Patagonia without hiking: What to See, Where to Stay & What It Costs.
Torres del Paine is one of the most iconic places in Patagonia, with social media filled with photos of people posing in stunning mountain panoramas, looking a bit dusty and crusty, triumphantly finishing many days of hiking.
So… Do You Have to Hike Torres del Paine?
Most information I found about experiencing Torres del Paine focused around doing hikes like The W Trek, The O Circuit, Camping (aka refugios, for overnight stays), the non-hiking Patagonia options seemed to be only taking bus tours from Puerto Natales – the nearest town.
I wanted to go to Patagonia, specifically Torres del Paine, and be immersed *in* it, but I couldn’t spend several days hiking. Partly due to my trip timeline, but….. WHOOPSIE DAISIE
I was having ongoing significant leg and foot pain and had to start my long planned 6 week adventurous trip with a limp and support. Luckily visiting Patagonia was near the end of my trip when I could walk unassisted, but I had to plan for the worst.
Setting that standard – here is my visit to Torres del Paine WITHOUT hiking. For me, without hiking means no long hikes with a heavy pack. I managed to do a couple light hikes that were 1-2 hours in length, as well as taking in lots of views with no hikes at all. And what does it cost?
This Guide Includes:
What to see and do – both with small hikes and no-hikes.
Where to stay.
Getting around.
Where to eat.
How many days should you spend in Torres del Paine as a non-hiker + itinerary.
How Much Does a Trip to Torres del Paine Cost?
My 2 biggest mistakes.
Things to do in Torres del Paine without hiking.
I knew I wasn’t going to see every corner of Torres del Paine. But I would still feel like I’d experienced Patagonia?
I am a hiker. I don’t particularly enjoy hiking with a heavy overnight pack, but love a long day hike. I knew this trip couldn’t be that experience. My body wasn’t up to it. I accepted I would be missing out on the whole experience.
This visit would be a compromise. However, I was wrong. Really really really wrong.
Why?
The people.
The Crowds.
The rushed feeling.
Travel talk almost everywhere in the world is about overcrowding and limiting access. This doesn’t stop at the gates of national parks. The most famous through hikes in Torres del Paine can be busy, competitive to get refugios to stay in. For me, part of the hiking experience is the quiet and solitude. Waking exceptionally early to avoid walking in a continuous line of others is really unappealing to me. Plus not every traveller is like you and me – respectful, prepared, and considerate.
Many are, frankly, terrible people and are an embarrassment to their nation. Just look at this large group of people willingly and knowingly stepping outside the bounds of a viewpoint in Torres del Paine, simply to get pictures of the exact same background they could see within the boundaries!
Many are terrible people and are an embarrassment to their nation. Just look at this large group of people willingly and knowingly stepping outside the bounds of a viewpoint in Torres del Paine, simply to get pictures of the exact same background they could see within the boundaries!
After experiencing that and hearing how busy the through hikes like the W Trek and the O Trek can be, I was quite happy my circumstances meant that I could only do short hikes or stop at viewpoints, and strategically choose locations that were not busy ones when I wanted some peace to really enjoy the views.
Patagonia with no-hiking – is it worth it?
YES! All of these views were without ever doing a single step on a hiking trail.
You can find many viewpoints with no hikes (which is called MIRADOR in Spanish), and many are gorgeous. There are also some really nice park signs for great photo opportunities and even some restaurants and hotels have extremely beautiful views. I didn’t find anywhere with a breakdown of all the short trails and viewpoints in English anywhere, so I made one. Check out my master list and map HERE
Where I Stayed in Torres del Paine
I wanted to stay IN the park, or as close as I could on a tight budget. Puerto Natales, the the gateway town into Torres del Paine is over an hour drive from the park. There is a small outpost called Cerro Castillo closer to the park with some private rentals but it is still a 30 minutes drive from the park. Trying to conserve my ener gy, I knew driving up to 2.5 hours round trip every day to just get to the park would be too much. I ended up finding a hostel bed on booking.com that was the most expensive hostel bed I’ve ever stayed in, but the cheapest option. Check out the full breakdown here.
If you look for refugios (hostels or simple lodges) they will be the best option on a budget. It was hard to find some that were not on actual hikes but were accessible by car. I booked a hostel bed at Pampa Lodge.
PAMPA LODGE & REFUGIO (AKA HOSTEL)
The lodge was built in 2014 by a family that had been in the area since the 1970s. It was a beautiful lodge to look AT from the hostel in it’s parking lot. Jokes aside, I think this was the nicest hostel I have ever stayed at.
I still had stunning views from the very nice hostel.
The price was a stunner, too. It was by far the most I ever spent on a hostel bed.
Read my info and tour of the refugio before you decide to stay.
Getting Around Torres del Paine
Torres del Paine DOES have a transit system with buses that travel between stops in key areas. There is also a public bus to travel from Puerto Natales into the park, and, as I mentioned above, even a bus stop in Rio Serrano where I was staying.
Like anywhere isolated, hitchhikers were also fairly common. I picked up both locals who worked at a resort in Rio Serrano and hikers who were hoping to get from point A to point B without having to wait long periods for the bus.
Since I had a limited time at Torres del Paine and that my foot wasn’t feeling amazing, after looking at the cost, I elected to rent a car from the airport instead of navigating the bus system. I could have survived using the buses and saw quite a bit of the park, but costing under $300 CAD ($220 USD) for 4 days, the cost / benefit for renting a car for Torres del Paine was well worth it.
There are many rental options at the Puerto Natales airport and I would NOT recommend who I went with – it was a larger company that started with an L. I found with them for MONTHS to get my deposit back which was $1,000 CAD. I had to go through a chargeback process, speak to them multiple times via What’sApp and finally only got traction when I left bad google reviews.
Between gas and the rental the total cost total was around $400 CAD.
THE CARS ARE PRIMARILY STANDARD TRANSMISSION. I love driving stick, but I know many people are scared of them!