Patagonia: Torres del Paine O Circuit

You may arrive to either Punta Arenas or Puerto Natales depending on available flights/dates. Puerto Natales is closer to the park, which will cut out a portion of the drive on Day 1.

Upon your arrival in Punta Arenas, your guide and driver will meet you, and we’ll drive in a private vehicle through the Patagonian steppe, with views of the ocean and Argentina to the east, and the bottom tip of the Andes to the west as we make our way north towards the Southern Patagonian Ice Field. We will pass the charming town of Puerto Natales and beautiful Seno Ultima Esperanza (Last Hope Sound), before continuing to Torres del Paine National Park, where we'll take in the first spectacular views of the Paine Massif (weather permitting). In the evening we'll settle in at Hotel Las Torres, making sure your packs are correctly packed for the trail ahead before we have a cozy dinner at the hotel.

• Meals: Box Lunch, Dinner
• Accommodation: Hotel Las Torres
• Total Driving Time: Approx. 6 hours from Punta Arenas / 2-3 hours from Puerto Natales

We'll start our trek with the most iconic hike of the park - to the base of the Towers. Our hike begins with a steep ascent underneath the hanging glacier of Almirante Nieto (8,700 ft) with beautiful views of lake Nordenskjöld. After about an hour and a half we reach Refugio El Chileno, where we will have access to bathrooms. We will be able to refill water bottles along the trail, which continues through a beech forest (1 hour) to the base of the moraine, where we'll find one more challenging ascent (45 min) to the base of the towers. This lookout “Mirador Base Torres” or “Base of Torres del Paine” is one of the most impressive in the park. From here we can see Torre Sur (9,350 ft), Torre Central (9,200 ft), Torre Norte (8,530 ft), Cerro Nido de Cóndor, and the glacial lake that lies below. We will return the same way we came up and enjoy dinner at the hotel.

• Activity: 9 hours of hiking – 18 km/12 miles – elevation gain: 800 m/ 2625 ft
• Meals: Breakfast, Box Lunch, Dinner
• Accommodation: Hotel Las Torres

Today we have a bit of an easier day of hiking as we set out northward on the path less-traveled. We'll set off from the hotel, enjoying the impressive views of the Towers of Paine and the peaks of Almirante Nieto. Then we'll pass through a beech forest, where we may spot the Magellanic Woodpecker before we wind through the foothills of Cerro Paine and grassland areas before arriving at the old outpost named after the gaucho Serón. We will find our tents set up for us at Camping Serón. Bathrooms are shared and include showers with (hopefully) hot water (subject to a time schedule).

• Activity: 4-5 hours of hiking – 13 km /8 miles – elevation gain: 200 m/ 650 ft
• Meals: Breakfast, Box Lunch, Dinner
• Accommodation: Tent Camping Serón

This is a long day, and though our hike has some ups and downs, it is mostly flat. We ́ll continue hiking west over the Patagonian plains, skirting the Paine River and Lago Paine. Along the way we ́ll have incredible views of the northeast peaks of the Paine massif, including Cabeza del Indio (The Indian Head) and Escudo, as well as the glaciers Dickson and Cubo (weather permitting) to the north, which mark the boundary to Argentina. Close to arrival, the Dickson Lake appears before descending towards our camp. Refugio Dickson is the most secluded of the mountain lodges in Torres del Paine National Park. Situated beneath Glacier Dickson and the Southern Patagonian Ice Field, the views at this remote mountain lodge will not disappoint!

• Activity: 7 hours of hiking – 18 km/ 12 miles – elevation gain: 670 ft
• Meals: Breakfast, Box Lunch, Dinner
• Accommodation: Tent Camping Dickson

Today we ́ll hike west through an ancient first-generation forest with great views behind us of Dickson Glacier pouring into Dickson Lake from the Ice Field above. We ́ll follow the Los Perros River through a valley that leads us to the Los Perros Hanging Glacier and Lake beautifully set in an impressive moraine landscape. Our campsite is located in a peaceful old-growth forest near the glacier. Camping Los Perros is the most remote campsite on this trip, hidden inside an ocean of parsley-green beech trees. Base camp for the famous John Gardner Pass, this campsite is set up for a relaxing night's rest before the challenging hike ahead of us.

• Activity: 5 hours of hiking – 12 km/ 8 miles – elevation gain: 400 m/ 1300 ft
• Meals: Breakfast, Box Lunch, Dinner
• Accommodation: Tent Camping Los Perros

Today is a big day as we ascend the John Gardner Mountain pass, the highest point on the trek. We ́ll start dark and early, ascending steadily towards the John Gardner Mountain Pass (4,000 ft.). Once on top, we ́ll have fantastic views (weather permitting) of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field and the majestic Grey Glacier resting 2,600 feet below. We ́ll descend scree slopes to the tree line and enter the forest along the Grey Glacier. The first downhill part is steep and may be muddy, but after a while it levels out and we will enjoy the silent forest while walking along the cracking glacier. We will cross three high suspension bridges before arriving at Refugio Grey. Connecting the famous W Trek with the full Paine Circuit, Refugio Grey is an essential stop on our hiking adventure in Torres del Paine National Park. Sitting in a peaceful forest backdrop, we are just a few minutes’ walk from Lago Grey, where we can view the gigantic white-blue ice wall of Grey Glacier.

• Activity: 10 hours of hiking – 22 km/ 15 miles – elevation gain: 650 m/ 2130 ft; elevation loss 1200 m/ 3940 ft
• Meals: Breakfast, Box Lunch, Dinner
• Accommodation: Refugio Grey (in shared dorm)

In this ideal spot between glaciers, mountains, and forests, we have a rest day from trail hiking, and we'll get to experience the other-worldly ice hike at Glacier Grey. This activity lasts approximately 5 hours. The excursion begins with a short boat ride with our glacier guides towards the glacier. Once ashore near the glacier, we will don our crampons and hike to the ice. This route, which changes each season depending on which access to the ice is best, could be uphill in rocky terrain with medium difficulty. Once on the ice, we will explore the glacier and all its marvelous contours for about an hour and a half, according to where the glacier guides deem it safe to walk. We'll return by the same route back to Refugio Grey.

• Activity: 5-hour ice hike excursion
• Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
• Accommodation: Refugio Grey (in shared dorm)

Today as we leave Refugio Grey behind, we officially begin the famous W Circuit (from left to right – west to east) as we hike up along Grey Lake, admiring Glacier Grey from a new perspective, viewing icebergs from above with the Andes range behind. Eventually we will arrive to Refugio Paine Grande, the biggest refugio on the Circuit, at the shore of the emerald-colored Pehoé Lake.

• Activity: 4 hours of hiking – 12 km /8 miles – elevation gain: 300 m/ 1000 ft
• Meals: Breakfast, Box Lunch, Dinner
• Accommodation: Refugio Paine Grande (in shared dorm)

This is a big day, as we set out for the beautiful French Valley. Our route today takes us deep inside the heart of the Paine Massif (the middle of the “W”), on an out and back trail into the Valle Francés (French Valley) and the incredibly impressive Británico viewpoint (weather permitting). In this natural basin ringed by the black slate “horns” of the Cuernos del Paine, we walk beneath the glacier-covered slopes of Cerro Paine Grande (9,364 ft), the highest summit in the range, and take in panoramic vistas of this extraordinary range. Two different hiking options are available: we can hike to the first plateau and enjoy spectacular views of the Paine Grande west face with its hanging glacier, or we can continue up to the mirador (viewpoint) above Camp Británico—another 3-hour roundtrip hike—for one of the most impressive views in the park! This lookout is considered by many as one of the most incredible spots on the Circuit. At Mirador Británico, you can see Paine Grande, Cerro Hoja, Cerro Máscara, Cerro Catedral, Cerro Aleta de Tiburón, Cuerno Norte, and more.

Before we do the out and back, we will leave our big packs at Italian Camp and only take what we need to complete the trail into French Valley. We will return back to Italian Camp to collect our packs and continue on to our cozy accommodations for the night.

• Activity: (Option 1: 10 miles hiking, 8 hours, 1,200 ft elevation gain; Option 2: 15 miles, 10-12 hours, 2,500 ft elevation gain)
• Meals: Breakfast, Box Lunch, Dinner
• Accommodation: Cabañas Los Cuernos (2-bed cabins) OR Francés Mountain Hostel (2-room/8-bed domes)

Our last bit of the Paine Circuit trail goes between the base of Almirante Nieto (which we saw on Day 1) and Lake Nordenskjöld’s turquoise waters, with many photo opportunities and places to picnic above the lake. After about 5 hours hiking along the entire length of the lake, we will arrive back at Hotel Las Torres where it all began. Here, a transfer awaits to take us back to Puerto Natales.

• Activity: 5 hours of hiking – 11 km /7.5 miles / elevation gain: 100 m/ 330 ft
• Meals: Breakfast, Box Lunch, Farewell Dinner optional
• Transport: 2 hours in private van
• Accommodation: NOI Indigo Patagonia or similar

Morning transfer in private vehicle (8/9am) to Punta Arenas airport (PUQ) or according to your flight at Puerto Natales airport (PNT) for onward travels.

• Meals: Breakfast
• Transport: 20 minutes to PNT / 3 hours to Punta Arenas airport, arriving by noon. (Return/Onward flights can be safely booked from PUQ for 2pm onward).