Planning Trip to Patagonia and Wine Country

Old May 18th, 2015, 10:36 AM
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Planning Trip to Patagonia and Wine Country

My husband and I are planning a trip in January, 2016. We would like to visit Patagonia, either Mendoza or Chilean wine country, a brief stay in Santiago, and a brief stay in Buenos Aires. We could arrive in Santiago (from the U.S.) and depart from Bs As, or vice versa, depending on our itinerary. (We have already spent time in Iguazu Falls and Bs As). We would of course love to see various parts of Patagonia. What do you suggest there?

Do you have recommendations as to the order of this itinerary, where to stay and how long, and additional suggestions? We do not want to rent a car. We would like to have a car and driver, as needed. We understand that we'll need to fly from place to place.

I have planned many trips with the excellent advice from these forums, and I have always enjoyed posting a TR shortly after our return. Thank you very much in advance for your help.
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Old May 19th, 2015, 03:09 AM
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Hi, wkwb42a!

You DO write some great trip reports!

My first suggestion is a MAJOR change. I would visit our South in Dec. 2015, before Xmas, instead of in January 2016.

Why: Because the weather is great and there are NO local tourists at all. In January, every place you go to will be crowded, flights will be full, that kind of thing.

The places I know in our South are Bariloche and El Calafate. I suggest visiting both of them.

If that's what you want, I can suggest upscale accommodations in both of these places.

You need a car, particularly for the Bariloche area. In Dec., there will be very little traffic. Are you sure you need a driver? Can you drive a car with manual gears?

Well, let me know if there is anything I can do for you from down here.
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Old May 19th, 2015, 06:13 AM
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You might find my TR helpful - just skip the Rio to BsAs part and start here:

http://www.fodors.com/community/sout...omment-7941607

Note: I did not have a car, did not need one even in Bariloche. A car or car and driver would be needed for wineries.
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Old May 19th, 2015, 07:51 AM
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avrooster,
Thanks for your prompt reply, and thanks also for your kind words about my TR's. January is the time we can travel.

Can you recommend a travel agent, other than Isabel, who can help plan and coordinate our itinerary? Thanks.

thursdaysd,
I just read your wonderful TR. Thanks for writing such an excellent report and for referring me to it!

I am just beginning the planning. We would like to work with a TA to coordinate the various components of the trip. Is there anyone you can recommend? Thanks.
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Old May 19th, 2015, 10:33 AM
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You are not starting too early to book things in Patagonia. This is about the time of year that bookings open up. January and February are both high season in Chilean and Argentine Patagonia. Around the lake districts you will find that most Argentines vacation in January and Chileans in February but Patagonia is high season for .

You can easily fly to Patagonia in either country, cross the border by land and fly to intermediate cities and the capital city from there. There are no scheduled cross border flights in Patagonia. So, leaving the far south, you would fly north from either El Calafate or Punta Arenas. Possibly the airport at Puerto Natales will be upgraded and open by Jan 2016, though there might be fewer flights than from Punta Arenas.
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Old May 19th, 2015, 10:59 AM
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Thanks for the kind words!

Sorry, but I can't help with the TA question. I did try working with Say Hueque early on, but found them unresponsive and arranged the whole thing myself, with help from Fodors. I booked bus tickets and the bus-boat combo across the Andes as I went, but I was there in November, not high season. I did book my flights and hotels and the Navimag ferry ahead of time.
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Old May 19th, 2015, 11:58 AM
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Question, wkwb42a:

Why "other than Isabel"?

If you ask me, she's the BEST.

Have a great time in my country.
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Old May 19th, 2015, 06:21 PM
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Isabel seems knowledgeable and efficient, and we'd like to consider using her. However, all our TA's in the past have incorporated their fees into the final customized package price. Isabel requires a separate upfront fee.

Is this normal for travel agents located here?
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Old May 20th, 2015, 07:31 AM
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Isabel told me she started charging an "upfront fee" because many people asked her to design an itinerary and then made the reservations on their own, depriving her of her commission and effectively making her work for them for free.

The comments you can read about Isabel on Trip Advisor suggest her services are well worth her "upfront fee".
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Old May 28th, 2015, 05:50 AM
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wkwb42a,

just a comment to suppport avrooster's suggestion with Isabel. First, if suggests her I'd use her for no other reason that it's been my experience that everyone he's ever recommended to me has far surpassed any expectations I might have.

And second, to Isabel's point, I work with a small company in Africa that experiences precisely the same thing. They often have found themselves working hard for a potential client, coming up with itineraries that the clients simply go off and book themselves. Their research and hard work are lost. So it's not just Isabel. Lots of people abuse the time of these good folks.

There are times I book on my own, and where I know I must have help, and for me that's Africa, I buy expertise. I can't speak for anyone but myself but I trust AvRooster's recommendations, as they have led me to some of the most wonderful experiences and lasting friendships I have in Argentia. For what it's worth.

Warmly,
jhubbel
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Old May 28th, 2015, 07:07 AM
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Thank you, jhubbel!!!!

E-mailing you with MY kind of joke.
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Old Jun 3rd, 2015, 12:32 PM
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We did a trip similar to what you are planning a few years back. I started trying to find a TA in Chile and was unsucessful. I got several names, emailed and they never followed up. I finally made contact with a Chilean based in San Francisco and used his company. I did proably 2/3rd on my own and the TA did maybe ⅓. The portion I did myself was better I thought than what the TA did for us. In retrospect I realized I should have done the whole thing on my own. At the time it seemed daunting to plan a 6-7 week trip without some assitance. We did have a car for a few small protions of the trip, but most of it we did by plane and bus. Here's our TR, not sure if it mentions the TA I used or not.
http://www.fodors.com/community/sout...-chile-arg.cfm
Have a great trip -- its a beautiful area.
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Old Jun 3rd, 2015, 06:21 PM
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Hi yestravel,

I just read your excellent TR, and I can see what a great journey you enjoyed! Thank you for writing such a detailed report and for referring us to it. I have not been able to find too much on Fodor's about Patagonia. However, I have planned many other trips with the expert advice shared here. I am working on our travel plans now for Patagonia.
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Old Jun 4th, 2015, 04:44 AM
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Hi! yea, not a lot out there on Patagonia which is one reason we did the TR. The TA we did use for part of the trip was helpful with some of the details that I was having trouble figuring out. Have you found a TA yet?
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Old Jun 4th, 2015, 06:38 AM
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There is not a lot out there for Patagonia on this forum. TA forums are better for Patagonia. Here is a link to our 3 week Patagonia trip, some of which is similar to yes'.

http://www.fodors.com/community/sout...reath-away.cfm
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Old Jun 4th, 2015, 08:28 AM
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odie1 ,

Thank you. Just read your excellent TR here, which I enjoyed!

I am unable to find your TR on TA. How can I find your report on Trip Advisor forums?

What can you tell us about the Rio Serrano Hotel in TdP?
I would appreciate feedback on the hotel itself, and info about its proximity and accessibility to the Park. We are trying to decide if we should should stay inside the Park or not.
Thanks so much!
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Old Jun 4th, 2015, 11:34 AM
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How are you planning on getting around TdP? We had a car so it was easy to get around.
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Old Jun 4th, 2015, 05:16 PM
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I did not write a TR (trip report) on TA. I did write individual reviews for each of the hotels and restaurants we ate at. I also wrote a blog with a few pictures on each entry (can be accessed by the link in my TR here on Fodors).

We loved the Rio Serrano. It is right on the park's edge but the park roads are all gravel and slow going. Distances are great. The biggest issue is gas for the car. Will you be doing any trekking while you are there? Where will you be coming in from?
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Old Jun 5th, 2015, 06:48 AM
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Thanks everyone. We plan on going from El Calafate to Torres del Paine. No, we will not be doing any heavy-duty trekking; but we will of course enjoy hiking, exploring, etc. I am still working on the trip plans. Now we plan to fly round-trip from the U.S. to Santiago, and we'll stay there a couple of days, (using it as a gateway), as we'll also need to stay there 1 night at the end of our trip (logistics).
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Old Jun 6th, 2015, 03:16 AM
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I don't think you can get to El Calafate from Santiago without going through BsAs, as least you couldn't before. You can go to Calafate by car from Chile (just make sure you get the paperwork).
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