Itinerary

Nine days in Patagonia

Inspiration for your next adventure

Big hikes to the base of the towers by day, a lodge with a fire and a very good Carménère by night, then over the border to walk on a glacier. Bougie and backcountry, at the end of the world.

Who this is for

Hikers who want big days in serious weather and a lodge with a fire waiting at the end of them. You will happily walk twenty kilometers if someone else has thought about dinner.

The shape of the trip

Where you sleep, and the rhythm of the days

Torres del Paine, 5 nights · El Calafate, 3

A warm-up hike, then the big one, then glaciers, wildlife and a spa afternoon. Cross the border by road, walk on the ice, and finish at an old sheep estancia. The splurge is the all-inclusive lodge in the park, which is what makes the hard days feel easy.

Where to go and what to eat

The places

01 · 5 nights
Torres del Paine
Fly overnight to Santiago, then south to Puerto Natales, about two hours from the park in season. Your lodge has the guides, the fire and the menu. Warm up with a walk past the Salto Grande waterfall to the Cuernos lookout, or ride out with the park's baqueanos, the Patagonian cowboys. The big day is the hike to Mirador Las Torres: roughly twenty kilometers round trip, with a steep last hour over boulders, and worth every step. Then cruise among icebergs to the face of Grey Glacier, and go out on foot with a tracker to look for pumas on the private estancias along the park's eastern edge. Park entry is bought online in advance.
02
The lodge
This is the bougie half of the trip, and it matters. After a day in the wind, you come back to a hot bath, a spa, and a dinner you did not have to think about. It is why the next day's hike feels possible.
03 · 3 nights
El Calafate and the glaciers
Drive into Argentina, about five to six hours including the border. Walk the balconies in front of the Perito Moreno Glacier, a wall of ice some seventy meters high that calves into the lake with a sound like thunder, then put on crampons for a guided trek on the ice. The shorter trek takes ages 8 to 65, and the longer one 18 to 50. Spend a final day crossing Lago Argentino by boat, past the icebergs of the Upsala Glacier, to Estancia Cristina, an old sheep ranch, and eat Patagonian lamb slow-roasted over a fire.

My take on Patagonia

make is shorter Patagonia is the ultimate bucket-list destination, perfectly blending rugged backcountry adventure with effortless luxury at the end of the earth. Designed for hikers who want big days in serious weather, it pairs five nights in Torres del Paine with three nights in El Calafate.

The best decision you can make is booking an all-inclusive lodge in the park, where guides, transfers, and amazing dinners are handled so your energy goes straight to the trail. You'll tackle the iconic twenty-kilometer trek to Mirador Las Torres, cruise among icebergs at Grey Glacier, and track wild pumas on private estancias. Afterward, cross into Argentina to strap on crampons and trek across the thunderous Perito Moreno Glacier, and feast on slow-roasted lamb at an old sheep ranch.

Just be sure to visit between November and March (avoiding the closed routes of winter), pack serious layers for the relentless wind, and tack on two nights in Buenos Aires on the way home for steak and tango.

My take

Worth it, and what to skip

Worth it

The all-inclusive lodge. Guides, transfers and dinner are handled, so your energy goes to the trail.
A puma tracker. You may not see one. If you do, you will never forget it.
Two nights in Buenos Aires on the way home. Domestic flights land at the city airport and international flights leave from Ezeiza, so you may as well stay for steak and tango.

Skip it

The southern winter. Days are short, routes close and flights to Puerto Natales thin out. Come between November and March.
Packing just a rain jacket. The wind never stops. Bring layers.