Things to do in Patagonia
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Laguna Torre
If the weather is good and the wind is down, make a hike to Laguna Torre a priority. The trail is accessed from El Chaltén, either from behind Hostería Los Ñires or from the artisans' market north of the town. After a gentle initial climb, it's a fairly level walk through tranquil beech forests and along the Río Fitz Roy until a final steep climb up the lateral moraine left by the receding Glaciar del Torre.
The Mirador Laguna Torre offers a breathtaking view of the majestic spire of 3128m Cerro Torre, rising out of the valley in the background. Look for the 'mushroom' of snow and ice that caps the peak. This precarious formation is the final obstacle for hard-core cl…
reviewed
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Paine & Fitz Roy Trek
15 days (Calafate)
Experience the best of Torres del Paine and Los Glaciares National Parks on foot.
Not LP reviewed
from USD$3,720 -
Laguna de los Tres
Follow the main trail from Laguna Capri, which continues gently to Río Blanco, base camp for the Cerro Fitz Roy experience. From here it's a very steep climb to Laguna de los Tres (four hours one way). Bring loads of water and supplies - it's a toughie. But the extraordinary close view of Cerro Fitz Roy, as well as the eerily still glacial lake itself, make the effort worthwhile.
Be prepared for high, potentially hazardous winds and allow time for contemplation and recovery. Then scurry down 200m to the left of the lookout for an exceptional view of the emerald green Laguna Sucia.
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Pascasio
In a elegant, pared-down setting, this local star offers tasty innovations like wok seafood and ginger noodles, as well as exotic dishes like ñandú, wild boar and hare. Save room for decadent desserts, such as the serious 'study in chocolate.'
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Mr Jones
With a wealth of yummy stouts and reds, homemade pot pie and sausages, Mr Jones will satiate your appetite for all things German. The food is good and reasonably authentic.
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La Lechuza
A classic selection of empanadas, salads and pizza is served on round wooden plates – try the sheep cheese and olive pizza with a local microbrew.
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Pura Vida
Whole grains and abundant vegetarian dishes make this ambient eatery a traveler’s treat. The tables are candlelit and the kitchen serves healthy food in huge portions. Try the gnocchi with saffron, rabbit with cream or pumpkin stew served in an enormous gourd. It’s a 10-minute walk west of center.
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Casimiro Biguá
With warm copper accents and a hustling staff, this chic eatery and vinoteca (wine bar) offers an impressive list of 180 Argentine wines. The chef creates wonderful homemade pasta, risotto, lamb stew, and grilled trout and steak.
reviewed
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Parque El Desafío
Don’t miss Parque El Desafío, the perfect remedy to long-distance travel fatigue. Its octogenarian owner Joaquín Alonso, the ‘Dali of Recycling, ’ spent 30,000 hours fashioning some 80,000 bottles, cans and soda containers into whimsical folk art. Though he created the park to entertain his grandchildren, adults can appreciate it just as well. Plaques (some translated into English) with folk sayings and quotes from Seneca and Plato offer wit and reflection for all amid this symphony of junk. As one proclaims: Si quieres vivir mejor, mezcla a tu sensatez unos gramos de locura (‘If you want to live better, mix up your sensibility with a few grams of craziness’). The…
reviewed
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Chile, Argentina & Brazil
15 days (ex Santiago)
by Intrepid
Soak up Chile's cosmopolitan delights in Santiago, Sip Argentina's trademark wine on a vineyard tour near Mendoza, Sample tasty local delicacies in Bariloche, D…Not LP reviewed
from USD$4,400 -
Brazil, Argentina & Chile
15 days (ex Rio de Janeiro)
by Intrepid
Explore Brazil's bays and beaches by boat in secluded Paraty , Marvel at the might of Iguazu Falls, Visit Argentina's Lake District, Sip Argentinean wine in Men…Not LP reviewed
from USD$4,400 -
Ushuaia To Santiago
23 days (ex Ushuaia)
by Intrepid
Travel to Tierra del Fuego to spot sea lions, Visit Ushuaia, the world's southernmost city, Hike through stunning Torres del Paine National Park, Watch the crea…Not LP reviewed
from USD$1,495 -
Monumento Natural Bosques Petrificados
During Jurassic times, 150 million years ago, this area enjoyed a humid, temperate climate with flourishing forests, but intense volcanic activity buried them in ash. Erosion later exposed the mineralized Proaraucaria trees (ancestors of the modern Araucaria, unique to the southern hemisphere), up to 3m in diameter and 35m in length. Today, the 150-sq-km Monumento Natural Bosques Petrificados has a small visitor center, English-language brochure and short interpretive trail, leading from park headquarters to the largest concentration of petrified trees. Until its legal protection in 1954, the area was plundered for some of its finest specimens; please don’t perpetuate thi…
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Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio
Showcasing the most important fossil finds in Patagonia, this natural-history museum offers outstanding life-sized dinosaur exhibits and more than 1700 fossil remains of plant and marine life. Nature sounds and a video accent the informative plaques, and tours are available in a number of languages. The collection includes local dinosaurs, such as the tehuelchesaurus, patagosaurus and titanosaurus. Museum researchers were part of an international team that discovered a new and unusual species called Brachytrachelopan mesai, a short-necked sauropod. Feruglio was an Italian paleontologist who came to Argentina in 1925 as a petroleum geologist for YPF.
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Hielo y Aventura
Boat trips allow you to sense the magnitude of Glaciar Moreno, even though the boats keep a distance. Hielo y Aventura runs Safari Nautico (AR$45), a one-hour tour of Brazo Rico, Lago Argentino and the south side of Canal de los Témpanos. Catamarans crammed with up to 130 passengers leave hourly between 11:30am and 3:30pm from Puerto Bajo de las Sombras. Don’t forget rain gear: it’s often snowing around the glacier and you might get wet and cold quickly on the boat deck. Many travelers suggest getting on the last boat ride of the day and then viewing the glacier from the look-out platforms afterwards, when fewer visitors will crowd the catwalks.
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Best Of Chile & Argentina
8 days (ex Santiago)
by Intrepid
Sip Argentina's trademark wine on a vineyard tour near Mendoza, Admire the dramatic scenery of Chile's Lakes District, Sample tasty local delicacies in Bariloch…Not LP reviewed
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Best Of Argentina & Chile
8 days (ex Buenos Aires)
by Intrepid
Live it up in vivacious Buenos Aires, Sample culinary delights in beautiful Bariloche, Enjoy a plethora of outdoor activities in Bariloche, Sip yummy Malbec win…Not LP reviewed
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Ecocentro
Celebrating the area’s marine treasures, Ecocentro is a masterpiece of interactive displays that combine artistic sensitivity with extensive scientific research. Exhibits explore the area’s unique marine ecosystem, including the breeding habits of right whales, stories about dolphin sounds and southern elephant-seal harems, a touch-friendly tide pool and more. The building itself is equally impressive. The three-story tower acts as a library, with the top story – all glass and comfy couches – a great place to read, write or contemplate the fragile ocean community. Bring your binoculars: whales may be spotted from here.
reviewed
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Chile & Argentina Discovery
13 days (ex Santiago)
by Intrepid
Get up close to smouldering Villarrica Volcano in Pucon, Soak up the coastal beauty of Ancud, Travel across the Andes to Argentina's Lake District, Get adventur…Not LP reviewed
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Bosque Petrificado Sarmiento
Fallen giants are scattered in a pale sandstone landscape at this petrified forest, 30km southeast of Sarmiento. From the visitor center, a trail leads through ethereal grounds with the appearance of a lumberyard gone mad: ‘wood’ chips cover the ground and huge petrified logs, up to 100m in length and 1m wide, are strewn about. Unlike the petrified forest in Santa Cruz, these trunks were brought here by strong river currents from the mountainous regions about 65 million years ago. The most impressive area of the park has a handful of large trunks set against the red and orange striated bluffs.
reviewed
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Patagonia Wilderness
15 days (ex Buenos Aires)
by Intrepid
Witness Argentina's Perito Moreno Glacier, Trek the Patagonian wilderness through Argentina and Chile, Camp among the peaks of Chilean Patagonia, Explore the la…Not LP reviewed
from USD$3,415 -
Patagonia Trekking
10 days (ex Santiago)
by Intrepid
Savour Chilean culture in Santiago, Admire Chile's landscapes in Punta Arenas, Camp in the heart of the Patagonian wild, Trek past Patagonia's dramatic granite …Not LP reviewed
from USD$3,090 -
Parque Nacional Los Glaciares
Among Earth’s most dynamic and accessible ice fields, Glaciar Perito Moreno is the stunning centerpiece of the southern sector of Parque Nacional Los Glaciares. Locally referred to as Glaciar Moreno, it measures 30km long, 5km wide and 60m high, but what makes it exceptional in the world of ice is its constant advance – it creeps forward up to 2m per day, causing building-sized icebergs to calve from its face. In some ways, watching the glacier is a very sedentary park experience, but it manages to nonetheless be thrilling.
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Canal de los Témpanos
Visiting Glaciar Moreno is no less an auditory than a visual experience, as huge icebergs on the glacier's face calve and collapse into the Canal de los Témpanos. This natural-born tourist attraction is ideally located at Península de Magallanes - close enough to guarantee great views, but far enough away to be safe. A series of recently improved catwalks and vantage points allow visitors to see, hear and photograph the glacier.
Sun hits its face in the morning and the glacier's appearance changes as the day progresses and shadows shift.
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