rolling pampas grasslands of Tierra del Fuego succumb to the Patagonian ice fields and majesty of the Pacific Ocean.
In 1520, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan was the first European to navigate these inlets, threading along Chile's southern coast during an expedition financed by Spanish king Charles V to seek out the Indonesian Spice Islands.
His discovery of a 350-mile navigable sea route carving through Chile and Argentina, now named the Strait of Magellan in his honour, bestowed mariners with a more secure passage between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans that avoided the treacherous waters around Cape Horn.
It proved to be an invaluable route before being superseded by the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914. This new short-cut slashed South American sea traffic at a swoop, plunging previously prosperous ports into decline, though recent years have provided a welcome fillip with cruise ships visiting in increasing numbers.
I'm aboard one of them, arriving in rather more luxury than Magellan and his crew amid the rarefied confines of Silver Ray. One of the opulent ships of six star line Silversea Cruises, it holds just 728 passengers, its compact size enabling it to negotiate the sinuous lines of these challenging narrows.
As we sail into them, I'm intrigued as well as curious, because what is South America's answer to the Norwegian fjords remains largely unknown and shrouded in mystery due to its remote location and notoriously unpredictable moods, with forceful winds whipping up ferocious squalls in the blink of an eye.
First impressions are not promising as gloomy skies and heavy mist dampen the impact of the fjords – which, it must be said, lack the vertiginous majesty of their Norwegian counterparts. Having also sailed the ice-speckled waters of Greenland and Alaska, I can't help feeling underwhelmed.
But as Silver Ray continues to pick its way southwards, the terrain takes on a more dramatic turn as we inch towards the Garibaldi Glacier, regarded as one of the country's most beautiful icy wonders.
Cliffs rise up from limpid waters, resembling granite pillars and threaded with ivory streaks of waterfalls, the sound of gushing meltwater competing with the guttural grunts of seals splayed like drunken sailors on chunks of ice bobbing past.
A fluctuating swirl of blue skies and rain showers simultaneously drenches snow-topped peaks in sunshine while shrouding others in swirling mist, laying the seeds for an incredible shimmer of rainbows that arch up from the sea in a multi-coloured swathe.
As we slip at snail's pace around a bend, ahead of us lies an unyielding wall of roughly-hewn ice stretching half a mile across the head of the Garibaldi Fjord, the craggy cliff face reaching up nearly 200ft.
This is the Chilean fjords' king of glaciers, marked out by its striking blueish hue and epic dimensions, but it's not alone because across the Andes are estimated to be around 5,500 of these icy giants.
There are several in close proximity, including the appropriately-named Glacier Alley, or Avenue of Glaciers, where a quintet of tidal ice floes, each one named after a European country, is tumbling at glacial speed into the sea.
It's an arresting sight but, for me, what marks these fjords out is their isolation and unshakeable feeling of being so far from civilisation. During the two days we spend cruising through these labyrinthine channels we are totally alone.
There are no other ships and no settlements, but it's hardly surprising when you consider this area covers nearly 150,000 square miles, making it 50 per cent larger than the UK. Yet with fewer than 100,000 people living here, it is the most sparsely populated region of Chile.
The hand of history hovers over this coastline, bringing a fascinating dimension as we cruise southwards from the Strait of Magellan, following the route taken by British naval officer Robert FitzRoy in 1831 at the helm of his ship HMS Beagle who effectively paved our way.
While steering through the maze of islands and passages of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago, FitzRoy discovered another passageway linking both oceans, that became known as the Beagle Channel, now used by today's cruise ships to reach the notorious Drake Passage and Antarctica beyond.
A short time after its discovery, the Beagle returned on an epic voyage with none other than young scientist Charles Darwin, who spent 15 months on the Chilean coastline enthusiastically gathering specimens that formed the basis of his seminal theory of evolution, contained in his ground-breaking work The Origin of Species.
While noting the Beagle Channel as the most impressive geological feature in the region, he was in awe of the fjords, writing: 'It is scarcely possible to imagine anything more beautiful than the beryl-like blue of these glaciers.'
Exploring them on Silver Ray proves to be the perfect foil to this inhospitable environment with its spacious uber-chic interiors and outdoor deck spaces, champagne on tap, and swish suites served by a legion of attentive butlers.
This is a ship that never feels crowded, and dining in style is de rigueur, especially with eight restaurants serving everything from French gourmet fare to Mediterranean and Japanese cuisine and the sultry surroundings of the popular Silver Note supper club.
One of my favourites is the excellent Salt Kitchen and its ever-changing menus, reflecting local flavours, where I try Chilean empanadas, creamy crab ravioli, and spicy Peruvian duck ceviche.
Another triumph is the outdoor Marquee restaurant, a must for lunch with tasty poke bowls and pizzas, beautifully illuminated after dark, where an evening dining highlight is the on-table Hot Rock barbecue, where I cook my steak on a sizzling hot lava stone.
The numerous sea days on this cruise blend into a social haze that gravitates between excellent talks in the main theatre, an ever-competitive daily trivia quiz and, on warmer days, lounging on one of the plentiful sunbeds around a pool that's always an oasis of calm.
I joined Silver Ray in Lima for this 20-night passage to Buenos Aires as part of the full 71-day South American voyage, which 188 guests signed up for. While wealthy and mainly retired Americans make up most of the guests, Britons are well represented as the second-largest group.
On leaving Peru, we follow the Chilean coast to its southernmost city Punta Arenas, which has the frontier-like feel of a settlement at the end of the earth.
It's no mean feat as Chile is one of the world's longest countries stretching for nearly 2,700 miles – which in Europe would see it reach from the top of Norway as far south as Morocco.
Over such a distance, we don't only encounter port cities, such as Valparaiso, that are bursting with history, but the snow-capped peaks of the Chilean Lake District near Puerto Montt, with its surprising German roots and fresh Alpine feel.
From the sultry 30C heat of northern Chile, to the bitter winds of freezing Patagonia, and Argentinian outpost of Ushuaia, this voyage truly blows hot and cold.
Yet our final evening turns up the heat, amid the drama of a steamy tango performance in the city where it was born, Buenos Aires – a sizzling finale to a journey deep into South America's most underrated corners.
Essentials
Sara Macefield was a guest of Silversea Cruises (0844 251 0837; silversea.com) which offers an 18-day Buenos Aires to Valparaiso voyage from £9,900pp, excluding flights. Calling at the Falkland Islands, Ushuaia, Punta Arenas and the Chilean fjords and Garibaldi Glacier. Departs Feb 26, 2026.