Top El Calafate Day Trips

Seem to have dealt with alot of companies on this trip; Tangol, Gigantes Patagones, and the tour operator on the day seemed to be Tiempolibre who supplied the coaches and tour guide. Prompt pickup at my hotel and a bus feeder transfer to a coach outside El Calafate. Was booked to do the optional boat ride at 10AM with balcones after. You can also buy the park ticket at the park entrance 45,000 ars with cash or card. Toilet breaks along the way, and there is a Cafe at the glacier centre. After getting our boat tickets we were then told the boat had departed, and the boat was cancelled until 1PM. So we did the balcones first. No big deal. Stunning glacier and good narration in English. I would recommend this trip.

The drive from El Calafate is about 2.5 hours. On the way you stop at several spots for photographs of Lake Argentina and landscapes. After you enter the national park we drove to some catamarans, boarding one to go to within 200 meters of the south face of the Perito Moreno glacier. Afterwards we went to a restaurant located near walking paths that provide views of the north and south face of the glaciers. The paths are very well constructed but there are hundreds of steps down and them back up. The views were amazing. We saw and heard “calving” of the glacier (where pieces break off and fall into the lake). The drive back was just over an hour.

The lady accompanied us to the airport was so nice. She provided significant help when the airport was chaotic due to yesterday's cancelling. The company "Patagonia Dreams" are really well organized. Not only the airport transfers, all their other tours I joined were wonderful, such as the one going to Perito Moreno with mini trekking.

It wa so much fun, but REALLY cold- like way colder than the tour company told us. The guides Manuel and Selene were great (Manuel even gave us his jacket)and made sure we got to see different aspects of the glacier as well as learn about it. The ice trekking is well worth the cost- there were many guides with us to make sure we were safe and a lot goes into letting plebs walk on the ice. It was really fun and a thoughtful ending to have whiskey on the glacier! After the trek, and ferry ride, we went to the boardwalks. I couldn’t imagine only getting to see the glacier from the boat or boardwalks- if you can do it, the trek is well worth the extra $!

The boat trip was fantastic; lots of glaciers and icebergs. The boat was comfortable and smooth. The on board commentary in English and Spanish was excellent. Key question is whether to take the walk off option at the Petito Moreno glacier or stay on the boat. If this is your only day in Glacier National Park, take the walk off one hour option. The 1 hour option on this tour does not do the walking trails justice, but it is better than nothing. The better thing to do is spend two days in the park (buy a 2 day ticket and the second day is half price). Take the boat trip on Day 1 and stay on the boat. Return to the park on Day 2 for the walking trails. There are four trails and it takes 3-4 hours to cover all the trails which is well worth doing. By the way, if you are doing the Day 2 trail option, hire a taxi to take you to the park, wait for you and return you to where you are staying. That cost us about $150 US (with tip) which was less than the price of another tour to the park, and you have much more flexibility about when you arrive and leave than with a fixed hour tour.

We had the most amazing day from start to finish. Natalia shared so much knowledge on the journey to the Glaciar. We were shown maps and pictures of the area and wild life. Our driver was super careful, courteous and friendly. Thank you for a wonderful well organised day to the most beautiful glacier.

This is a must do and make sure to select the option with navigation. It was an incredible experience and journey to the glacier Perito Moreno. Our tour guide Alexandra did a superb job with all the information she gave us during the hour it took to get from El Calafate town to the glacier park. The sceneries are breath taking and we were lucky to see a piece of the glacier falling in the water. We definately recommend this tour. It is worth it. Thank you for this great experience. Sylvain & Hélène

An excellent tour, picked up by the South Road bus, for the long 15 hour day tour to Chile and back. Silvestre was excellent as a guide. There was a stop each way at La Esperanza and the border crossings were easy. We received our box lunch which contained plenty of food. The scenery was spectacular in the park starting with Lake Sarmiento which has the best panoramic views of Torres del Paine. There were further stops, including for Guanacos, at lakes for different views of the mountains. There was also a short walk to a lookout and an impressive waterfall. We saw everything we had hoped to see. On the way back we stopped to look at Mt Fitzroy away on the horizon.