Fly to El Calafate from Buenos Aires to begin your Argentina adventure. Spend two days hiking through one of the most gorgeous sites on Earth, Laguna de Los Tres, which offers breathtaking views in all directions. Then travel south to Argentina's Parque Nacional Los Glaciares, a mountainous region with lakes and glaciers. Your tour comes to an end with a hike up the breathtaking Perito Moreno Glacier.
Highlights
Hike in the majestic Patagonian landscape with views of Mount Fitz Roy
Search for Patagonian wildlife, such as the rare Andean condors
Trek along the turquoise waters of glacial lakes through verdant valleys
Explore Perito Moreno Glacier, one of the largest glaciers in South America
Activities that provide a reasonable level of physical challenge and elevate the heart rate. Focused on more active pursuits including multisport tours. Travelers may be active 5-7 hours total each day. Recommended for travelers with active lifestyles.
Upon arrival, check into your hotel and embark on an afternoon cultural and architectural tour of Buenos Aires. Walk through historic streets, visit the city's famous landmarks, and wander through the area called the "Paris of South America" before choosing one of the many restaurants for a delectable dinner.
A morning flight takes you to the lively town of El Calafate to begin your Argentina travels. Upon arrival, begin the four-hour drive across the rugged landscape toward Chalten. Along the way, enjoy the magnificent geography of the region as you drive through the mountains, passing stunning lakes and winding rivers. This evening, settle in to your comfortable room in your hotel in Chalten.
Awake early this morning to begin a full-day hike to Laguna de los Tres. The first 10 km gradually ascend through open and forested areas, with stunning views of Mt. Fitz Roy as you proceed. Your route crosses the Rio Blanco before you begin the toughest part of your trek - a fifty-minute climb that zigzags up a 45º slope. Your efforts are more than rewarded when you arrive at the eerily still glacial Laguna de Los Tres, where one of Patagonia's (and, quite possibly, the world's) best panoramic vistas stretches out before you! Enjoy lunch and feast on the views of the colossus of granite, ice, and sky, before heading back down to El Chalten for a free evening and a good night's sleep. 8 hrs hiking covering 13 miles (21 km).
Today is another full day of hiking up to Laguna Torre. Ascend from the De las Vueltas River Valley through dense southern beech forests, and enjoy views of the jagged Mount Torre-Adela range in the distance. Continue climbing gradually until you reach Laguna Torre, where you are rewarded by a stunning vista: majestic Mount Torre, flanked by the Adela mountains, high peaks, and glaciers spilling blue-white towards the lagoon. Eat lunch by the shores of the lagoon before hiking back to El Chalten for the evening. 6 hrs hiking covering 11 miles (17 km).
Today transfer back to El Calafate. This can be an early transfer, arriving back in El Calafate with time to explore El Calafate further. You may explore the local museum, El Glaciarium, which offers great exhibits and insight into the environmental impacts involved with the formation and depletion of glaciers. Or this can be a late transfer, allowing for more time to hike again in El Chalten. There are various options, including waterfalls, smaller viewpoints, or the grand views from Pliegue Tumbado.
Today you drive into Parque Nacional Los Glaciares for views of the stunning Perito Moreno Glacier. This huge advancing glacier is more than 3 miles wide at its front and over 20 stories high. Take a boat across Lago Argentino and pass the massive front wall of blue ice, all the while watching for icebergs. After landing on a small beach you start hiking through the beech forest to the icepack of the glacier and have the opportunity to walk on the glacier with crampons. (This Glacier trek has a minimum age of 10 and a maximum age of 65. Alternate excursions are available for those under 10 or over 65 years of age.) Eat your lunch sitting on the lateral moraine of the glacier, where you can absorb the magnificence of the glacier's anatomy and listen to its thunderous concerto of groaning and cracking ice dropping into the lake below.
Contact us if you are interested in the Big Ice Adventure, a more active excursion that spends more time on the ice. Click here for more details.
Day 7: Return Home
1 Breakfast
Catch your flight to Buenos Aires and connecting flights homeward, or with more time, take a trek on the Perito Moreno Glacier, cross into Chile to visit Torres del Paine, or head north to Iguazú Falls to continue your Argentina travel adventures.
Apologies for the inconvenience. Prices for not yet published. Below per person rate based on previous season. Contact us to confirm upcoming season pricing.
Prices for are estimated based on inflation. Contact us to confirm pricing and availability for your desired departure date.
Initial deposit is $400, and most travelers will call our office and pay the deposit with a credit card.
Final payment is due 70 days (10 weeks) prior to departure by bank transfer, check or credit card. All final payments by credit card may be subject to a surcharge and maximum of $20,000 charge
Our guide and driver were very good with their knowledge and were very helpful with our questions. It was a very pleasant visit that would have been impossible to do on our own. Hotels and restaurants were fantastic. The special places we got to go to, like the kitchens, were great. Enjoyed the entire trip!
Very well organiced.
Great communication
Easy to handle website for required docs to file .
Pleasant Experience
Nancy Kaierle
3 days ago
Very well ececuted. Hily recomended. Great experiance
Nancy Kaierle
1 month ago
The entire experience was great. Erin really knows her stuff and provided me with a lot of great insight and advice.
MARGARET CINCOTTA
5 months ago
Mary always does an outstanding job... and this trip planning was no exception. She always brings a high level of quality customer service to any question or request we pose.
Linda Bird
7 months ago
Mary Curry is very responsive to my emails and sends me the information I request very quickly.