bobjunior

Hi everyone!!
I'm planning a last trip before I get pregnant and want to make it a real adventure. I will be traveling in the last two weeks of January and am looking into Patagonia (Argentina or Chile).

What I would love to do is minimize costs on airfare so I can go a little pricier on high-end lodging. To do this I am trying to find a great combination of a well priced international flight from NYC to any major international airport on the continent (BUE, Lima, Santiago, etc), with smaller flights getting me to a great area in patagonia... What are good internal carriers? Useful airports.
I can go through any country and to any region of Patagonia.
Bariloche, El Calafate, etc...
Just want input on how to get there so I can try different permutations of major and minor flights to get the best priced deal. (Putting in the effort because airfare to South America is so high right now).

THANKS so much for your suggestions! Would also welcome any thoughts on must see/stay places/properties in the region!!

Eastbay1K

On the Chile side, PUQ (Punta Arenas) is the main airport. LAN is the country's main airline, and you qualify for the South America airpass if you fly in on LAN or another One World carrier. Otherwise, airfare can be quite high. Or, it may not add much to your ticket if it is all part of the same ticket. LAN has nonstop service JFK/SCL certain days of the week, so it makes it an easy trip. You might also consider the Lakes region as part of your trip (fly to PMC - Puerto Montt).

Note that if you are flying on national flights within Argentina, you will arrive @ EZE (from the US or other points in South America) and then have to take a bus to AEP, the domestic city airport, which requires several hours' connection time.

I have never been to the south of Argentina, so I can't help you out there. Whatever you decide, I'm sure you will have a great trip.

http://www.lan.com/promociones/data/...nas-en-us.html

These fares are really good. SCL/PUQ alone can be several hundred $.

etch5895

If you want to go a little further south into Tierra del Fuego, Ushuaia is a great trip and the Fuegian lamb almost makes the trip worth it by itself. Both LAN and Aerolineas run this route.

Calafate is also a nice destination if you are interested in seeing a glacier up close and personal. Aerolineas runs several daily flights from AEP, and believe at least one daily flight direct from EZE. You might want to research that. From AEP, you will likely connect once in Trelew.

heramato

You have direct flights from EZE to Ushuaia and Clalafate (and maybe some other that I can't recall)

MemphisQueen

yup - you can fly direct to USH from EZE and with local layovers from AEP. but it's all on aerolineas argentinas, of whom i have little positive to say. give yourself plenty of time to get where you're going.

I never did have a single on time departure and they cancelled / changed every single flight i booked with them. Even though I paid full fare, they coveniently took me off the flight i booked several times and bumped me to later flights without ever asking or telling me. they als ocancelled all flights to a city that i had booked and rebooked me to another city, again, without ever telling me ot asking me if i wanted to go to this different city! madness.

unless oyu're a big outdoor hiker you can probably do most of ushuaia in 2-3 days, inclyding a base trip to tierra del fuego national park to hike to the base of a glacier. DO NOT waste your 18 pesos on entrance to the yamana museum. the museum del fin de mundo has a better display anyway (and it's very interesting to learn about the natives that charles darwin called "the missing link") and you get to see so much more.

globetrots

Unfortunately, airfares are the one area where Argentina is no bargain. As a foreigner you pay an inflated rate for domestic flights, so I would advise picking one spot in Patagonia to fly to from BZE and just get one round-trip ticket to there.

Mynameismud

You may consider another otpion which is https://www.skyairline.cl/default.aspx for flying to PUQ.
Much cheaper than LAN.
If you want to have a look at http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...via-h2-5p.html you will find more info about them.

Another option would to be to fly to PMC and then take http://www.navimag.com/_portada/index.aspx? to Puerto Natales . Great "cruise" with great landscapes, glaciers...

Mynameismud

Navimag ferry from Puerto Montt to Puerto Natales (Chile)
Glacier Perito Moreno (Argentina)
Mont Fitz Roy (Chile/Argentina?) , although i did not see it when i was there...too cloudy, rainy
Parc nacional Torres del Paine (Chile)
Ushuaia? to get your passport stamped...

Hope this helps.

enfuego

Flights to Patagonia have a distance component as well. El Calafate is much further from Buenos Aires than Bariloche. Those two destinations are my favorite on the Argentine side. The last time I went, it was cheaper to call the airlines directly in Argentina than to use their US websites.

dwaisman

I understand that this was an older post, but I've recently did a comprehensive guide of the Patagonia airports with some average ticket prices and I felt the community could benefit from the data.
The international options are still similar to when this post was created (either Santiago or Buenos Aires are still the only options) Some of the regional domestic airports in Patagonia have upgraded and now receive more flights, see the link for the list: Patagonia Airports.

Best regards.

HeavenlyJane

Great post. However a few points:

1. You cannot really talk about flights to Patagonia without mentioning Buenos Aires' other airport, AEP. It is the airport for most domestic flights. It would be helpful to add something about how to get from EZE to AEP, for folks who are trying to transit within a single day.
2. It would be helpful to link the Wikipedia article for each airport since they contain an up-to-date list of routes and airlines serving each airport. This is helpful for people who are trying to plan hops between smaller airports, like El Calafate to Ushuaia.
3. Your average cost will be out-of-date very quickly. Plus in some places you do not specify if prices are OW or RT.

dwaisman

Thank you HeavenlyJane!
I'll include your suggestions to the article!

Best

malagajohn

Fledgling low cost operator Flybondi is flying from El palomar airport in Bs As to Bariloche

https://flybondi.com/

Stenk75

For domestic flights in Argentina is there still a tariff for foreigners? Can you buy tickets from the Argentinian version of the Aerolineas or by OTA without complications ?

HeavenlyJane

I've heard that's risky. You can be denied boarding or something similar. I didn't risk it on my cash flights.