Patagonia

Most visitors come to Patagonia in the southern hemisphere summer between November and March. This is when the season is in full swing and all the services and accommodations are open. However the rest of the year should not be ruled out and we can arrange custom trips at any time of the year. Spring (September to October) can be a great time to take advantage of quiet trails, spring flowers and some fairly mild weather. Fall too (April to May) has the advantages of fewer people and, occasionally, less wind.

Patagonia straddles both Argentina and Chile. The gateway towns for southern Chilean Patagonia are either Punta Arenas or Puerto Natales depending on what areas you plan to visit, both have domestic airports receiving flights from Santiago and elsewhere in Chile. The gateway town for southern Argentine Patagonia is el Calafate, a domestic airport receiving flights from Buenos Aires and elsewhere in Argentina. It is possible to cross over between Chilean and Argentine Patagonia in the south by land via the regular bus services offered between Puerto Natales/Cerro Castillo and el Calafate. There are numerous land (and sometimes water) crossings between Chile and Argentina along the borders within Patagonia and further north, some of which can be incorporated into your itinerary as a useful means of cutting travel time and exploring a new area.

For northern Patagonia, other gateways exist, including Puerto Montt and Balmaceda among others. For Argentina, the main gateway to northern Patagonia is Bariloche.

It is important to remember that the distances in Patagonia can be immense and travel logistics can be complicated. It is an important part of the planning process to ensure your dream itinerary is not only exciting but realistic and that it aligns with your personal expectations and ‘travel tolerance’ for moving from one destination to another. Our first step is always to review your preferred destinations and timescales and discuss these with you in detail based on your personal priorities and expectations for the trip.

Winter is a beautiful time to travel to Patagonia and we offer trip options all year including some unique activities such as hiking across the snow in snow shoes and kayaking among the icebergs. Days are of course colder and shorter but the wildlife can be plentiful and the days crisp, clear and windless. Winter snow is common, especially on the higher elevations bringing snow-cloaked peaks in a magical winter landscape.

Most people agree that Patagonia comprises a diverse region south of Temuco in Chile and the Rio Negro in Argentina, occupying about a million square kilometres of South America. With coastlines stretching along both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, it is home to immense empty grasslands, ancient forests, freshwater lakes, salmon-filled streams, fjords, glacial valleys, volcanoes and of course the jagged peaks of the Andes mountains, the longest and youngest mountain range in the world.

The weather throughout Patagonia is famously unpredictable and it is possible to experience four seasons in the course of a few hours. Average daily temperatures vary depending on how far south you are but in summer one can expect 10-20 degrees celsius with the occasional warmer day of 20+ degrees. Temperatures can drop at night and high winds are common in the area. Although you can never be sure of how Patagonia will treat its guests, we ask that you are prepared (both in your packing and your expectations) for unpredictable and sometimes challenging weather conditions.