El Calafate Extension

You will arrive in the quaint tourist town of El Calafate, the gateway to Parque Nacional Los Glaciares. As you wander the main street, Avenida del Libertador, you will discover souvenir shops, restaurants, cafes, chocolate and ice cream shops. At the latter, be sure to try some ice cream made using the Calafate berry from which the town gets its name. Today is an arrival day, and you are free to explore at your leisure.

Today you will join a small group tour of Los Glaciares National Park and see three of Argentina’s most breathtaking glaciers. The most famous of the three is Perito Moreno Glacier, one of the few remaining glaciers in the world that continues to grow rather than retreat. You can wander the boardwalks before boarding a boat which takes you along the Tempanos Canal to the hanging glaciers of Cerro Mayo and Cerro Negro. Enroute you will stop in Toro Bay for a chance to walk in the Patagonian forest to see waterfalls and rock formations. At the end of your cruise you will return to Perito Moreno Glacier for an up close and personal view. If you are lucky, you may even get to see the glacier calving into the cool turquoise waters of Lago Argentino.

No trip to Argentina is complete without a visit to an Estancia. These parcels of land, which are similar to a ranch or a farm are significant to the country’s history and today’s journey to Estancia Nibepo Aike allows you to truly experience the authentic lifestyle of the gauchos who live and work on this land. Initially called Estancia Jeronima, Nibepo Aike covers more than 12,000 hectares at the foot of the Patagonian Andes and is primarily a Hereford cattle ranch. You will enjoy a short horse ride before watching a demonstration of the gaucho’s horse handling skills and see the shearers at work in the shearing sheds. You can also milk the cows. To finish your day you will enjoy an asado, a typical Patagonian barbeque lunch.

You will be transferred to the airport to fly to your next destination.