I thought the lake crossing -- we did Puerto Varas to Bariloche -- was stunning. We decided not to stay overnight and did it all in one very long day (7:30 am -- 8 pm or so), but thoroughly enjoyed it. U can read my TR on our trip which describes our day:
http://www.fodors.com/community/south-america/southward-ho-adventures-in-chile-arg.cfm
The section on the crossing is entitled "Andes Crossing: Bus-Boat-Bus-Boat-Bus-Boat-Bus-Boat"

I did the Puerto Varas - Bariloche crossing last November and it was one of the highlights of my trip. We stayed overnight in Peulla, were upgraded to the Natura hotel since the older one was being renovated.

The scenery is simply outstanding and the colors in the lakes are amazing!

Thank you so much for your response..this helps me in making the decision...LAKE CROSSING IT IS!!

I think it's a "must-do" and hope you enjoy it as much as I did! When you get to Bariloche, make sure to book a Half Circuit tour which will take you up the chairlift and give you some fantastic views of the lakes and mountains from Cerro Campanario. Have a great trip!

Thanks for the suggestion colibri!!

How/where can I book this trip in advance?? Can you please suggest some company with whom i can book this lake crossing tour for a reasonable price. Also, we won't be able to do an overnight trip it has to be a day tour like what yestravel did.
@yestravel how did you book this trip in advance??

There is only one company which runs the trip, Cruce Andino (formerly called Cruce de Lagos), although there are some agencies which sell the trip for them.
http://www.cruceandino.com/en/home

$230 pp does that sound right?? anything cheaper that this???

That price sounds about right. I'm not aware that any Travel Agents can get it for u at a discount. I would just go ahead and book it online thru Cruce Andino who runs the cruises.
We had travel agent book a couple portions of our trip for us and the lake crossing was one of them. We could have just as easily booked it ourselves.

It is possible to book the individual segments yourself. I looked into doing that, (Trip Advisor has posts o doing this) but it seemed to be a lot of trouble and I worried about a portion of it messing up and getting stranded somewhere.

We had a travel agent book our trip, too. We flew from Santiago to Puerto Varas, one night at Cabanas del Lago, one night at Peulla, two nights Bariloche.

Travel agents do not sell it cheaper. Only some sell it at all. So you can book online or book once you are in Puerto Varas if you want to wait to decide. But it won't get cheaper than the Cruce Andino website price.

Thanks so much all! this is a great help!

@yestravel - i just printed you Southward Ho! trip report yesterday and after reading it i felt like i have almost visited those places..excellent narration!

Any insight on making Bus reservations will be much appreciated. I am looking to book a bus trip from El Calafate to TDP. I looked at a couple website but all were in Spanish.

To go from el Calafate to TdP by bus u need to go thru Puerto Natales (about 4-5 hours) and then go from PN to TdP (about 2 hours). I imagine u could pick up a tour that would take u directly from el Calafate to TdP. Depending upon the time of the year I would imagine u could buy your tickets upon arrival in el Calafate.

Glad u enjoyed our TR -- we had a great time!

Always Glaciers and Chaltén Travel go from El Calafate directly to the park without going to Puerto Natales but their cost is considerably higher, roughly US$100 pp.

yes, it is a MUST!
book thru their website. $230 is the going rate, could not find any cheaper.
do the one day crossing

Is Bariloche still dealing with the ash from the Chilean volcano? Is the airport functioning there?
We took this trip from Bariloche to Puerto Varas, spending the night in Puella at Hotel Natura.. Enjoyed the whole experience including several nights on each end in Bariloche and Puerto Varas.

HappyTrvlr: Bariloche is still dealing with the ash from the volcano. The airports are still closed, folks are being bused in to go skiing and visit.

There is report of some possibility that airports will reopen late September, but that is, by other reports, highly unlikely. As the snow melts, the ash re-appears and is, sadly, again a disaster.

Good you took your trip at another time. I hope the conditions will remit ASAP, but it does not appear that it will be in the very near future.

The lakes crossing was never affected by the ash fall but obviously lost a lot of customers when people could not get to Bariloche. Bariloche is alright most of the time, but when the wind whips up it moves the ash. So the airport may open but there could be further interruptions on windy days. They are using Esquel as an alternative airport and busing people to Bariloche at the moment. Long distance buses, Neuquen or Buenos Aires, are working with no problem.

It is a unique and lovely trip.However weather is important because bad weather can block the view of some of the fantastic volcanos and mountains, for this reason I see no advantage in booking ahead. I booked on the last minute in Bariloche. You can buy tickets in a dozen different travel agencies and before doing so you will make yourself a big favour by checkin the weather.

I am planning to fly from Bariloche into Buenos Aires on Nov 17th or 18th..will my trip be affected by the ash from the Volcano?? Or everything should be fine by then.

Piya, that is a very tough question - because there is no clear answer at this time. Hopefully, the airports will be re-opened by that time, but there is no way to guarantee that. Weather and ash and wind are capricious !

I would suggest that you have a PLAN B just in case:

Either Bus to and then fly from another airport
or
Bus to Buenos Aires (long, but the long haul buses are pretty comfortable and clean etc.)

Good luck with this difficult planning - it will still be, I believe, worth the effort. And please do keep us up to date on your findings.

~MarnieWDC

Flights between Bariloche and BUENOS AIRES are ok.

However, I understand that the airlines are not flying out of that airport. I just checked Aerolineas and Lan and that is the case. The future is to be seen.

Thanks for ur responses...any website (US version) where i can search and book the bus trips??