If you ask anyone about the must see places in Chile, the chances are, Chiloé would be on the list. Chiloé is an island in the very north of Patagonia that you can reach by ferry from Puerto Montt.
Back in April, during our Autumn holiday from school, three friends and I headed over. If there was one thing I was expecting from Chiloé it was colour, which didn’t disappoint. And rain… because this region of Chile is known for its rain and grey skies.
Chiloé, and Castro especially, is famous for its palafitos, a word which took me a very long time to learn. I just kept saying “those houses on stilts that begin with the letter p‘. So what are palafitos? They are traditional wooden houses that are built on stilts. They tend to be colourful and just look so charming, especially on days where they are reflected into the water.
Thanks to some searching on Airbnb, we stayed in a cosy palafito with a wood fire and a beautiful view. It was really lovely to see how the tide went in and out depending on the time of day and it was so nice to come home each evening to the fire and knowing the water was right below you.
And what’s not to love about the colours they are painted in! The different colours just added to the charm.
I decided that this beautiful turquoise painted one was the colour for me!
Chiloé is also known for its colourful wooden churches which are just so different from churches I have seen in other places. Each one is unique from the other and they catch you as you drive by. I just love how they all vary in shape, size and colour.
We also managed to spot a couple of murals, just too add to the colour 😉 I loved this one which shows the rain of Chiloé, the mountain backdrop and their famous potatoes! 
It’s always great to visit somewhere filled with colour, and Chiloé was one of those places! It was also such a great experience to stay in a palafito. Would you like to stay in one?
Marcella xx
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Awesome photos! Never actually heard of Chiloé but would love to visit one day!
Thanks Ryan! It’s a lovely place, a must visit in Chile 😀
Thanks very much for this lovely article Marcella. I am going to the islands next week with my family to spend a week in a cabin at Achao on Quinchao Island. My wife and I haven´t been there since summer 1999 and our daughter will be there for the first time. She is hoping to see La Pincoya!
Being English the rain doesn´t bother us either, plus we will also have a wood-burning stove.
That’s great! Hope you have lots of fun. It actually reminded me of home a lot; the grey, the rain and the green!
Gorgeous colours Marcella, I love that yellow church! 🙂
Isn’t is beautiful? It’s the most famous one in Chiloé
Gorgeous
you always seem to find the most colorful places!:)
I agree that I’m always drawn to them! 🙂
We went to Chile for our honeymoon but didn’t get a chance to visit Chiloe, it looks amazing, definitely a reason to return!
Ohhh nice, where did you go? Chile is just full of so many gems 🙂
We visited Elqui Valley, Valparaiso, nipped over the Andes to Argentina and then back in further south. Headed down to Patagonia too. So many great memories!
Wow, sounds like an amazing honeymoon! 🙂
I love the play of colors on the buildings with the water – reminds me a lot of Nyhavn in Denmark!
Isn’t it beautiful? I just loved the reflection! It added to the beauty 🙂
Very beautiful place indeed! The colorful houses are so pretty!
They were so pretty, and so cosy inside 🙂
I’d love to stay in a palafito. They’re so colorful and I’ve always wanted to stay in a hut that was over the water. And I like all the colorful churches. That is something you really don’t see that often. #wanderfulwednesday
It was so fun, I’m glad we found one on Airbnb! And yes, the churches were just so unique and special.
Love these photos!! I can’t even imagine staying in one of these houses – how cool that you were able to!! Is mostly a tourist place or is there a local life??
Thanks Sara! It’s local life 🙂 We stayed in one where the owners live next door, it was great.
Wow – I want to visit this place so much. When I was in Chile I was advised not to go because of the weather (it was October?) but now I wish I’d gone anyway! Such gorgeous colours.
Next time 😉 I know it’s best to go in the summer (Dec-Feb), but I’m not sure how the weather is at others times. When we went in April it rained everyday.
Yeah the guy I spoke to in Valpo said it would be so rainy in October that I wouldn’t see anything. DEFINITELY going next time though!!
I think it’s always worth it! What’s more, we are used to the rain 😉
This is seriously the cutest! Love all the bright colors, I am a sucker for towns like this! Chile is a beautiful country!
Chile is just full of so many gems, I’m so glad that I got to visit! 🙂
Your post made me fall in love with the Palafitos (I hope I spelled that correctly). They’re all so colourful and make beautiful reflections on the water! #WanderfulWednesday
They are indeed so pretty! Such a special place to stay and see.
That turquoise house would also be for me! One of my fav colors is turquoise! I just love how colorful this town is! #WanderfulWednesday
I ran down the road to get that photo as I saw it from the distance, haha! My dream colour.
I actually really remember your instagram from back you visited Chiloe! I think I chose the purple house (along with most other people haha) to live in!!
Great memory! Let’s have a blogging party in the purple house!
Charming doesn’t even begin to sum up this place! How absolutely delightful. The colours remind me of Scandinavia. And those reflections – wow, just beautiful! What a vibrant place. I would absolutely love to visit Chiloe! #WanderfulWednesday
It’s so true, like the typical Copenhagen photo, such a beauty!
A lot of times I see Chiloe on lists of the most colorful places on the world. And, it deserves to be there! The palafitos (love the word) are so unique to the island. So great you were able to stay on one. #wanderfulwednesday
That’s great that you’ve heard of it, yay! And yes, isn’t palafitos a great word, I love it too!
I love those reflections! So crisp. It’s cool that you managed to stay in a palafito, that’s exactly why I love AirBnB. It makes for a more interesting trip when you can experience things a bit more like a local. I’d love to live in a colourful house over water! How does it get better than that?!
Totally agree, what did we do before Airbnb? It’s just the best way to travel, we had so much fun 🙂
This place looks insanely beautiful, love the reflection of the colorful houses on the sill water! HOnestly, reminds me of Copenhagen a little bit 🙂 xx, Nano | http://www.travelwithnanob.com
I love colourful houses and I can totally see why they have them in a place like that where the weather is bad so often. Those colours really lift your mood, even on a rainy day. I can totally see that here in the Arctic too 🙂
Exactly! Grey places need colour to bring them to life, that’s for sure 🙂
These are just so stunning Marcella!
Aren’t they just?! I loved it there!
Wow these are just beautiful! And how cool that you got to stay in one, too! 🙂
Loved reliving the adventure again through writing about it 🙂
I’ve always dreamed of seeing Chiloe! And staying in a palafitos! Even better! Your photos with the reflections are amazing!xx
Aww, I am sure you’ll get to see it someday. It’s such a lovely place, I just loved all of the colours!
Marcella it looks like you stayed right next to my friend’s Palafito! We lived in Chiloe for 1.5 years and became really good friends with the owners of Palafito Waiwen (a fantastic and highly rated hotel). I loved being there by the water! It’s so pretty! If anyone is planning a trip, you MUST go in November, December, Jan/Feb…otherwise it is incredibly rainy!! I did a few posts about the town and surrounding areas if anyone is interested! essentialexpatblog.wordpress.com Cheers!
How fun! That must have been a wonderful time. Even though it was very rainy in April, we still had a great time so I wouldn’t want to put people off going when it isn’t sunny 😉
Yes, of course! It is still pretty in the rain! I’d love to go back to Rahue where the ocean churns out these perfectly round rocks. It’s amazing!
Such neat houses!! I would definitely stay in one of the opportunity arose! I love the bright colors! Cute!
And we did, it was such a fun trip! Chiloe is full of beautiful bright colours 🙂