We will be staying in Puerto Natales for four nights and plan to do day trips to TDP. Could anyone tell me how long the bus ride is from PN to TDP?

Also, could anyone tell me what kind of weather to expect for the end of December? Any recommendations for clothing to pack?
I have read that temperatures can be between 60-90° which sounds quite nice, but what about the wind?

Your suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Torres del Paine is 2.5-3 hours by bus from Puerto Natales. End of December should be fairly warm, but the weather is highly variable, and you can expect fierce winds and rain at any point.

You should be fairly flexible in your clothing choices. I suggest dressing in layers and avoiding cotton. You shouldn't need winter weather clothing, but be prepared for all 3-seasons in a single day. For day hiking, I would go with convertible synthetic pants and a synthetic t-shirt, a mid-weight fleece sweater, a light weight windbreaker, and rain jacket/pants. Accessorize with gloves, hat, etc... Again, be prepared for fierce winds - I practically lived in my Marmot Dri-Clime Windshirt.

Are you sure you want to do day trips from Puerto Natales? It's very far from Torres del Paine. You'd be better off staying at one of the hosterias in the park, or if budget is a concern, renting a sleeping bag and base-camping at a couple of the refugios for your 4 nights. You could book one night at the Refugio Las Torres and do the dayhike to the mirador, and then do 2-3 nights at Refugio Pehoe which would allow you to dayhike the Valles Frances and Lago Grey.

This question is very timely for me as I'm just planning a trip to PN and TDP in late February/March of 2006

Lifelist - could you comment on the weather/wind at that time of year - is it as highly variable as December?

Thank you

I'm afraid that the latest I've been to TdP was late January, so I can't comment on the weather later in the season. On my late January trip, I had 2-3 days of bright, sunny weather without much winds. The last 3 days were overcast and rainy with one day of fierce winds.

I actually spent 2 nights at Camping Pehoe, a campsite not far from Hosteria Pehoe, to get the classic photo of the Cuernos. Unfortunately, it rained almost the entire time I was there except for the last morning when I was scheduled to catch the bus out of the park. With the help of some strong winds, the clouds parted and I finally got some good shots.

Here are some pictures:

http://www.pbase.com/escog/torres

Hello Lifelist,

Thank you very much for this information. I am in the process of looking for places to stay within the park. I can afford a hosteria, but am having a difficult time finding a website where I can make a reservation.

Also, I think we will spend two nights in the park. Can you recommend a particular hosteria?

The guys at Path@Gone can probably get you set up with lodgings in the hosterias or the refugios, if you prefer. I contacted them via e-mail to set up a few things, and they were pretty helpful. Here's their website:

http://www.pathagone.com/index.html

The hosterias in the park are owned by different companies, as are the refugios. I believe Fantastico Sur owns Hosteria Las Torres.

http://www.lastorres.com/home/default.asp
http://www.fantasticosur.com/2005/nh_patagonia.html

Hosteria Lago Grey looks like it's owned by Austro Hoteles:

http://www.austrohoteles.cl/inding.html
http://www.lagogrey.cl/home/default.asp

I'm not sure who owns Hosteria Pehoe, though I think it's Andescape.

Of course, there's always the Hotel Explora Salto Chico - the best accommodations in the park with prices to match.

http://www.explora.com/default.jsp

I haven't stayed at any of the hosterias, so it's hard to make a recommendation except for location. Hosteria Pehoe is the best located as it is central in the park. You have great views from the little island they're on, and easy access to the ferry landing across Lago Pehoe. This gives you access to hikes into Valles Frances and up to Lago Grey.

Hosteria Las Torres gives you great access to the hike up to the Mirador Las Torres, and they have horseback riding if you're into that. Hosteria Grey is the furthest into the park, and has great views across Lago Grey. You can take the ferry across the lake to view Glacier Grey up close and can get dropped off at the refugio to do some hiking further up on the glacier or even do a guided hike on the glacier itself.

Explora Salto Chico has a good location in the center of the park, not too far from Hosteria Pehoe. I haven't been, but by reputation, they have the best accomodations, the best food, and as an all-inclusive, lots of activities. They're also very, very expensive.

So, your choice of hosteria depends on what you want to do, though I'm sure any one of the hosterias can set up internal transportation to any of the trailheads you want to use. If I had to pick, I'd probably choose between Las Torres and Pehoe - maybe even splittng time between the two. Show up on the first day at Las Torres and do the day hike up to the mirador. Next day, head for Lago Pehoe, take the ferry across, and hike up to Valles Frances, and then back down to catch a ride back to Las Torres or to Hosteria Pehoe. I absolutely love the view from Hosteria Pehoe, so I'd be very tempted to stay there one night so that I could catch sunrise the next morning.

Thank you. You are incredibly helpful!

Based on your feedback I wanted 3 nights at Pehoe and /or Las Torres for Jan 7-9. I contacted pathagone and they informed that they only do internet bookings one month in advance; otherwise you just should show up at their office and see what is available. I'm a bit worried about doing that - although sometimes something great can happen when you do that. Do you think I should chance it in January?

Dear Susan,
Hi, we just returned from our Chile trip. I found the same thing when I contacted PathatGone, so then I contacted Las Torres directly and I was able to make a reservation with them. If you can't get all your nights at Las Torres you can try to book one there and the others in a different Hosteria. In fact, that may even be your better option becuase you would get a different perspective of the park. There are busses that run in the park and the Hosterias have vans to help you get around as well.

You'll have an amazing time! Also, the weather last week was much warmer then I expected. It was usually in the mid to upper 70's - but I know it can change quickly.

Dear Anad,
can you please share the email address for the other hosterias that you contacted directly. Do they speak english?
Will you please share your trip report with us? thank you.

Here are the bus and catamaran times for this season. Catamaran schedule is through March 15. Bus doesn't say but I'm assuming same dates:

Bus from Puerto Natales to TDP:
PN: 7:00; 14:30
Laguna Amarga (entrance/transfer): 9:45; 16:30
Pudeto (Catamaran): 10:45; 17:30
Administration: 11:45; 18:00

RETURN
Admin: 13:00; 18:15
Pudeto: 14:00; 19:00
LA: 15:00; 19:45
PN: 17:00; 22:00

Catamaran:

From Pudeto: 9:30; 12:00; 18:00
From Lodge: 10:00; 12:30; 18:30

Hope this helps!
Susan