Here is a complete guide to visit Torres del Paine, the most important natural wonder of Chilean Patagonia, the perfect place for trekking between mountains and lakes.
If you are going to travel to Chilean Patagonia, your itinerary must include a visit to Torres del Paine. A landscape that will leave you impressed by its beauty and the mixture of lakes, mountains and glaciers.
Below you will find all the information you need to plan your trip to Torres del Paine, either in one day or several.
Table of Contents
How to get to Torres del Paine?
The base city to visit Torres del Paine is Puerto Natales, 75 km away. There are several options to get to Puerto Natales and visit Torres del Paine:
How to get to Torres del Paine by plane
If you are a foreigner and arrive in the country through Santiago, there are direct flights to Puerto Natales from the Chilean capital, but only in the months of December, January and February. The airline that makes the journey is LATAM, with two weekly flights in December and four weekly flights in January and February.
Check here cheap flights to Puerto Natales.
Outside the summer months, the usual way to travel to Puerto Natales is to fly to Punta Arenas airport and then from here take a bus or private transfer that makes the journey to Puerto Natales. Punta Arenas has frequent flights to Santiago thanks to the airlines LATAM, Sky Airlines and JetSMART.
Check here cheap flights to Punta Arenas.
Get to Torres del Paine by ferry
The ferry company Navimag makes the trip from Puerto Montt to Puerto Natales only in high season, with a duration of 4 days. It leaves Puerto Montt to Puerto Natales on Saturdays and returns from Puerto Natales to Puerto Montt on Wednesdays.
Check timetable and prices in the Navimag official website.
Get to Torres del Paine by bus
By bus it is not convenient to travel to Puerto Natales, mainly because of the large number of hours of travel. If you want to get to Puerto Natales by bus from Chile, there are services that depart from Puerto Montt and take about 37 hours to arrive, making part of the journey on the Argentine side, as there is no route within Chile that connects Puerto Natales with the center of the country.
From El Calafate in Argentina you can get to Puerto Natales by bus crossing the Andes through the enabled pass and the journey takes about six hours. There are three weekly frequencies in low season and a daily frequency in high season that connect El Calafate with Puerto Natales. It must be taken into account, especially in winter, that due to inclement weather the pass may be closed.
Get to Torres del Paine by car or rental car
If you want to get to Puerto Natales by car, there are two options:
- From the south: you can do it from Punta Arenas or even from Ushuaia, using a ferry with vehicle transport to cross from the island of Tierra del Fuego to the mainland.
- From El Calafate or the north: through the border crossing located about 20 km from Puerto Natales. If you are coming from the north of Chile, there is no route within the country to get to Puerto Natales, but you have to make the journey through Argentina.
Check here if you want to rent a car in Puerto Natales.
How to get from Puerto Natales to Torres del Paine National Park?
There are buses from different companies that make the journey, with daily frequencies from October to April from the Rodoviario terminal.
The companies that make the route are BusSur with three daily departures at 7:00, 12:00 and 14:30, and Buses Gomez which has a daily departure at 7:00.
The buses have different stops. It takes two hours to get to Laguna Amarga, one hour more from Laguna Amarga to get to Pudeto to take the catamaran and one hour and a half more from Pudeto to get to Grey Lake, also for sailing.
From May to September you should check with the transport companies to see if they have departures or not. There are also transfers from tourist agencies that make the trip during the high season.
By car or rental car, it’s an hour’s drive, easily accessible by paved road.
Best time to visit Torres del Paine
Due to its location, it has a cold climate with extremely low temperatures in winter and a lot of wind in summer.
Summer is the ideal time to visit Torres del Paine, when daytime temperatures reach 20ºC (68ºF), although at night it gets considerably cooler. It is also the windiest season in the region, with winds of 30-40 km/hour, reaching 100 km/hour if there is a storm. The duration of sunlight in these months reaches 16 hours during the day, so it is a plus to visit Torres del Paine.
In autumn, the maximum temperatures drop and the minimum temperatures usually go below zero. This is the rainy season in the city, although until the end of April you can still enjoy Torres del Paine without much cold and too many people.
In winter, the climate is very cold with maximum temperatures that don’t exceed 10ºC (50ºF) and minimum below zero. At this time of year there is not so much wind, although a visit to Torres del Paine may be hindered by the amount of snow in the mountains. The advantage is that you won’t practically find people in the National Park and the access price is cheaper.
Spring has very variable days, it can rain, the sun can come out and it can get very cold at night. The days begin to lengthen, in terms of the duration of sunlight.
In any case and regardless of the time of year to visit Torres del Paine, you must wear warm and waterproof clothing, as weather conditions can vary greatly throughout the day.
Options to visit Torres del Paine in one or more days
Undoubtedly the main activity to do in Torres del Paine is hiking or trekking, within which two circuits stand out: W Circuit and O Circuit. But there is also the option of hiking Torres del Paine in one day.
Visit Torres del Paine in one day (Full Day)
If you don’t want to do the circuit because it is of medium-high physical difficulty, or you have not much time, we recommend one of these two options to visit Torres del Paine in one day:
a) The easiest way to visit Torres del Paine in one day and suitable even for children is to hire a minibus excursion from Puerto Natales or Punta Arenas, or rent a car.
The points of interest to visit are Laguna Amarga, the viewpoint of Lake Nordenskjol, to see the Cuernos del Paine and the Paine Grande mountain, the Salto Grande waterfall and Lake Grey by the glacier.
In this way, you will practically walk around Torres del Paine without walking much, taking in the most impressive views from the lookout points. If you book the tour, it also includes a stop at the Milodon Cave, with fossil remains of the creatures that inhabited this place millions of years ago.
There is an excursion option that combines the Torres del Paine tour with a boat trip on Lake Grey, highly recommended!
b) The second alternative is to visit Torres del Paine in one day with trekking of medium difficulty. Ideal to live a great adventure for the day, you have to take into account that it is an eight-hour hike in total.
Along the way you will find viewpoints overlooking lakes, and of course the symbol of the park, the granite peaks Central, Monzino and Dagostini.
It is advisable to do it on a guided tour, which also provides you with the trekking poles.
Visit Torres del Paine in several days
Many tourists come to Torres del Paine to do some of the two famous circuits, which require medium to high physical effort, but are rewarded by the breathtaking views of glaciers, massifs and lakes.
📝 Important: if you want to do the O or W circuit, it is compulsory to have booked in advance the campsites where you will sleep. For this, you have a list of campsites on the Torres del Paine website.
Here are the day-by-day details of the two circuits.
Map of the W Circuit and O Circuit in Torres del Paine National Park
Download the Maps.me app that has the maps with the trails of the two circuits updated.
References:
W Circuit
DAY 1 – Green
DAY 2 – Red
DAY 3 – Yellow
DAY 4 – Purple
DAY 5 – Pink
O Circuit
DAY 5 – Orange
DAY 6 – Brown
DAY 7 – Blue
DAY 8 – Pink
W Circuit
The W circuit is the one that attracts the greatest number of travelers, since it is possible to reach the most interesting sites in Torres del Paine National Park, without the great extension in days represented by the O circuit. What you will miss are the beautiful landscapes in the O circuit from the Grey refuge to the Dickson refuge.
Although there are four entrance gates to Torres del Paine National Park, if you want to walk along the W circuit, you must enter through the Laguna Amarga portal and then reach the area where the refuge and the Hotel Las Torres is located, a place where you can camp or spend the night in the lodging. There is a distance of about 7 km between the Laguna Amarga portal and Hotel Las Torres. If you don’t want to walk or don’t have a car, there is a bus that makes the trip for about 5 US$.
At a normal walking pace, it takes about five days to make the W circuit. The W circuit is called that way, because that is exactly the shape of the route to be done, entering the mountain to access the different viewpoints and returning along the same path to continue.
The stages of the W circuit are:
Day 1 Refugio Las Torres to Mirador Base de las Torres
It’s about seven hours of walking back and forth on this trail that runs along the Ascencio River. The starting point (and the returning one) is the refuge or hotel Las Torres Patagonia, up to which there is a paved road. Then the road becomes a demanding trail, with steep slopes.
If you do not want to make the journey to the Mirador Base in a single day, you can stop to sleep in the refuge and camp Chileno halfway.
The Mirador Base de las Torres is one of the most popular with travelers because from there you can see Lake Torres and in the background the Central, Monzino y Dagostini Towers, the 3 peaks that conform the Torres del Paine (see photo cover).
For this trekking, we recommend that you leave your backpacks at the Las Torres refuge and go all the way back and forth with a small backpack, very light of luggage.
Day 2 Refugio Las Torres to Italian camp
It’s a 7 hour hike bordering Lake Nordenskjöld and overlooking the Los Cuernos massif. If you want to shorten the distance and do it in two days, you can sleep in the French camp or Los Cuernos, both of which are for a fee.
The Italian camp is free but must be booked at the previous refuges or the portal of Laguna Amarga, especially in high season.
Day 3 Italian Camp at Paine Grande Refuge
This day is the ascent and descent to the British viewpoint, crossing the valley (about five hours of walking in total). It is one of the most impressive sections of the W circuit, where you can see rivers, glaciers and high snow-capped peaks.
After returning to the Italian camp, there is a two-hour walk to the Paine Grande refuge, where Lake Skottsberg and Lake Pehoé are bordered.
Day 4 Paine Grande Refuge to Mirador Refugio Grey
In this case, as in the visit to the Base Las Torres viewpoint, it is best to leave your backpacks at Paine Grande refuge and start the eight-and-a-half hour tour in total (round trip) with light luggage.
On the way you border Lake Grey until you reach the refuge, where you have breathtaking views of the Grey Glacier and the Southern Ice Field. If you don’t want to go all the way back and forth in one day, you can camp or sleep at Grey Refuge.
Day 5 Paine Grande Refuge to Visitor Center
It’s a five hour hike to the Visitor Center, no longer great landscapes. From here you can return to Puerto Natales by bus to rest.
Is it possible to hire an all-inclusive tour to do the Torres del Paine W circuit?
Of course, there are several options including meals, accommodation, transfers and excursions.
- 5-day for the W circuit including accommodation (three nights in tiny house in Puerto Natales and one night camping), breakfast, lunch, dinner, transfers and ferry tickets. The least demanding in terms of physical effort trekkings. (Torres del Paine: W Trek Express).
- 5-day for the W circuit including accommodation (four nights in mountain refuges), breakfast, lunch, dinner, transfers, ferry tickets and entrance to Torres del Paine Park. W Circuit in Mountain Refuge (5 days).
- 5-day for the W circuit including accommodation (four nights in camping), breakfast, lunch, dinner, transfers, ferry tickets and entrance to Torres del Paine Park. W Circuit in Mountain Refuge (5 days).
O Circuit
The O Circuit includes the W, starting at the Las Torres hotel and refuge and after about eight days of walking you will arrive at the same place, making the circular O circuit.
The first four days are the same as in the W circuit and, instead of returning to the Paine refuge or sleeping in the Grey refuge, perhaps you can continue and reach the Paso camp. Then:
Day 4 of the W circuit from Paine Refuge to Paso Camp
It is about eight and a half hours in total, spotting the highest part of the Grey glacier.
Day 5 from Paso camp to Los Perros camp
It is about six hours of walking through the John Garner pass at 1,200 meters above sea level.
Day 6 from Los Perros camp to Dickson camp
It is a five hour hike, bordering the Los Perros River and the valley of the same name and arriving at the shores of Lake Dickson.
Day 7 from Dickson camp to Serón campsite
It’s a six hour hike. From this day on, the scenery is not as spectacular as it was a few days ago.
Day 8 from Serón campsite to Las Torres shelter
Four hours of walking to return to the starting point of the entire circuit. From here there is a bus to return to Puerto Natales.
Options to enjoy Torres del Paine National Park with kids
If you are going to travel with kids to Torres del Paine you probably won’t be able to do the demanding trekking, but you can enjoy the beautiful views without much effort.
In addition to the low-difficulty day trip, there are two other options:
a) The most accessible is to reach Grey Nursery, take the two-hour walk to Ferrier viewpoint and then board the ferry that sails Lake Grey to the refuge and glacier. All this can be done in one day perfectly, although you won’t see the Paine massif in all its splendour.
b) The other ferry option is to sail on Lake Pehoé from Pudeto to the Paine Grande nursery (half an hour sailing).
Where to stay in Torres del Paine
There is plenty of accommodation on offer if you are going on a multi-day tour:
Hostels and refuges
They are the most expensive, but where you will sleep without getting too cold and comfortable. A bed in a shared dorm can be from 55 US$ per night and can reach up to 100 US$ in high season. A private room costs more than twice as much as a dorm.
Check here where to stay in Puerto Natales.
Camping
In the campsites of Torres del Paine National Park you can bring your tent and sleeping bag, or you can also rent in the place. Rental prices can be a bit expensive for a budget traveler (about 15 US$ per day to rent a tent).
There are campsites that are free, such as Italian or Torres, although the services are basic. Private campsites charge 10 US$ per person per night. Free camping is not allowed in non-licensed areas.
It is advisable to reserve your place in the campsites, especially in high season when many people visit the National Park.
What to pack to visit Torres del Paine
Ideally, it’s best not to carry so much luggage, but this depends on whether or not you have a high budget for the site.
If you’re on a high budget, you can afford to sleep in dorms or private rooms, rent a tent and sleeping bag and eat in the lodges. This way, you only need to pack warm clothes and some food in your backpack for midday and any breaks you take.
On the other hand, if you are on a low budget, you need to carry food and a tent in your backpack.
In any case, what you should not miss whether you do the circuits or the visit in just one day is warm clothes, a mackintosh, trekking shoes and sunscreen.
Admission fee to visit Torres del Paine (2026)
If your stay in Torres del Paine Park is less than or equal to three days, the price of access is as follows:
- Chilean adults aged 18 to 59: 9,900 pesos.
- Foreign adults: 34.000 pesos (USD 38)
- Chilean children up to 11 years old and Chilean adults over 60 years old: free of charge.
- Chilean children between 12 and 17 years old: 5,500 pesos.
- Foreign children between 12 and 17 years old: 17,400 pesos (20 US$)
- Foreign children up to 11 years old: free of charge
If your stay in Torres del Paine Park is longer than three days, the entrance fee is as follows:
- Chilean adults aged 18 to 59: 14,200 pesos.
- Foreign adults: 48,500 pesos (55 US$)