Highlights
Experience authentic Patagonia trekking
Visit Torres del Paine National Park and Conquer Paine Towers
See terrific views of Los Cuernos
Prices valid until September 2026 and may vary according to dates and type of accomadation
Itinerary
Short on time but long on adventure? The "Exploring the Best of Torres del Paine - W circuit" trek invites nature-loving young adults to discover the wild majesty of Patagonia in just five thrilling days. This moderate, guided trekking tour covers the highlights of Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park—iconic granite towers, shimmering glaciers, and turquoise lakes—ensuring every moment is packed with breathtaking scenery.
Hike to the base of the legendary Paine Towers, traverse the dramatic French Valley, and stand in awe at the mighty Grey Glacier and Nordenskjöld Lake. Each trail offers stunning vistas, with forests, rivers, and wildlife at every turn. The adventure wraps up with a scenic catamaran ride across the brilliant blue waters of Pehoe Lake.
What makes this trek unique is its compact yet comprehensive itinerary—perfect for active travelers craving a bucket-list Patagonian experience without weeks to spare. If you’re seeking a tour package that delivers Patagonia’s most spectacular sights on a perfectly paced adventure, this is your call to the wild.
day 1 - Bus ticket Punta Arenas / Puerto Natales
At the indicated time, you will go on your own to the bus station to take the bus to Puerto Natales.
Type of service: Shared
Duration: 3 hours
Included: One-way bus ticket
Not included: Transportation to/from hotel
Travel season: October to April
Note: We recommend that you arrive at the bus station 30 minutes before the departure time to avoid any last minutes inconvenience
Upon arrival, you will be transferred from Puerto Natales Bus Station to your hotel.
Type of service: Private
Included: Transportation mentioned above
day 2 - Puerto Natales / Torres Del Paine
At the appropriate time, you will be transferred from your hotel to Puerto Natales Bus Station.
Type of service: Private
Included: Transportation mentioned above
Self-guided Program
Today you will start a self -guided program. No guide service is included during your Torres del Paine program trip.
IMPORTANT: Approximately 30 days before your arrival in Torres del Paine, you will receive the day-by-day itinerary by e-mail through WETU, including: vouchers, tickets, complementary audiovisual material, general information and final details of the program. IN ADVANCE, YOU MUST DOWNLOAD VOUCHERS, TICKETS AND ITINERARY ON YOUR CELL PHONE to have the information available at all times, since the connectivity of the area is very limited. Upon arrival at Las Torres, you must go through the Welcome Center to collect your kit.
Circuito W (05D/04N) - Refugio FB
W Circuit Program (5 Days / 4 Nights)
Welcome to Torres del Paine
You we will take the 2.15 pm bus to Torres del Paine National Park. The trip takes about 2.5 hours (112 km). You will arrive in the afternoon and will have some leisure time before having dinner.
Overnight at Central Sector.
Meals included: Dinner
IMPORTANT: Approximately 30 days before your arrival in Torres del Paine, you will receive the day-by-day itinerary by e-mail through WETU, including: vouchers, tickets, complementary audiovisual material, general information and final details of the program. IN ADVANCE, YOU MUST DOWNLOAD VOUCHERS, TICKETS AND ITINERARY ON YOUR CELL PHONE to have the information available at all times, since the connectivity of the area is very limited. Upon arrival at Las Torres, you must go through the Welcome Center to collect your kit.
day 3 - Hike to Las Torres Base
Hike to Las Torres Base
The first hour and a half walking is steep, you will enjoy fantastic views of lake Nordenskjöld and Almirante Nieto Mn (2.670 m.s.n.m), until you reach Refugio El Chileno. You will continue the trail through a millenary Lenga forest (1 hour) until “the moraine” base, and there a challenging ascent (45 min) will take you to one of the most impressive viewpoints in the park: “Base of Torres del Paine”.
From this point you can enjoy amazing views: Torre Sur (2,850 m.s.n.m.), Torre Central (2.800 m.s.n.m), Torre Norte (2.600 m.s.n.m) and Cerro Nido de Cóndor.
Later, you will begin the descent to the Central Sector to have dinner and sleep for the night
Difficulty level: High
Meals included: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner
day 4 - Trek in Los Cuernos
The trail goes through the Base of Almirante Nieto Mount – part of the Paine Massif- with great views to Nordenskjöld Lake. After 30 minutes walking you will reach a shortcut, right-hand path towards Los Cuernos area.
During the trail it’s possible to see the hanging glaciers and the local flora. After about 5/5.30 hours you will get to your accommodation to rest and recover energies for the next day challenging trek: “The French Valley”.
Difficulty Level: Medium
day 5 - Hike to Francés Valley
The day begins with one of the icons of the circuit, the Francés Valley. The first 2-2.30 hours will be ascents and descents with views to Nordenskjöld Lake that will take you to “Campamento Italiano”.
We recommend you to leave your big backpack at your accommodation and start the next part of the trek with a small day backpack (food, water and warm clothes). You will first reach the French Glacier viewpoint where you’ll be able to appreciate the hanging glacier and there are also possibilities of observing small avalanches.
The trail continues until “Campamento Británico” and afterward you will reach the lookout point considered as one of the most overwhelming spots in the Circuit: “Mirador Británico”, where you will admire: “Paine Grande”, “Cerro Hoja”, “Cerro Máscara”, “Cerro Catedral”, “Cerro Aleta de Tiburón”, “Cuerno Norte”.
The return is the same way back to “Campamento Italiano”, and then you have to continue to Paine Grande sector where you will spend the night.
Difficulty Level: High
Meals included: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner
day 6 - Grey Glacier lookout point and back to Puerto Natales
Today, you will reach the third milestone on the circuit, the magnificent Grey Glacier. The trail goes through the western side of the Paine Massif with views to Grey Lake and Mountains.
After one hour and a half you will reach the first lookout point, where you may observe Grey Glacier in the distance, then and after 1:30/2 hours you will get to the main lookout, in front of the glacier. The return is the same way back until Pehoé Lake. Here you will take the 6:30 pm catamaran that crosses the Lake towards the Pudeto sector, where your bus will be waiting to take you back to Puerto Natales.
Difficulty level: Medium
Meals included: Breakfast and box lunch.
+ Please be aware of the Catamaran departure time.
+ You can leave your backpack in the storage room at Refugio Paine Grande.
Catamaran Itinerary: Departure at 6.35 PM / Presentation time at Pier: 6:15 PM / Arrival time to Bus Station in Puerto Natales: around 10:00 PM
day 7 - Puerto Natales to Puerto Arenas
Today you will go on your own to Puerto Natales bus station to take a bus to Punta Arenas.
Upon arrival, you will go to the hotel by yourself.
Punta Arenas is the Chilean southernmost city, sited at the Magellanic Strait, and the leading port for Antarctic cruises and scientific research. Before the construction of the Panama Canal, Punta Arenas was the most important maritime crossroad between the Pacific and the Atlantic Ocean, thus, the city grew as a commercial center surrounded by European-type buildings. There are colorful houses, standing out from a backdrop of snow-capped mountains.
Type of service: Shared
Duration: 3 hours
Included: Bus ticket
Not included: Food, extras
Travel season: October to March
Note: December 25th and January 1st buses available only after 1:00 PM. We reccommend that you arrive at the bus station 30 minutes before the departure time to avoid any last minutes inconvenience
Altitude Map
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Customer Reviews
Read what other travelers have to say about Exploring the Best of Torres del Paine - W circuit
We'll be back in South America soon, and I'm confident it will be with Say Hueque!
Everything was completed on time and according to schedule. We'll be back in South America soon, and I'm confident it will be with Say Hueque!
Highly Recommended for Independent Traveler
This tour was certainly for the independent traveler, and we liked how much of it was left up to our schedule. We had a terrific experience and would recommend it.
The seamless organization was our highlight of traveling with Say Hueque
Very happy that all our tickets bus, ferry etc were organised too. It saved us a lot of hassles. The responsiveness and availability of English speaking people to help book tours made us to choose to travel with you. Our favorite hotel is Torres central Refugio. I would recommend booking Paine Grande Refugio instead of camping for the W trek. We were able to upgrade. But if we hadnt been able to upgrade we would have left our last day by staying in camps which were nice but definitely not as food as the Refugio.
Thanks again for a memorable trip
Since i didnt know much about Patagonia, I felt it was very helpful to have this tour operator organize the trip and book the hotels, buses, and W-circuit refugios. Everything went smoothly, except for the bus delay which I will explain below. The bus left at 8:30, but it did not arrive at Puerto Natales until 4:30, so I missed the 2:30 bus. There were no other buses leaving that day, so my choice was to either find a hotel and return to the bus station at 7:30 the next morning, or pay 80,000 Chilean pesos for a private bus. I asked if they would call the operator in BA, but they said they would not make an international call. I found a Chilean number to call, and they said they would contact you in BA. I did not have the funds to get a hotel room or pay for a private bus, so I thought I was going to have to spend the night in the bus station. Fortunately, you agreed to pay the 80,000 pesos for the private bus, which I am eternally grateful for, but it caused me several minutes of great stress trying to figure out how to get to Torre Central. The woman at the bus counter says the buses are always late, especially Cootra and they would not recommend using that bus service. In the future, I highly recommend NOT booking the two bus trips from El Calafate to Torre Central on the W-circuit in one day. I would have travellers spend one day in Puerto Natales and catch the bus to Torre Central the next day. I would have to say my opinion of this tour company would have been very bad if you did not agree to pay the 80,000 pesos for the private bus. I realize it was not totally your fault that I missed the bus, but one hour is simply not enough time to expect the first bus to arrive on time. My return bus trip from Puerto Natales to El Calafate did not arrive in El Calafate until 2:30, so expecting the bus trip to take 5 hours is unreasonable.
Request a Private, Customizable Departure
By design, this is a group tour. You can however request a private, customized version of this tour for yourself or your private group of people. Private departures are usually more expensive, but come with these benefits:
Itinerary can be tweaked and customized.
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