Buses and Transportation in Patagonia

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mtufts
mtufts

Hi everyone,

I'll be going on a (relatively) brief Patagonian backpacking excursion with a friend next week and we're struggling a bit with interpreting the bus schedules and best means of transportation around the area. We are flying into El Calafate and from there intend to hit Perito Moreno Glacier first (one day), then travel to Torres del Paine (likely via Puerto Natales, unless someone has a better suggestion!) for a few days, then come back through El Calafate up to El Chaltén for several days. Anybody know the cheapest / easiest (though usually not synonymous) option for getting to Torres del Paine from El Calafate and back again? El Chaltén seems relatively straight forward.

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JoeMortimer
JoeMortimer
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Hi @mtufts, I did this journey a month ago and it was relatively painless. To visit the glacier, you can do it independently by taking one of the regular buses from El Calafate to the Parque Nacional de los Glaciare, or book yourselves into an organised tour on the morning after your arrival. To get to Puerto Natales, we booked a bus ticket with Cootra from El Calafate directly to Puerto Natales. It took around 5.5 hours. We bought the bus ticket from the main terminal in El Calafate and it cost around $40 to $60 (depending on whether you are changing money at the official or "blue" rate). There are several other companies that run the same route. From Puerto Natales, you can get a bus to the entrance to Torres del Paine (about 1.5 hours away) and spend three or four days doing the 'W' circuit, before returning to PN and then back to El Calafate. Happy hiking.

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