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Torres del Paine, Stunning National Park in Chile

Vacation to Chilean Patagonia is a Must!


      Chile is one of the regions known for its beautiful natural attractions, with its diverse flora and fauna.
One of the most popular tourist attractions in Chile is Torres del Paine National Park (Spanish: Parque Nacional Torres del Paine).

Torres del Paine
                                                       Image Source: wikimedia.org

Torres del Paine National Park is located in the Magallanes region, just north of Puerto Natales and Punta Arenas.
The two regions are quite important in Chile because they border the O'Higgins National Park and Los Glaciares National Park.

The park is visited by an average of 252,000 visitors per year, 54% of whom are foreign tourists. which come from many countries around the world. It is also part of the End of the World Route, the tourist scenic route.

The park is one of 11 protected areas in Chile's Magallanes Region and Antarctica (along with four national parks, three national reserves and three national monuments). Together, the protected forest area covers approximately 51% of the total area (6,728,744 hectares).

Despite being situated in a fairly remote location, Torres del Paine is the largest and most visited park by tourists in Chile.
This National Park offers a very amazing natural scenery. This top tourist spot in South America also has glaciers, rivers, forests, and meadows, making it a hidden paradise for nature lovers. Torres del Paine National Park is also home to an endangered deer species.

Established in 1959, the name Torres del Paine has been given since 1970 for this national park.
Torres Del Paine National Park has been visited by many world famous scientists, climbers and explorers.

UNESCO included Torres Del Paine National Park in Chile as a World Biosphere Reserve in 1978.
Unlike the Royal Botanical Gardens, which tend to be safe, a trip to the 181,414 hectare Torres del Paine National Park is the exact opposite.

This park in Chile will take you on an adventure and meet the diverse flora and fauna of the forest in their natural state.
To get to Torres del Paine National Park, there are three entrances, namely Rio Serrano, Lago Sarmiento, and Laguna Armaga which can be accessed from different locations.

Grey Parque Nacional Torres Del Paine

If you want to use public transportation or take a tour, there are various options with predetermined rates and fees.
To get to the national park there is a bus from Puerto Natales, a bus from Punta Arenas, a bus back to Puerto Natales and tours with travel agents.

The park has experienced three major man-made forest fires since 1985, destroying a forest of Lenga trees that took at least a century to fully recover.

History of Torres del Paine

Mrs Florence Dixie, in her book published in 1880, gave the first description of the area, and referred to the three towers as the Needles of Cleopatra. Mrs Florence and her party are credited with being the first "foreign tourists" to visit the area now called Torres del Paine National Park.

Several European explorers and scientists visited the area in the following decades: Carl Skottsberg, Otto Nordenskiöld, and Alberto María de Agostini. The first person to fly over the Paine massif was Gunther Plüschow

The park was founded on May 13, 1959 as Parque Nacional de Turismo Lago Grey, and was given its name in 1970.
In 1976, British mountaineer John Garner and two Torres del Paine rangers, Pepe Alarcon and Oscar Guineo, spearheaded the Circuit trail that surrounds the Paine massif.
In 1977, Guido Monzino donated 12,000 hectares (30,000 acres) to the Chilean Government when the definitive limits were set.

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