How To Get To El Chalten From El Calafate?! El Chalten is the town where Mount Fitz Roy and Cerro Torres reside. It’s apart of the Patagonia trifecta towns — El Calafate, El Chalten, and Puerto Natales.
El Calafate is the middle town, El Chalten is the North town, and Puerto Natales is the South town. Each town is a stop to explore the Patagonia. El Calafate is the stop for the Perito Moreno Glacier, Puerto Natales is the stop for Torres Del Paine, and El Chalten is the stop for Mount Fitz Roy and Cerro Torres.
Let’s get into how to get to El Chalten from El Calafate. There are shuttle vans and tour buses provided in the area. It’s the only way to travel between the towns. Each trip is 3 hours, at least. In addition, a round-trip ride isn’t expensive and I would recommend booking it with your hotel. I booked my round-trip shuttle van from El Calafate to El Chalten for less than 15 USD.
The shuttle bus picked me up at 6 AM. I got to El Chalten around 10 AM and the return trip was at 6 PM. It was a perfect day trip because it gave me enough time to hike Laguna Capri and Fitz Roy mirador. It was a 4-5 hour round-trip hike and it was a fairly easy hike. However, the initial climb could be difficult as it was fairly steep.
The other hikes require an overnight stay in El Chalten. Cerro Torres (~16 miles), Huemul Circuit (~40 miles), Laguna de los Tres (~15 miles), and Laguna Torre (~15 miles). It’s a small town with many small lodging options. However, the majority of the restaurants and lodging close during the winter, which is May to July. El Calafate is a great town to stay too. El Calafate is filled with great restaurants like La Lechuza and La Tablita.
I would definitely recommend staying in El Chalten if you have the time. I only had 3 days in the Patagonia on my South America trip. I wish I would have allocated more time to the Patagonia for the hikes. Fortunately, I’m determine to come back. Also, check out our recommendations for hostels, tours, and jackets if you’re planning to head there. That’s how to get to El Chalten from El Calafate.
Safe trekking, folks!
