In the Torres del Paine area of Chile there is an Explora hotel and a few other much cheaper options.

Has anyone stayed at either the Explora or the cheaper options? Any views on either?

Well, that depends on what you want. We stayed at Hosteria Las Torres because Explora was full, and were quite glad we did - it is right at the beginning of the trail up to the Torres del Paine proper (not that we are serious mountaineers by any means...). We had rented a car in Punta Arenas and thus drove around the park on our own. The hosteria was fine - we were actually in the older building, so it was a bit rustic, but fully adequate. Rooms were around a central "living room" with a fireplace, where you could read a book, etc., and all the rooms have a private bathroom. Food was OK - good, but not spectacular.

On one of the days we had lunch at Explora, and it was very nice. However, all the activities/excursions I think are included in the price, so that you are shuttled around in a van and have to keep to the schedule of whomever is driving/organizing (the Explora vans passed by us all the time). The whole thing seemed to cater more to "older" "Americans" who are maybe not so comfortable with independent travel. The property I believe has a spa and a pool, which may be nice to have - as far as level of comfort & amenities, yeah, Explora wins hands down. But for us, the big price difference between Explora and Las Torres would not have been worth it.

Thanks for this advice.

The Explora looks good but is lots more expensive and I'm not sure it's worth the extra for us. We normally travel independently but I wasn't sure how easy that would be in this area. I wasn't sure how basic the other hotels would be but it sounds OK. How long did it take to drive up from Punta Arenas? Were the roads OK?

Traveling is quite easy in Chile, the roads are generally good and there's always food/gas available. From Punta Arenas to Puerto Natales the road is paved (actually concrete I think) and very good (about 250km/155mi), and then you get on a good unpaved road for another 150km/90mi (if I recall the distances correctly). I suggest you fill up with gas in Natales, as there is only one place to get gas in the park (a distance from Las Torres, closer to Explora), and it is expensive and you have to seek out the guy who operates the tank (he didn't seem to be around all the time). Also, I would make sure you have a working spare with you - we had a flat in the middle of nowhere in the park, at dusk - thankfully we had the spare, so it wasn't a big deal. They were able to fix the flat at Las Torres - lucky again, as we had another flat in Punta Arenas the night before our flight back!

Oh, a visit to the penguin colonies between PUQ and Pto Natales is certainly worth it. It's a bit of a detour (1/2 hour each way or so), but it's definitely interesting.

Thanks for the advice. We're at the planning stage at the moment so it's good to hear from someone who's been there.

Great thread - we were on Explora's wait list but couldn't get in so we didn't go that far south - we didn't realize there were other options. However, we are definitely planning a trip for next year.


Did you rent an SUV? Thee was no restriction about driving on unpaved roads?

No, not an SUV. We rented a Toyota Yaris (known here as the Echo), regular 2WD, and it was fine - there is not much choice anyway. Avis at PUQ had no problems with unpaved roads - I guess they know that to go up to the park there is no other way.

We stayed at the Lago Grey when we visited the park and thought it was fine, although I did not see the inside of the Explora so I can't compare the two either. You can take a short hike from the lodge to the lake and scoop up pieces of glacier that have floated to shore (which we used as cooler ice to keep our beer cold. BTW bring yer own if you want beer and don't want to spend a fortune buying it in the park).

We rented a small van in Punta Arenas and drove to the park. The drive was fine except for one part where sand had been blowing for several days and the road was covered. The road had been closed almost right up until we arrived. Luckily it was open when we got there, but you had to follow tracks in the sand as the road was not visible for a mile or so. It was VERY windy our first day in the park....I felt sorry for anyone trying to camp in a tent.

The other poster's recommendation to carry a spare is sound. Check the spare's condition before you leave with your rental car. Ours was in very poor shape, such that we didn't feel safe riding on it very far. Luckily the Explora had a garage and the guys there fixed our flat for free even though we were not guests (of course they got a nice tip!).

Enjoy the park...it is beautiful!