Compare Patagonia Tour - Patagonian Overland Adventure by Across South America vs 15 Day Antarctica Cruise with Buenos Aires (MS Fridtjof Nansen) by Gate 1 Travel

Day 1: Arrive in Buenos Aires. Enjoy city highlights in the “Paris of South America” & paired lunch in a chic restaurant

Meals: Lunch with drinks and Argentine wines.
Accommodation: Casa Sur Recoleta Boutique Hotel

Before you head out to explore this magnificent city, you’ll be welcomed at the airport and transferred to your accommodation by private vehicle. Here, our Experience Manager and your concierge for this journey kicks off the trip with a “Welcome Meeting” followed by a relaxing day enjoying the best of Buenos Aires’ as you adapt to the new destination.

You will visit the city’s main attractions today and enjoy a delicious three-course lunch paired with some of the best Argentinean wines at a closed-door chic restaurant.

Day 2: Buenos Aires - San Antonio de Areco, the cradle of Gaucho’s traditions

Meals: Breakfast and barbecue lunch with drinks and wines.
Accommodation: Casa Sur Recoleta Boutique hotel

Get a taste of Argentina’s renowned food culture with a visit to one of San Antonio de Areco’s local markets. You can learn about Argentinean beef cuts and local produce, refine your culinary skills with an Argentine cooking lesson – making the perfect steaks on the grill. Then indulge the foodie in you with a traditional empanada and local delight – the “alfajor”.

Day 3: Buenos Aires – Ushuaia, the “End of the World” city

Meals: Breakfast.

Accommodation: Arakur Hotel and Spa

This day is spent in transit as you fly from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia. Private transfers to and from the airports are organised. The remainder of the day in Ushuaia is kept free for you to soak in the beautiful views and enjoy gourmet delights at your hotel, which overlooks the Beagle Chanel.

Day 4: Explore the “End of the World” in 4X4WD

Meals: Breakfast and barbecue lunch with wines and drinks.

Accommodation:Arakur Hotel and Spa

Today’s highlight is a unique adventure, journeying across the Andes in a 4×4 vehicle and enjoying the thrill of some amazing crossings. We will visit the beautiful Fagnano and Escondido Lakes, getting amidst the pristine lakes and muddy lands – a close encounter possible only in 4X4WD vehicles.

Day 5: Arrive in Tierra del Fuego National Park for an expedition into some of the most remote corners of the planet

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch with drinks and dinner with drinks and wines.

Accommodation:Australis Cruise – sea view cabin

We arrive early in Ensenada Bay in the Tierra del Fuego National Park. After a short walk along the beach and woods, we continue our journey towards Lapataia – the point where all routes of America come to their end.

Your local guide will assist with your cruise check-in and luggage delivery. Staying close to the port, head out on your own to visit the two local museums. The Presidium holds interesting stories about Ushuaia while the Fin del Mundo preserves the historical roots of Tierra del Fuego. Remember to check back in time for the cruise (by 5.30pm).

As the ship departs one of the most remote corners of the planet, you will be welcomed with a toast and an introduction to you captain and crew. Tonight you cross the Beagle Channel, entering the Chilean territorial waters. The lights of Ushuaia disappear as the ship turns into the narrow Murray Channel between Navarino and Hoste islands.

Day 6: Cruise Chilean fjords between Cape Horn & Wulaia Bay

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch with drinks and dinner with drinks and wines.

Accommodation:Australis Cruise – sea view cabin

You’ll cruise into the remote archipelago that is home to the Cape Horn National Park. Weather and sea conditions permitting, we explore this windswept island that houses the legendary Cape Horn (Cabo de Hornos), a sheer 425-meter high rocky promontory overlooking the turbulent waters of the Drake Passage. The National Park is a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve and features a permanent lighthouse. the tiny Stella Maris Chapel and modern Cape Horn Monument (currently awaiting repair after being damaged by fierce winds).

Sailing back across Nassau Bay, we anchor at fabled Wulaia Bay, one of the few places in the archipelago where the human history is just as compelling as the natural environment as it was the site of one of the region’s largest Yámana aboriginal settlements. After visiting the museum, you’ll have a choice of three hikes (of increasing degrees of difficulty) that ascend the heavily wooded mountain behind the bay. On all of these you stroll through an enchanted Magellanic forest of lengas, coigües, canelos and ferns to reach panoramic viewpoints overlooking the bay.

Day 7: Pía Glacier - Garibaldi Glacier

Accommodation: Australis Cruise – sea view cabin

Sailing through narrow channels overnight and rounding the remote Brecknock Peninsula, our Patagonian glacier tour re-enters the Beagle Channel. Today morning you will board zodiacs for a shore excursion to the Pia Glacier. A short hike takes us to panoramic views of this spectacular glacier, which extends from the mountaintops down to the sea.

Pia Glacier exploration completed, we sail along the channel to enter another long fjord and drop anchor near Garibaldi Glacier for another shore excursion. Garibaldi is one of only three glaciers in Patagonia gaining mass rather than staying the same or slowly shrinking. This time we a tough hike through virgin Magellan forest takes us to a glacial waterfall, a towering wall of ferns and moss, and spectacular viewpoints looking down on the glacier and fjord. The walk is not for everyone and those who stay back can enjoy beautiful blue skies and striking views from the upper deck.

Day 8: Agostini Sound - Águila Glacier

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch with drinks and dinner with drinks and wines.

Accommodation:Australis Cruise – sea view cabin

Our journey continues along the southern edge of Tierra del Fuego into a watery wonderland protected within the confines of Alberto de Agostini National Park to the scenic De Agostini Sound.

Named after a priest, De Agostini Sound is flanked by numerous glaciers and sheer saw-toothed peaks reminiscent of Torres del Paine. Our shore excursion this morning is Águila (“Eagle”) Glacier, which hovers above a placid glacial lagoon surrounded by primeval forest – your experience of a sub-Antarctic Patagonian rainforest where the power of nature as it moulds the spectacular landscape is clearly visible.

Day 9: Magdalena Island – Punta Arenas – Puerto Natales in Chile

Meals: Breakfast at the cruise; full board at the Singular. Lunch and dinner a la cárte, soft drinks, alcoholic beverages and wines.

Accommodation: The Singular Hotel

The island was an essential source of supplies for sea farers and is inhabited by an immense colony of Magellan penguins. Weather permitting, today we head ashore for a hike on a path through thousands of penguins to a small vintage museum.

The island is a haven for many bird species. In April and September, when the penguins dwell elsewhere, the offshore excursion includes a zodiac ride to Marta Island to observe South American sea lions.

A short cruise from here is Punta Arenas, our port to disembark. A local guide will help you with transfers to your accommodation – Singular Hotel. You will have most of the day free to enjoy a choice of activities included in the package, such as horse riding, kayaking and biking. You can indulge your taste buds at the hotel.

Day 10: Puerto Natales – Torres del Paine

Meals: full board at the Singular. Breakfast, lunch and dinner a la cárte, soft drinks, alcoholic beverages and wines.

Accommodation: The Singular Hotel

What’s your pick going to be? There is a wide selection of expeditions to choose from, all with bilingual guides. Our hand-picked options would be trekking to the base of The Torres (perfect for advanced hikers), or if you want something easier, opt for “discovery”.

Day 11: Exploring Torres del Paine

Meals: full board at the Singular. Breakfast, lunch and dinner a la cárte, soft drinks, alcoholic beverages and wines.

Accommodation: The Singular Hotel

Today again you can pick from the selection of daily expeditions with bilingual guides from The Singular excursions menu.

Day 12: Puerto Natales – El Calafate

Meals: full board at the lodge. Breakfast, lunch and dinner a la cárte, soft drinks, non-alcoholic beverages included.

Accommodation: Eolo Lodge

Departing after breakfast, we journey through the most amazing landscapes of the Patagonian steppe for approximately four hours before arriving at our lodge in the Argentine Patagonia. Here you can enjoy a relaxing lunch followed by a guided walk to explore the local flora and birds.

Day 13: Cruise the Perito Moreno Glacier

Accommodation: Eolo Lodge

We spend the day on an exclusive cruise exploring the beauty of the Argentino Lake and sailing through some of the most beautiful glaciers in the world. Onboard you’ll enjoy an amazing gourmet experience accompanied by a variety of wines.

The cruise is followed by a relaxing rest of the day at the lodge.

Day 14: El Calafate – Buenos Aires – Tango Farewell

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch with drinks and dinner with wines.

Accommodation: Casa Sur Bellini Palermo Boutique hotel

Before leaving Patagonia, enjoy a delightful morning at the lodge, before your afternoon flight to Buenos Aires. We’ll transfer you to your accommodation in the neighbourhood of Palermo where you will live like a local and enjoying lively little cafes, bars and restaurants.
In the evening enjoy a “farewell” dinner and tango show at one of the most exclusive tango places in the city where you can also experience one last taste of the finest Argentine wines as part of this tour.

Day 15: Farewell from Buenos Aires

Meals: breakfast.

Spend the last day of your tour enjoying this vibrant city at your own pace, visiting local attractions and shopping.

We will transfer you from the hotel to the airport. In case you have an evening flight, we will help take care of your luggage and support with a late check-out (though that may come at an additional cost).