Shore Excursion Punta Tombo cruise passengers Puerto Madryn

Recommended by 98% of travelers

Badge of Excellence

Puerto Madryn, Argentina

7 hours (approx.)
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

Why travelers loved this

4.8

· Stephanie_J ·

Feb 2026

The administrative department of this company provided excellent communication, even with a date change. Our tour was well run with Pablo as our driver and Hugo as our guide. Hugo gave us lots of information and answered the questions we had. The penguins were so fun to see up close and there were lots of them. We had a fantastic time!

· Cheryl_E ·

Jan 2026

Lots and lots of penguins. Something like 20,000 nesting burrows. A nice area to view them swimming from above the beach, also a herd of guanacos in the park, and some cute little “scuis” (cava). You will see penguins

Overview

See the penguins of Punta Tombo up close on a tour that takes you to a place where the largest colony of Magellanic penguins in the world roosts and raises their young. Wander through the rookery and see thousands of penguins caring for their chicks, molting their feathers and preparing to head back to the frozen south to hunt for fish.

Lunch is included on this tour
Ideal for photography fans and any traveler interested in wildlife
This is a small group tour—no more than 16 people will take part
Travel in a comfortable, air conditioned vehicle from Puerto Madryn

What's Included

Air-conditioned vehicle
Guide in Spanish and English
Box lunch (regular, vegetarian, vegan or gluten free options)
Bottled water

Entrance fee (around 20 usd)

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Muelle de Puerto Madryn
U9120 Puerto Madryn, Chubut Province, Argentina
We'll be waiting for you at the end of the pier with a sign with the name of our agency SUSSANICH TURISMO. To get to the meeting point, you can take the free shuttle or walk to the end of the pier (it takes about 10 minutes, the length is 1000 meters). 100% guaranteed on-time return to the dock.

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Arranged start time

Confirm time with the local provider in advance of your experience.

01/11/2024 - 22/05/2027
Monday - Sunday : 7:00 am - 10:00 am

Itinerary

Punta Tombo

7 hours • Admission Ticket Not Included

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking, unless booked within 5 hours of travel. In this case confirmation will be received as soon as possible, subject to availability
Wheelchair accessible
Transportation is wheelchair accessible

Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 40 travelers

Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

Stephanie_J

Reviews

4.8

based on 54 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Go in Sept-Oct

Jill_H, Mar 2026

If we had traveled in September-October at the start of the season, I would give this a five star review, but we were there at the end of the season in March. Instead of seeing thousands of Magellanic penguins, we saw maybe 100, very close up which was neat. And the area is beautiful. But it’s a 2 1/2 hour drive from Puerto Madryn. I don’t know if we would have done it if we knew how few penguins were left. Thankfully, we were the first tour group of the day and had the place to ourselves for quite a while. Definite good fortune as it got very crowded later. Our tour guide and driver were both very good. They gave us a quick drive through downtown to show us where the highlights are and took us to the cave memorial. Very much appreciated!

Response from Host, Mar 2026

Hello Jill, Thank you very much for sharing your experience and for your kind words about our guide and driver. March is indeed the very end of the penguin season at Punta Tombo, when many Magellanic penguins have already migrated back to the ocean, which naturally reduces the number of animals present. Even so, we’re glad you were able to see them up close and enjoy the beauty of the area — and that arriving early allowed you to experience the reserve before the crowds. We truly appreciate your visit and your feedback.

Small group, small...

lesek_b, Mar 2026

Small group, small vehicle. Frequent rest stops on this long drive from the port. Guide and driver were excellent with communicating the nature observed during the trip. Penguins were during the moulting season and were easy to observe from a boardwalk at the park. Up close with Magellanic penguins. Small cafe and shop at the park.

Response from Host, Mar 2026

Hello Lesek, Thank you very much for your review. We’re glad you enjoyed the small-group experience and the frequent stops along the way, as well as the information shared by our guide and driver. Molting season at Punta Tombo is indeed a special time to observe Magellanic penguins up close from the boardwalk. We appreciate you joining us and hope to welcome you again in Patagonia!

The administrative...

Stephanie_J, Feb 2026

Response from Host, Feb 2026

Thank you Stephanie we are glad you liked your tour to Punta Tombo and that you enjoyed being with the penguins. Hope to welcome you another time!

Trip to Punta Tombo to...

Kenneth_L, Feb 2026

Trip to Punta Tombo to see the Megellanic penguins with a stop at dinosaur sculpture. While the drive was long, the tour guide Marianna made the trip enjoyable with information about the area, its history and and animal life.

Response from Host, Feb 2026

Thank you Kenneth! It was a pleasure to receive you and your brother! We are happy to know you liked the tour. Have a safe trip back!

Lots of penguins

Cheryl_E, Jan 2026

Response from Host, Jan 2026

Hello Cheryl ! Thank you, we are glad to know you liked the tour Hope to see you another time!

Rushed Punta Tombo tour

CarmenMelissa_O, Jan 2026

Punta Tombo is a beautiful place with great opportunity to see penguins and walk around them. The scenery is great for pictures. I won’t recommend this tour to cruise passengers with limited time on port. If your disembarkation time is after 9:30am and all-aboard time is before 5:00pm it will be tight. It takes 2-3hrs to arrive to Punta Tombo Tour agencies take long to check in groups and fill up the buses. It is not organized and very chaotic. Our experience was that after getting checked in and sitting inside the bus for a while, we were asked to move to a different bus to accommodate a bigger group. When we did this our group had to pickup leftover seats and our family couldn’t sit together for such a long drive. The whole tour started at 10:30am giving us only 50 minutes to spend a Punta Tombo after the long drive. Our tour guide Laura was very knowledgeable and made the journey very entertaining and did her best to keep us on time. The tour agency should improve the checking process for cruise passengers and only use smaller buses. As a cruise passenger, I would’ve rather experience the beauty of Puerto Madryn than spending all that time on a bus to do a rushed Punta Tombo visit and penguin tour. I would do this tour again if not traveling on a cruise.

Response from Host, Jan 2026

Carmen, how are you? This is Santiago Sussanich, the agency owner. You're right, there was a misunderstanding with your group. The English/Spanish language issue caused the confusion, as you speak both languages. The waiting time from disembarking to exiting was 35 minutes, when it's usually 20-25 minutes. The distances and travel times are long, and we prioritize safety by not exceeding 90 km/h. Several other vehicles traveled that same day and could have had the 90-minute wait we aim for at the reserve. This was because they disembarked earlier (9:30 am), and the actual delay in exiting was 20 minutes. We know that delays in disembarking are often unintentional, but we depend on these schedules. We're glad that the vehicle, the guide, and Punta Tombo met your expectations. Best regards.

Once in a lifetime

karen_h, Jan 2026

Incredible tour well worth the journey The tour guide kept you entertained and informed during the long journey . The end result was once in a life time so close & personal to the penguins it was incredible . You understand their habits and learn so much whilst being so close and part of their world just briefly. The lunch was pretty filling & fresh as well as we had a cheeky glass of wine out there too . It’s very respectfully done with ultimate respect afford to the wildlife. I could not recommend it more Thank you George

Response from Host, Jan 2026

Hello Karen, thank you for leaving us a review! We will work on this so that we can improve our service. It was a pleasure to receive you Hope to see you another time!

Easy change of itinerary

Yonn_Y, Dec 2025

Agency is flexible for us to change to Peninsula Valdes and change is very easy. Our guide Celeste is not comfortable with English so we don’t communicate much which is a waste because we think she is knowledgeable about animals.

Response from Host, Jan 2026

Hello Yonn, thank you for leaving us a review! We will work on this so that we can improve our service. It was a pleasure to receive you Hope to see you another time!

Penguins Everywhere

Ed_S, Dec 2025

It’s a long trip but well worth it. Seeing the large Penguin colony in their natural habitat was the highlight of our holiday. You get really close to the Penguins walking around and in their burrows. You would never get to see anything like this anywhere in Europe. Our guide Valera was very good and told us lots of facts about Argentina and the penguins.

Response from Host, Dec 2025

Hello! Thank you for leaving us a review! Hope to see you another time!

Beyond Expectations. Well worth the long drive.

Gordon_M, Jun 2025

This was a great once-in-a-lifetime experience. It was early January and we saw penguins with their fuzzy babies everywhere as well as guanacos. A million penguins nest all over this area. Some nests were within a foot of the walkway. After a long ride we arrived later than the cruise ship busses (but we did stay later than them). We were on the second bus and had to wait for a few stragglers at the start. We barely missed getting on the first bus which left much earlier. The rest stop enroute took too long, mainly due to the limited facilities there. Our tour guide told us we would see penguins right at the start of the walkway but keep going because we would see so many more. She also told us it would take about 45 minutes to get to end but we should do that. Both were great advice. We saw so many nesting penguins and chicks. Penguins crossed the boardwalk numerous times. Some stayed on the walk and we had to go around them. At the end are several beaches and penguins entering and leaving the water, which was cool to see. Because we stayed a little later, the crowds thinned out and we enjoyed the walk back. A that time, most of the penguins and their chicks were standing outside the nests facing the water, waiting for the mates to return with food. Our group decided not to stop at the dinosaur, which we still pasted in the interest of time. We had a boxed lunch on the ride back. It was plain sandwiches light on the meat and cheese, nothing great but it included a bunch of snacks and a fruit so it was okay. The bus was comfortable, the guide was great but the main thing that made this outstanding were all of the penguins and guanacos at Porto Tomba.

Loved Tombo n the penguins. The reason for only 4 stars is the bus was very old, not in good condition n very uncomfortable for a 2 1/2 hour ride. The other buses we saw were in much better shape. I am just glad it made it.

Great tour good driving tour guide exceptional absolutely loves her job and nature. Lunch box perfect

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Thank you Anthony! It was a pleasure to serve you. We hope to see you on another time. Regards from Sussanich Turismo team

penguins!

turnercindy, Feb 2024

it was amazing to see so many penguins in their natural habitat. the drive is long, but well worth it.

Response from Host, Feb 2024

Thanks you for your comment. Sussanich Turismo team

Awesome!

Gregory_G, Dec 2023

Super fun day! The van was nice and air conditioned, we got there before everyone else and spent time on the path without a lot of people around. Maria was awesome and told us about the area on the long drives. There were so many penguins!!

Response from Host, Dec 2023

Hello Gregory. Thank you very much for leaving us your evaluation of the tour. We are glad that both the guide and the transportation were to your liking. We are happy to know that you were able to appreciate the large number of penguins seen in the area. We wish you a good trip Kind regards