Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
392
most of your food in Puerto Natales, as there are very limited grocery options in the park,
and y ou can not take fr esh food acr oss the bor der fr om Argentina. F rom the near est
Chilean airport in Punta Arenas, it's a 5-hour drive to the park. From Puerto Natales, the
park is about an hour nor th by car.
BY BUS
To get to Torres del Paine from Argentina by bus, your best bet is to take the
regular bus to P uerto Natales, spend the night ther e, then head into the par k the next
morning.
Bus Sur Zaahj,
at the B us Terminal (
&
02902/491631
), runs this r oute on
Tuesdays, Thursdays and S aturdays, leaving E l Calafate at 8am.
Cootra
(
&
02902/
491144
), depar ts El Calafate at 8:30am. B uy tickets at least the day befor e to ensur e
yourself a seat.
Cordillera del S ol,
whose office is at 25 de M ayo 43, in E l Calafate
(
&
02902/492822;
www.cordilleradelsol.com), offers transfers from El Calafate to Tor-
res del Paine directly.
From Puerto Natales, buses to Torres del P aine enter thr ough the Laguna Amarga
ranger station, stop at the Pehoé catamaran dock, and terminate at the par k administra-
tion center. If you're going directly to the Torres trail head at H ostería Las Torres, there
are minivan transfers waiting at the Laguna Amarga station that charge about $8 (£5.40)
one-way. The return times given below are when the bus leaves from the park administra-
tion center; the bus will pass through the Laguna Amarga station about 45 minutes later.
Some buses will pick y ou up fr om your hotel, but it depends on the r elationship your
hotel has with the various bus companies, so ask at the hotel r eception.
Trans Via Paine,
Bulnes 516 (
&
61/413672), leav es daily at 7:30am via Laguna
Amarga.
Gomez,
Arturo Prat 234 (
&
61/411971), also leaves at 7:30am, returning from
the administration building at 1pm.
Buses JB,
Arturo Prat 258 (
&
61/410242), departs
also at 7:30am, returning at 1pm. The cost is around $15 (£10) one-way.
BY TOUR VAN
From El Calafate, a handful of similar “Paine in a Day” tours includes
one organized by
Chaltén Travel
(
&
02902/492212
in El Calafate; www.chaltentravel.
com) for $95 (£64). It's a long but unforgettable day. They will also pick you up or drop
you off in the par k.
Comapa
(
&
61/414300;
www.comapa.com) has an 11-hour tour
of Paine from Puerto Natales that includes a fe w short hikes and lunch at the H ostería
Lago Grey.
BY CAR
From El Calafate, the dir ect drive to Torres del Paine is 394km (224 miles).
Head south on R uta 11 to R uta 40, past the small to wn at El Cerrito, to the bor der at
Cerro Castillo, also known as Cancha Carrera. The border is open daily in summer time
from 8am to 10pm. O n the Chilean side of the bor der, head north on Ruta 9 at Cerr o
Castillo, 84km (52 miles) to the par k's administration building, or right/south on R uta
9, for 63km (39 miles) to P uerto Natales. Be sure to tell the r ental car agency that y ou
will be taking your car to Chile, which requires special permits. The drive is 342km (212
miles) long and takes approximately 5 hours.
CROSSING LAGO PEHOÉ BY CATAMARAN
Day hikers to the G lacier Grey trail
and backpackers taking the W or Cir cuit trails will need to cr oss Lake P ehoé at some
point aboard a catamaran, about a 45-minute ride.The cost is $22 (£15) one-way or $36
(£24) round-trip. Buses from Puerto Natales are timed to drop off and pick up passengers
in conjunction with the catamaran (N ov 15-Mar 15 leaving P udeto at 9:30am, noon,
and 6pm; and fr om Pehoé at 10am, 12:30, and 6:30pm; O ct 16-30 and M ar 16-30
from Pudeto at noon and 6pm, and P ehoé at 12:30 and 6pm; O ct 1-15 and Apr, from
Pudeto at noon, fr om Pehoé at 12:30pm; closed M ay-Sept, but ser vice may expand—
check with CONAF). Hikers walking the entire round-trip Glacier Grey trail can do so
12
