Chaitén - Travel & Tourism Guide Chaitén - Chili

Advertising

Capital of the province of Palena, Chaitén was founded in 1940 on the shore of a beautiful bay open to the Gulf of Corcovado. The Huilliche, the original people of the place, called the city chaitén, which meant "to pass in baskets". The name could come from the topography of the place, which evokes a basket (a plain surrounded by mountains). The maritime influence gives Chaitén mild temperatures in spite of its latitude: in summer, the average temperature can reach 20 °C. Despite this gentle way of life, Chaitén's destiny changed on May 2, 2008, when the eponymous volcano suddenly woke up: it erupted to everyone's surprise (it had been sleeping for 9,400 years) and caused a lot of damage.