Southern Cone Journey: Perito Moreno, Buenos Aires, and Tierra del Fuego

Upon arrival, you will be met by a guide and transferred from the International airport to the hotel. Buenos Aires is one of the most cosmopolitan and beautiful cities in all of South America; it’s well worth your time to explore its many culturally rich neighborhoods, culinary history, and traditions. European in appearance and Latin American at heart, Buenos Aires can keep any culture-oriented visitor busy indefinitely. After getting settled, you’ll have a two-hour walking tour in the surroundings of the hotel. There are multiple approaches to this walk and below are some suggestions you may want to consider with your guide:

• Historic Walk
• Cafes & bookstores
• Architecture of the first days of Buenos Aires
• Buenos Aires Today
• Nature prevails in Buenos Aires

Whatever the date of arrival there will be chances to participate in cultural events, or be delighted with the best polo in the world (the national team remains unbeaten for several decades), excellent football / soccer or discover the local gaucho game of “pato,” a sort of basketball on horseback.

Hotel: Casasur Bellini, Executive room

DAY 2: Buenos Aires History & Tango

Morning visit of the city of Buenos Aires. The Four Balconies of Buenos Aires is an exclusive visit in which a guide — professor of the University — uses four parks and plazas to introduce passengers to the city, its history, its everyday life and the peculiar psychology of the “porteño,” the inhabitant of Buenos Aires.

Evening transfer from the hotel to the Tango Venue to experience the glamorous dance complemented with a fine dinner.

Hotel: Casasur Bellini, Executive room
(Breakfast, Dinner)

DAY 3: Free Day to Explore Buenos Aires

Day at leisure to enjoy the city on your own.

Some ideas to explore Buenos Aires:
• A fun bike ride in the Northern quarters of the city in the Palermo and Recoleta districts
• Explore the incredible Contemporary Arts Museums (MALBA & the recently inaugurated MACBA) both of them feature two of the best private collections in Argentina
• Enjoy Palermo Parks and lunch at Evita Museum
• Visit the Opera House. Behind-the-scene tours every hour to get amazed at this huge complex of great beauty.

Hotel: Casasur Bellini, Executive room
(Breakfast)

DAY 4: Buenos Aires – Ushuaia

Transfer to the domestic airport to fly to Ushuaia. Upon arrival in the southernmost city in the world, you will be met by a local guide and transferred to the hotel. You have the rest of the day to rest and explore on your own.

Ushuaia is a bustling town surrounded by natural beauty. From the Andean peaks to the north, the Beagle Channel to the South and the Tierra del Fuego National Park to the east, Ushuaia is an ideal hub with many amenities (useful for when you’re not trekking through the woods). The mix of industry and tourism makes for an interesting mix, but there’s still quite a bit of local character, colorful history, and Argentinean pride throughout.

Hotel: Altos de Ushuaia, Standard Room
(Breakfast)

DAY 5: Hiking & Wildlife in Tierra Del Fuego National Park

Today is a full-day exploration of the Tierra del Fuego National Park, one of the most spectacular in Argentina. Stunning vistas of the Beagle Channel and the snowy Andean mountain range, southern beech forests and pristine lakes all blend to provide a complete experience. The mix of fjords and ancient forests provide ample habitat for animals like guanacos (a relative of the llama), condors, beavers, otters, and albatrosses; hopefully you’ll spot these species and others while walking. You will hike along a coastal trail of great beauty; follow with lunch at Lago Roca before you navigate toward the Isla Redonda to find and observe marine wildlife. You’re likely to spot sea lions, black-and-white cormorants, and seals.

Hotel: Altos de Ushuaia, Standard Room
(Breakfast, Lunch)

DAY 6: Ushuaia Haberton Ranch & Penguins

A complete exploration of the southern lands: We will visit the Harberton Ranch belonging to the descendants of the first British Missionaries to reach the area and mingle with the Yamanas and the cross the Beagle Channel to visit Isla Martillo a unique spot of incredible fauna due to the merging of currents. Lots of Magellanic penguins, some gentoo and some other surprises (if you’re lucky!).
The tour then gets to Gable Island, the largest on the Beagle Channel for lunch and a short hike in this almost pristine area.

Hotel: Altos de Ushuaia, Standard Room
(Breakfast, Lunch)

DAY 7: Travel to El Calafate

According to your flight time, you’ll have a transfer to the airport to fly to El Calafate. Afternoon arrival transfer from the airport to the hotel.

El Calafate is just outside Los Glaciares National Park. Surrounded by this magnificent vegetation are the immense glaciers of Los Glaciares, most likely the highlight of any trip to this region. Between the 48 and 51 South parallels, the Andes Range is covered by a large extension of permafrost known as the Patagonian continental icecap, which stretches for 560 miles from north to south. So large it is that it is also called “the third pole” after its huge concentration of ice. It is the origin of 47 major glaciers, such as the famous Perito Moreno glacier.

You will be met at your hotel by your guide for a visit to the Glaciarium for an introduction to this unique landscape. The Glaciarium is a museum dedicated to the study, research and education of the impressive masses of ice. The Glaciarium is a center for learning and interpretation of the glaciers in Argentina and Worldwide. It is an interactive exhibition with an educational purpose as well as very entertaining, modern and engaging.

Hotel: Hotel Kosten Aike, Standard room
(Breakfast)

DAY 8: Perito Moreno Glacier Hiking

Today you have a full day’s exploration of the most amazing glacier in the Los Glaciares National Park: Perito Moreno Glacier. A huge mass of ice of almost the same dimension of the city of Buenos Aires mesmerizes every visitor with its huge blocks of ice calving thunderously into the water, the stunning vistas of the water splashing and the seemingly roaring of the ice caves and river running. But you’ll do more than just observe Perito Moreno from afar; you will get up close and personal by hiking across the top of it. You will hike for about 2 hours on this mass of ice; this excursion requires no previous experience or incredible fitness.

In the late afternoon, you will return to El Calafate.

Hotel: Hotel Kosten Aike, Standard room
(Breakfast)

DAY 9: El Calafate Free Day – or – Optional Upsala Glacier

Free day in El Calafate. You have the option of adding on a tour to the Estancia Cristina & Upsala Glacier in the Los Glaciares National Park. Please see details below.

Hotel: Hotel Kosten Aike, Standard room
(Breakfast)

DAY 10: Depart El Calafate

Day at leisure until the time of the transfer to the airport to fly to the next destination.

(Breakfast)

* DAY 9: Optional Addition
– See Pricing Section for Rates

Estancia Cristina & Upsala Glacier Discovery

You leave El Calafate on a shared transfer to reach Puerto Bandera where you embark on a panoramic catamaran to navigate the waters of the Upsala Channel. After a 45-minute navigation, you reach the glacier, one of the largest in the Patagonian Ice Field and even more massive than Perito Moreno, but is much less visited. While you can’t get as close to this glacier as Perito Moreno, it’s still an astonishing sight of vibrant blue ice and alpine scenery. The visit is even more dramatic due to the giant chunks of the glacier that regularly break off and crash into the water below.

You resume your navigation now on the Cristina Channel to reach the famous estancia. Estancia Cristina is a landmark in the history of Patagonia as well as the Glacier explorations. It was in the 1900 that Percival Masters, a sailor born in Southampton, decided to change his profession and become a farmer. Together with his wife, they settled in a secluded place on Lago Argentino and founded estancia “La Cristina,” in memory of one of their daughters. Here you will learn about life for these early settlers and enjoy the splendor their natural mountainous surroundings. Upon arrival, you meet your guide and board a sturdy 4WD to drive toward the Upsala Glacier lookout point to get the most stunning aerial views of the glacier. Return to base area and spare time for lunch (not included). In the afternoon, you visit the Chapel, the nearby Rio Caterina, the museum (the old sheep-shearing warehouse) and the orchard, among others and leisure time until the time to board the boat back to El Calafate.