Day 1 to 2 - Arrive Bariloche

The first day of your tour is simply an arrival day with no pre-organised activities. In order to allow time to relax and see some of the sights you may wish to add pre tour accommodation. On arrival please ask at the reception for information on when the pre departure meeting will be held.

Our next stop is the resort town of San Carlos de Bariloche, also known simply as Bariloche, on the shores of Lake Nahuel Haupi. This town is a famous winter ski resort, but it also has a great deal to offer during other seasons and is a favourite holiday spot for Argentines. Originally built by Swiss and German immigrants in the Alpine style, here you will find charming Swiss-style chalets, numerous chocolate shops and even St. Bernard dogs with brandy barrels around their necks.

With the towering peaks of the Andes to the west, the glistening lake in front and the Patagonian steppe to the east, outdoor adventures abound in Bariloche, with popular options including mountain biking, horse riding or a bus ride along the lake with an opportunity to take in the sensational scenery from the cable cars.

If you’re very (very!) lucky you may spot the legendary Nahuelito, a giant creature which the indigenous Mapuche people believe lives in the depths of the lake. There haven’t yet been any recorded sightings to support this story, which predates the Loch Ness Monster, however despite that, the Buenos Aires Zoo took it seriously enough to make a trip to the lake to search for evidence in 1922.

Day 3 to 7 - Perito Moreno – El Chaltén – El Calafate

We now enter Patagonia, a dry windswept expanse stretching to the southern tip of the continent. Our first destination is the small multicultural town of Perito Moreno. We stay the night here before continuing to our next base of El Chaltén where we will visit Fitzroy National Park. The national park is renowned for its spectacular scenery, and a fantastic place for trekking. Options include half or full day treks to Lago Capri or various other trails to take in the views of the Fitzroy Massif and the many nearby glaciers.

We resume our journey to head for the town of El Calafate, located on the southern shore of Lake Argentino. El Calafate is our base to visit the spectacular Perito Moreno glacier. With a height of around 60 metres and a front of five kilometres (three miles), covering some 250 square kilometres the glacier is an incredible sight and is one of the few glaciers in the world to be growing slightly, not decreasing in size as most glaciers do. Named after Argentine explorer Francisco Merino, the glacier is coloured in a variety of hues from blue to grey to white and continually creaks and cracks. Advancing at a speed of around two metres per day, it can put on a spectacular show when giant chunks of ice at the outermost edges crack under tremendous pressure, rupture and crash into the water – a process known as calving. You will have the chance to walk around some paths and terraces where you can get some great views of the glacier. We also go on a boat cruise taking us almost the full width of the glacier for amazingly close-up views.

Day 8 to 11 - Puerto Natales – Torres del Paine National Park

The misty port town of Puerto Natales in Chile is an important base for agriculture and tourism. After our overnight stop-over here we continue on to the majestic Torres del Paine National Park.

Known as one of the world’s most beautiful national parks, Torres del Paine is named after three massive granite towers that rise out of the earth. Covering more than 180,000 hectares, the park boasts stunning scenery with snow covered mountain peaks, glaciers, beautiful lakes and valleys with a diverse variety of unusual flora and fauna. Some of the varied and amazing creatures you might spot include skunks, Andean condors, black-chested buzzard eagles, chilla foxes, culpeo foxes, guanacos (a relative of the llama), Chilean flamingos and rhea, a type of emu. Vividly coloured flowers, various evergreen plants and orchids may be seen. The best way to discover the national park is on foot and trekking here will take your breath away.

We have plenty of opportunity to trek the many trails in the park. Some of the walks are quite demanding, but there is a good range of options for all grades of walkers. Options include a full day trek with incredible views of the famous ‘towers’ (this walk can be demanding with the final section walking in scree, however it is well worth it), a full day trek and catamaran trip across Lago Pehoe for a full view of the Grey Glacier and a more sedate three hour scenic boat trip (dependant on boat availability). We stay in pre-erected tents in the park with all meals included (you need to bring your own sleeping bag, mattresses are provided). Camping in Torres del Paine is a great chance to explore pristine wilderness and enjoy the great outdoors.

Please Note: No food is allowed to be taken into Chile so please ensure you have eaten or disposed of any snacks you may have with you before we cross the border to Puerto Natales.

Day 12 to 16 - Punta Arenas – Ushuaia

Punta Arenas is Patagonia’s most important commercial centre and this duty free port was an early frontier town. Before the opening of the Panama Canal, the only way around South America was via the extreme southern tip of Chile and therefore Punta Arenas was a necessary stopping point in the Pacific-Atlantic shipping route. There is time to visit Zona Franca, the duty free district en route to Punta Arenas.

We also visit the nearby Magellanic penguin colony at Seno Otway (Otway Inlet), where around five thousand pairs of these strange, docile birds return annually to burrow, breed and raise their young, in their birthplace. You can watch the comic antics of these special penguins from special viewing platforms as they march back and forth between their burrows and the sea where they search for food. Each pair raises two chicks per season and takes turns looking after the young. Mating occurs in October and brooding over the eggs follows in November. From mid November to mid December the eggs hatch, then throughout January and February the newborns change their features and start to swim. From mid March to April the penguins head back to the southern coast of Brazil and the Atlantic Islands.

Next we cross the Straits of Magellan to Tierra del Fuego (Land of Fire) and re-enter Argentina, on the scenic drive to Ushuaia.

Ushuaia is the most southern city in the world with a setting that's hard to beat, dramatically located between towering mountains and icy sea. Here we can enjoy an included cruise on the blue waters of the Beagle Channel, named after Charles Darwin’s boat HMS Beagle. As we explore the straight which separates the islands of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago, keep your eyes peeled for whole colonies of sea lions, penguins, cormorants and albatross. We may even be lucky enough to see a whale.

We then visit the nearby Tierra del Fuego (Land of Fire) National Park, where the Pan American Highway ends 17,848 kilometres from its starting point in Alaska. The national park, which has often been compared with Alaska’s panhandle, covers 63,000 hectares of mountains, lakes, deep valleys, glaciers and rivers. You can trek along various trails through the beautiful beech forests, spotting wildlife along the way, including guanacos, foxes, beavers, condors and oyster catchers.

There are also some interesting museums in Ushuaia which reveal its interesting natural and colonial history, such as the Maritime Museum and Museum at the End of the World. At the Ushuaia tourist office you can have your passport stamped with an official End of the World stamp. Those interested in steam trains might like to go for a train ride on the Tren del Fin del Mundo or End of the World Train.

Day 17 to 17 - Depart Ushuaia

Your adventure of a lifetime comes to an end today, please confirm with the reception the check out time. If you have a late flight or have lengthened your stay by adding post tour accommodation you will have more time to explore the sights.