We started our Patagonia adventure in Torres del Paine National Park in Chile. To get here we flew from Santiago into Puerto Natales and then rented a car. We spent the first night in Puerto Natales and then woke up early the next morning to drive into the park. Puerto Natales is a cute town, but it is really just an entry point into the park. It is the closest place to the park to rent a car, has a bus station to take a bus into the park, and also the closest grocery stores, pharmacies, and all other amenities! Therefore, if you plan on staying in the park, stock up on food, water, and all of your other hiking needs while you are here.
Mirador los Torres is probably the most popular hike in the national park and we decided to knock it out on our first day! If there is one difficult hike you have to do in the park, it’s this one. This trail makes up a main portion of the “W Trek”, a multi-day trek in the park. Unlike some of the other hikes in the park, this one is really easy to get to by car. You just drive to the Torres del Paine Welcome Center (about 1 hour 45 minutes drive from Puerto Natales) and then park at the welcome center. It is also possible to take a bus here to/from Puerto Natales.
Before you get to the welcome center, however, there is a checkpoint where you have to get out of your vehicle and show your park pass. As of December 2024, a three-day pass for foreigners cost 32.400 CLP, or about $32. A pass for more than three days cost 46.200 CLP, or $46. We bought a pass for more than three days, although this first day is the only day we had to show it. They do have checkpoints at each entrance into the park, however, so I would not risk trying to avoid paying. You can purchase the pass online here.
Once at the welcome center there is a small gift shop and coffee/snack counter inside where you can buy a sandwich to go if you did not bring a lunch with you, although I definitely recommend stocking up on food and water in Puerto Natales because once you are in the park options are extremely limited!
The hike starts from the welcome center and you will see lots of people heading out on the trail. This was one of the more crowded hikes we did, and we got started around 9:30 a.m. This is a pretty challenging trail and I would plan for it to be your only hike of the day!
Shortly into the trail you will reach the windy pass. An open trail through a mountain pass that is, you guessed it, really windy!!
I would give yourself 8 hours to complete the hike, and there is a certain point near the top which you must reach before 3p.m. After this time park rangers close the final portion of the trail to the summit. How often this is enforced, I cannot say, but you definitely do not want to risk hiking several hours only to be turned away before you reach the end!
From the 3p.m. closing point, it is approximately another hour to the top, and the last hour is a hard one! Expect a long steep incline over rocks and windy temperatures.
The trail ends at the border of a glacial lagoon with a beautiful view of the three Paine towers. Spend some time taking photos, resting, and enjoy a snack while breathing in your incredible surroundings before making the long trek back to the welcome center.
Halfway up/down the trail there is a small rifugio which serves limited food and drinks. You can also pay for a wifi card. Service on this and all trails in the park is extremely limited! We stopped here for a beer on the way down the mountain which was totally worth it.
Once back at our car we drove to Rio Serrano to check into our lodging. Rio Serrano is a small town bordering the park. It was approximately an hour drive from the welcome center, but closer to the starting point of the hikes we completed in the days to follow. We stayed at Vista al Paine – Refugio de Aventura, which was one of the more budget friendly options in the area, but still at least twice as expensive as staying in Puerto Natales! Still, we preferred this over making the 90-minute drive to and from Puerto Natales each day.
The only dinner options in the park are at hotels. There is no town with restaurants. Unfortunately, our lodging did not have a restaurant, but several hotels right down the road did so went to one of them for dinner.
The hiking stats according to my Garmin:
- 13.17 miles
- 6 hours 24 minutes
- Ascent: 4553 feet
- Descent: 4603 feet
Overall this is an incredible hike and a must do in Torres del Paine! While it is a challenging hike and requires physical fitness, I promise you will not regret it once you get to the top!