How to plan your perfect trip itinerary in Argentina & Chile & what to do in Patagonia
Patagonia has the reputation of having to plan a lot of the trip beforehand. My trip to Patagonia happened pretty spontaneously and yeah, some planning does make sense to do, especially during high season. But even if you do not, the worst that happens are some booked out accommodations. (you only might get a problem if you wanna do the W trek).
I will describe my approx. 1 week itinerary in this post. It is, however, totally possible to spend a bit longer in the area, even up to 3 or 4 weeks. My time window only allowed a week so I thought a bit is better than nothing haha.
The plan was the following (starting from Santiago, otherwise it is fully doable from Buenos Aires as well, then I would just recommend my itinerary a bit reverse, starting and ending in El Calafate, which might be even easier from a logistical point of view):
- Day 1: Fly from Santiago to Puerto Natales
- Day 2: Take the bus from Puerto Natales to El Calafate
- Day 3: Visit the Perito Moreno Glacier and take the evening bus to El Chalten
- Day 4: Hike the Fitz Roy (Laguna de los Tres) trek in El Chalten
- Day 5: Hike Laguna Torre or Loma del Pliegue in El Chalten
- Day 6: Take the buses back to Puerto Natales
- Day 7: Day hike in the Torres del Paine National Park
- Day 8: Fly back to Santiago
Preparations:
Bring Cash!!!! Both for Chile as well as Argentina I recommend bringing some cash! Euros or Dollars. Additionally, you can get some Argentinian Pesos from Western Union (easiest if you start from Buenos Aires). Western Union is the easiest way to get cash with the best exchange rate. This especially applies for Argentina, as you have the blue and the red exchange rate in the country. The red rate is the rate official banks charge you but doesn’t really reflect the actual currency value. (the currency is devaluating so quickly, banks simply do not catch up with that). If you wanna save some money, create an account on Western Union and send some money there. You can easily pick it up at one of their locations.
Day 1: Fly from Santiago to Puerto Natales
I booked the flights to PN a week in advance and prices were still fairly okay. I went without luggage, so just an under the seat backpack and that was honestly enough (and cheaper)!
To get to the SCL Airport is always a bit more expensive, usually Uber costs around 20 ish euros – there is a bus too, but from my house (where I currently live for exchange), it doesn’t really make a lot of sense.
Arriving at Puerto Natales you have three options. Either take the Uber, taxi or mini van. (or you walk of course, but it is about 8km to the city center). By February 2024, the taxi goes at a fixed rate of 8000 CLP, so if you share, it will surely be the cheapest! The mini van works best for solo travellers. This costs 4k CLP and they drop you off in front of your hotel! Lastly, there is Uber, about 6k CLP, however, availability is limited so I will not rely too much on that. You have the same options going from PN to the airport. Ask in your hostel for the shared van number. (in Feb 2024 their WA was this: +56962832224).
The rest of the day I didn’t do that much, but I will already mention here options for accommodation (focus on low budget, there are a lot of great options for higher budget travellers) and some restaurant suggestions.
Hostels:
- The first night I stayed at Hostal 53 Sur – Posada de Arturo Tours. A very simple place, breakfast included, I had a private room for about 15 Euros. Its okay, close to the bus station (other than that location not that great) but I wouldn’t recommend more than a night. – The personnel is super sweet though!
- Hostel El Patagonico: I chose this place for the last 2 of my nights in Puerto Natales. Rate was a bit more expensive with 24 USD per night for a dorm, but it has a lot of light, a cute common area and the location is amazing!
Restaurants:
You will quickly realise that food is EXPENSIVE! (The combination of Chile and Patagonia surely doesn’t help really hahaha)
- Pydarum: Cute Pasteleria
- Omili Haus Cafeteria Familiar (also a BnB) but also cute cafe
- Restaurante La Picada De Carlitos: A nice local restaurant, on the more affordable and typical side. Pisco Sour for 3k CLP, I had 1/4 chicken with potatoes, Pico de Gallo and bread for 5.5K CLP, which I can highly recommend.
Other places that were recommended to me:
On the same day I also walked around a bit more, but there is not too much to see. Stop by the Paseo de las Artes and el Monumento al viento. (if weather is good, the area around the river is really good for sunset too, which is super late in the winter months which is great!).
Day 2: Take the bus from Puerto Natales to El Calafate
The next morning (very early) it was time already to take the bus to El Calafate. Most buses were booked out so I had to take the 7am one. If you manage, I think 8 am is early enough hahah as you will not be able to do too much the same day in El Calafate, there is no big need for a rush. As always, I bought the ticket on Busbud.com.
The whole journey (including the border crossing) will take about 6 hours . It is a nice ride, I slept most of the time though as I was very tired hahahah. The main bus station you will arrive at, is an approx 20 min walk to the center, so absolutely doable.
I stayed at the El Calafate Hostel, which has very nice common areas, breakfast included and is very spacious. Paying cash it cost about 20k AP, with card 15k AP. (usually with cash its cheaper here, so don’t ask me why some places choose the other way round).
And then I just chilled around. There are a lot of nice and cute cafes in the town so just check them out and read a bit:
- Miles Coffee House
- Cafe Brown (particularly cute, the Red Velvet cake looked beautifuuuuul)
- Waffles Como en Casa
- Elba’r
Day 3: Visit the Perito Moreno Glacier and take the evening bus to El Chalten
The main attraction in El Calafate is the Perito Moreno glacier, so I chose to only stay one night in El Calafate and visit the glacier right in the morning after arriving.
The most expensive part about visiting the glacier (if you don’t wanna walk on it or take the boat tour) is the transport there. I heard that a full day taxi from El Calafate costs around 100 USD, so if you manage to create a group of 3-4 people that will be the cheapest option.
As I was traveling alone, I chose the bus. You have different providers for that. I went with Marga/Taqsa Patagonia and booked my transport right on the bus station for the next day. They go twice a day – either at 9am or I think 12pm and then return either at 2.30pm or 6pm. I took the earlier version to still be able to go to El Chalten in the evening of the same day. In the case of the bus, it was preferential to pay cash – I got a 4k AP reduction, amounting to 36k AP for both way transport.
The visit to the glacier only takes a couple of hours and there are not many preparations to be taken! Just take a good camera and be ready for some impressive amount of ice.
The bus will drop you off immediately where the trails start and you can take the “coast walk”. All trails together are only about 5-6km, so don’t let yourself be irritated by the time indications the maps tell you, it will take only around an hour of actual walking total.
A must do around the glacier: Once a while, some ice blocks break off from the glacier, making impressive sounds, but it also looks amazing! So bring a sandwich, sit on a nice bank around and wait for the ice to break.
In the afternoon, after returning from the glacier, I just quickly grabbed my luggage and took the bus straight to El Chalten. Also this, I had pre booked with Busbud. I don’t think the pre booking is always necessary but at least stay informed about how quickly it is selling out! (Actually the bus was kinda empty and often you get better offers in cash when you are there.)
I chose to stay in the Rancho Aparte Hostel for my three nights (consider to stay longer around El Chalten, it is amazing thereee haha :).
Day 4: Hike the Fitz Roy trek in El Chalten
Everybody starts the hike between 7-9 am, with no major preparations needed to be taken. According to the hostel owner, most people start the trail around 8am, 7am wasn’t an option for me though as I wanted to sleep at least a teeny tiny bit hahah.
Before the ascent, go and buy yourself some snacks (some bakeries open early in the morning) and some lunch things so you can master the 20km well. Just look on Google Maps for the start to the Path to Fitz Roy and after that follow the mass (the way is very well indicated). 😀
Looking back, I think honestly any time is good to start the trek. It took me 22.7 km total starting from my hostel and about 7 hours walking time (without breaks). As the sun in summer sets quite late, starting around 10 am should be enough too, just consider that the light changes (up on the mountain) and you will be able to take the better pictures earlier (or much later) in the day.
Up on the peak, as soon as reaching the lake, walk about 100m up to the left as well, to get the best viewpoint: the view over Laguna Sucia as well! I spent about 2 hours up there, but I was taking pictures forever and extending my lunch break to the maximum!
Find my snack and restaurant options further below after Day 5 and additional ideas for El Chalten.
Day 5: Hike Laguna Torre or Loma del Pliegue in El Chalten
On Day 5 I was ready for another hike! I had two options: either hike the Laguna Torre trek or Loma del Pliegue in El Chalten. The main difference between the two is the level of difficulty and the views.
Loma del Pliegue is quite demanding, as it is very steep for most of the hike but my friend quoted it to be “the favourite view in Patagonia” so it is definitely to be recommended (and I think less popular so less people).
The other one, Laguna Torre, is “only” officially 18km from the trail start and much flatter than the other hikes, but will also not reward you with the craziest views as you will walk through the valley and forest most of the time.
Due to some knee problems I opted for the Laguna Torre hike, as I wasn’t in the physical shape to do the first one (even though I would have preferred it). It was still beautiful and not too busy and directions easy to follow. Find the start of the trail here.
This trail took me about 20 km starting from the hostel and pure walking time 4 hours 20 minutes (so much quicker than the other one). I started the hike around 9.20 am and was back in El Chalten around 2.30 pm, chilling and enjoying the sun.
Additional ideas for El Chalten (if you have more time & wanna do more hikes):
If you have more days in El Chalten or wanna explore some other things, I will mention here some additional ideas (because there is so much to do!). El Chalten was honestly my favourite part of South Patagonia, as I loved to just be able to start the trails straight from the village without the need of buying any entrance tickets or whatsoever.
Cascada del Rio de la Cascada: If you have like half day or just a couple of hours free, walk to the aforementioned waterfall. The whole trip including stops should take no longer than 3 hours, it is about 1h 30 min total walking time (go and back) from El Chalten.
3-4 Day Hike! If you didn’t prepare for the W-Trek, don’t freak out, El Chalten is the perfect place to do a several day hike!!!! In the village you can rent all relevant camping material for 2 people for about 40 Euros a day. Also ask them for a multiple-day hike (which route to go etc.). There are camping spots distributed all over the national park and you will come across beautiful glacier lakes and in contrast to the W trek will NOT meet a lot of people, which is the most amazing part! Just consider that the nights will be very cold and that you have to bring all your food with you. Also there are no locations for waste disposal, so bring all your waste with you back to the village!!! A couple of day hike will bring you to the Fitz Roy Viewpoint, as well as the Laguna de Torres but you will see for example the Laguna Sucia from very close.
Restaurants & Lunch snacks in El Chalten:
- For lunch snacks and a coffee in the morning: I can really recommend the: Panaderia y confiteria Que Rika in El Chalten for a couple of good empanadas. Otherwise the Panaderia y confiteria los salteños is pretty good as well.
- La Wafleria: for a good waffle!
- Fresco Bar & Bourbon Smokehouse: Great for an after hike beer. (Fresco Bar has great burgers and fries too)
- La Lomiteria: Great sandwiches, burgers and fries
Besides that it is also super easy to just cook yourself, most hostels have a kitchen you can make your own pasta & co. to stay a bit more within your budget!
Day 6: Take the buses back to Puerto Natales
On Day 6 it was time to leave El Chalten (sadly, I would have loved to stay a couple more days :(( – also there was a cute guy who just moved into my room ahaha). Here again I had pre-booked my bus. Either do it via recorrido.cl or busbud.com (or just book at the bus station, which will be the cheapest, but a couple days in advance, as these buses tend to book out).
To go from El Chalten to Puerto Natales, you first have to go to El Calafate and take the bus from there to Puerto Natales. No worries, this can all be done within one day! I opted for the bus company Taqsa Marga, so to go with the same company both parts of the way (in case they have a delay, the likelihood that they wait for each other is higher of course!).
The bus leaves from El Chalten at 8am, arrives at 11am at El Calafate and then the second one leaves at 11.45 am and arrives around 6-7pm in Puerto Natales (depends on the border control).
Then I just checked in into my hostel El Patagonico, which I loved!!! Cozy cozy beds and a great cozy common area. And for dinner went to my favourite restaurant: Restaurante La Picada De Carlitos (take the 1/4 Chicken, it is the cheapest on the menu and you get a lot of food for great valueeeee!!!).
Day 7: Day hike in the Torres del Paine National Park
On Day 7 I decided to do the hike to the base of the Torres del Paine Nationalpark. The nationalpark is about 70-80km from Puerto Natales and the most famous place to visit in Chileno Patagonia. Many people do the W-Hike, which is a 3-4 day hike around the national park, including camping, which also needs a lot of preparation.
I only had time for the one-day trip, which is very beautiful as well, so it is still recommendable. Book your bus ticket from Puerto Natales either online (recorrido.cl or Busbud.com or at the bus station in Puerto Natales) (including the return). Most buses leave in the morning at around 7am and pick you up around 8pm in the evening at the park. The bus ticket should cost around 11-12.000 CLP per way.
If you want to do the base trail, book the ticket that goes until Laguna Amarga. From there (you will arrive around 8.45 am) you will have to take an additional Shuttle (about 4.000 CLP per way, taking 15 min) to the start of the trail, the Welcome Center of the Torres del Paine, where the trail officially starts. You can skip the shuttle of course and walk additional 6.5km per way but I would really not recommend that ahaha.
Additionally, book your ticket to the park in advance online! Check on the PasesParques.cl website, the up to 3 day entry is about 30$.
The whole base trail is about 21km long and pure walking time for me (without breaks) was around 6.30 hours. During the trail I experienced a lot of temperature changes, so wear different layers, so that you can change outfits according to altitude, wind and cloud levels!
The trek is very easy to follow, with little red signs everywhere so it is basically impossible to get lost (there are also enough people around, so I am sure you will find the way). You have total altitude changes of about 1.600 meters, but I found the Fitz Roy hike worse to be honest.
We had a bit of rain during that day, so our view was a bit limited (bring a rain jacket or sth like that), but still nice and absolutely worth to go. Also bring enough food, as anything you can buy in the park is very expensive. Water you can just take from the river (I love that so much, how amazing is it that the water coming fresh from the glaciers is absolutely drinkable???).
The last part of the hike, like at Fitz Roy, is the most exhausting, going up a bit for about 1km but the top surely is the best place for a cool lunch break. You will have about 2 hours on the top and still make it back on time for the 8pm bus.
You will arrive in Puerto Natales quite late, I was back in the hostel at around 10/10.15 pm and just showered and went to bed very quickly 😀
Personal thoughts about the W-Hike:
The Torres del Paine Base hike is the “highlight” of the W-Trek and marks either the beginning or the end of the several day hike – depending on the side of the trek you start from. It is a cool trek, however, very popular and therefore very crowded compared to many other treks. Further, as camping spots are very limited, the places need to be booked several weeks, even months in advance, which completely limits your flexibility – if the weather is bad, there is nothing you can do about it, as you have all accommodation pre booked. The nature of course is beautiful to see, but I honestly preferred the Argentinian side and the easiness and flexibility you can prepare your hikes from there – and you can do several day hikes there for a much lower cost and make it weather dependent!
If you are a solo-traveller, however, the W-trek will make it much easier for you to meet people and walk together, as there will be many people at the respective campgrounds so you will not really need to worry about being alone.
Day 8: Fly back to Santiago
After sleeping in a bit I went for some breakfast, lunch and then booked my transport to the airport. A number for the airport shuttle is the following (4k CLP per person): +56962832224
Best Travel Time:
The best travel time for Patagonia obviously is in Patagonian summer (which is from Nov-end of march). I went during end of February and it was great, I mostly had amazing weather and one day in El Chalten I even could walk around in shorts! So yeah, January and February are kind of the best months to go, but of course will be the most expensive and busiest too – but the view over Fitz Roy during blue skies was truly amazing I really have to say.
Additional ideas on what to visit:
Of course, the things I have seen are not even close to what is possible to do in Patagonia! First of all, there is the North and South of Patagonia and then the Tierra del Fuego. This time, I completely skipped the North of Patagonia (doing that a month later) and deepest south, but if you have a couple days more, I would probably look into Punta Arenas and Ushuaia as well.
Punta Arenas can be easily reached by bus from Puerto Natales and there you will be able to visit some penguin colonies! From there either fly or take the bus to Ushuaia and visit the Tierra del Fuego National Park and do a boat tour around the lakes to see more of the wildlife and do amazing hikes. If your funds are enough (mine are not haha) then consider as well an Antarctica tour, which is extremely expensive but will bring you to one of the remotest and southest places of the world!
Comment on the budget:
Patagonia is certainly not the cheapest place to travel to. But it doesn’t have to be too expensive either. I really did not prebook anything (everything always like only 2-3 days in advance). I still managed to stay within my budget of under 50 Euros a day. (excluding the buses between the cities (additional approx. 100 Euro total) but including the buses to the national park etc.). One of the most expensive items on your list will be the flight all the way down south for sure. Once there, stay in hostels, cook yourself and then it gets a lot cheaper than you might expect.
Overall, I had a really great time in South Patagonia and can really recommend my itinerary to everyone. Even as a solo traveler I met some amazing people and barely did any hikes alone, but do consider that it is not necessarily the most social region of the world (to meet fellow travellers).
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