Chalten Camp

intimately hosted by the lovely owners

Set in a pretty valley around 2 km northeast of El Chalten in the Los Glaciares area, Chalten Camp is an intimate and rather cool property.

The lodge is positioned alongside the substantial Rio de Las Vueltas , backed up against a substantial granite mountain face and surrounded by beautiful lenga forests.

It’s centred on a rather stylish main mess, contained within a larger (80 sqm) geodesic dome tent, very stylishly decorated and centred around a cosy stove.

If you love being out in the wilderness and hiking the trails, then this is a really superb base, in many ways so much nicer than staying in El Chalten.

Rooms

Guest accommodation at Chalten Camp is in just six rather cool geodesic tented rooms, each with a wood-burning stove and panoramic views of the iconic peaks of Fitz Roy, whilst outside there is a hammock.

• Double Dome : x3 : 26 sqm : one large bed
• Triple Dome : x3 : 26 sqm : three small beds

Activities

Chalten Camp provides access to some of the best half and full day hiking trails in South America.

Further options include white-water rafting, a pioneer museum and various dining options and bars in the village.

Chalten Camp is almost always visited in combination with a lodge in the El Calafate area further south. This area is best known for hiking, whilst the area further south provides access to some famous glaciers.

We most commonly recommend three nights in each location, making six nights in the area.

Longer explorations of Patagonia most commonly cross the border into the Torres del Paine area of southern Chile, which is best known for its dramatic landscapes and puma tracking experiences.

Seasonality

The best time to visit Los Glaciares is generally considered to be during the Oct-Mar southern spring-summer-autumn period.

Los Glaciares officially has a ‘cold semi-arid climate’, with two reasonably well-defined seasons …

During the Oct-Mar summer season the weather is cool and wet. Daytime temperatures usually struggle their way up to around 16C/61F, with nighttime lows holding up around 7C/45F. Rainfall during this period is only around 25mm (1”) per month. Sunshine is around 7-8 hours per day (around 50% of daylight hours, the summer days being very long this far south).

During the Apr-Sep winter season the conditions are significantly colder, but still reasonably dry. Daytime temperatures usually struggle up to around 6C/43F, with nighttime lows falling to around -1C/30F. The rainfall during this period is around 50mm (2”) per month, commonly falling as snow. Sunshine is down around 2-3 hours per day (around 40% of daylight hours, the winter days being very short this far south).

The vast majority of people visit during that Oct-Mar summer season. Personally we enjoy the off-season when, although the weather is colder and the days shorter, the blissful absence of strong winds (usually), coupled with the peacefulness of the area at this time can prove to be a winning formula. This is particularly true if you are keen to avoid the summer visitor traffic.

It also has to be said that the weather in this part of the world is notoriously changeable, you really can experience all four seasons in a single day, so you need to be ready for everything and allow extra time in your trip to ensure that you have the necessary flexibility.

Getting there

Los Glaciares is usually accessed by air from Buenos Aires into El Calafate Airport (FTE).

There are also direct flight connections from Bariloche (around 1000 km further north) and Ushuaia (700 km further south, down at the southern tip of the continent, which is the main jumping off place for cruises to Antarctica).

It is also sometimes possible to connect directly with Almirante Marcos A Zar Airport (REW) in Trelew, for the Peninsula Valdes.

The reserve is also often accessed by road from Torres del Paine National Park, which lies immediately to the south, across the border in Chile, which is in turn accessed by air from Santiago (SCL) into Punta Arenas (PUQ).

some of the best day hikes in South America