El Calafate: Estancias & Glaciers

On arrival into El Calafate airport, you will be transferred to your hotel.

El Calafate flanks the southern shore of Lago Argentino in the southwest part of Argentina’s Santa Cruz Province. The town is near the edge of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field and one of the gateways to World Heritage Listed Parque Nacional Los Glaciers. The name El Calafate is derived from the calafate plant common in Patagonia. The town’s main street, Avenida del Libertador General San Martín, is lined with restaurants, cafes, chocolate shops and souvenir shops.

This morning you will be collected from your hotel to venture into Los Glaciares National Park bound for the breathtaking glaciers of Perito Moreno, Mayo and Negro.

The only way to reach the glaciers is by boat along the Témpanos Canal, stopping along the way at Toro Bay for a walk through the Patagonia lenga and ñires forest, passing waterfalls, ancient trees and lime rock formations. After the walk, the boat continues to the Negro hanging glacier where there is the chance for a short walk offering stunning 360 degree views. Back on the boat, you sail toward the north face of the massive Perito Moreno Glacier. The glacier is more than two miles wide and averages 74m in height above the surface of the water of Lake Argentino. It is one of the very few glaciers in the world that continues to advance and if you are lucky you may see the glacier calving as large masses of ice break away from the glacier and collapse into the water. Here, you can disembark at a floating dock and take time to stroll the walkways before boarding the boat and returning to El Calafate. On completion of the tour you will be taken to your hotel. Please note entrance fee and lunch are included. This is a small group tour.

No trip to Argentina is complete without a visit to an Estancia. Estancia Nibepo Aike retains the essence of the old Patagonian ranches. Initially called Estancia Jerónima, Nibepo Aike covers over 12,000 hectares at the foot of the Patagonian Andes and is dedicated to the production of cattle with a herd of Hereford, and also many sheep. It is an ideal place to dip into the life of an authentic Patagonian ranch.

Tour the estancia and have the chance to take a short horse ride (additional extra) or a short walk for great views of the southern arm of Lake Argentino. After the walk or horse-ride, meet back at the door of the shearing shed for a demonstration of horse handling skills, or depending on the rural activities of the day, working with the herd in the corrals close to the main buildings. You may also be able to participate in the cow milking. To finish your day you will enjoy an asado, a typical Patagonian barbeque lunch.

Transfer to El Calafate airport - or add on a tour to El Chalten, or Torres del Paine, perfect for hiking and the outdoors!