Introduction
There are various types and levels of accommodation in and around Torres del Paine National Park, which we call “the zone”, and this includes Puerto Natales. Here, we will describe the different types of accommodation available in this area as well as the various categories.
We will also outline where various hotels are located within and outside the official park boundaries, as well as point out that there is no need to stay “inside” the park, because it really does not make so much difference if you are “inside” the Park or back at Puerto Natales. The reality is that the area is so large that even if to stay in a hotel within the Torres del Paine official boundary, it can take you up to 2hrs to get to a particular place of interest. It can also take the same time to see a different place of interest coming in from Puerto Natales. Staying at Puerto Natales offers the great advantage of lower cost and the chance to enjoy a village atmosphere each night, maybe go out to a restaurant, for example.
For fast access to our Featured Hotels please click here.
Hotels in and Around Torres del Paine Zone
Considering our history and unique local knowledge we can work with all the accommodation options in and around Torres del Paine for those visiting this incredible national park.
However, considering the varying degrees of quality and comfort, we prefer to work with only a selected few that we consider to meet certain minimum standards.
Accommodation Options
You have the option to stay within the park in a hotel, or around the W Trek trail heads in a refugio, depending on the activities you want to take part in.
Moreover, you can, of course, stay at a hotel in the nearby village of Puerto Natales too. That is to say that we consider Puerto Natales to be an excellent alternative, often less costly, and one that can even be considered better than staying inside the park.
In conclusion, no matter whether you simply need a comfortable room after a long day of treks, or you want free wifi to share your trip with the world, we have plenty of options to suit your needs.
Types of Accommodation in and Around the Torres del Paine Zone
Further below we talk about the categories of accommodation.
You can enjoy the stunning scenery, fresh air, witness moving glaciers, walk through woods, challenge yourself with adventurous trekking and be in the heart of nature during the day in Torres del Paine. But at night you have the following types of accommodation where you can relax and get your sleep:
Luxury Lodges
Hotels
Estancia Hotels
Luxury Camping (Glamping)
Refugio (Hostel)
Serviced Camping
Dome Camping
Within the Official Torres del Paine Boundary
There are, in total, four hotels and one up-market camp (glamping) that are within the official boundary lines of Torres del Paine National Park (TDP). These are: Hotel Las Torres, Explora Salto Chico Lodge, Hotel Lago Grey, Hotel (Hosteria) Pehoe and the ECO Camp.
Explora Salto Chico
Western Sector of Torres del Paine
To the west, literally just over the “boundary line” of TDP on the other side of the Rio Serrano are: Hotel Rio Serrano and Hotel del Paine, with a few others such as Pampa Lodge, Lago Tyndal and Nash lodge nearby.
East of Torres del Paine
To the east of TDP we have: Tierra Patagonia, Awasi Patagonia and Estancia Cerro Guido.
South of Torres del Paine
Here we have: The Patagonia (Yurt) Camp.
Torres del Paine Accommodation Categories
Luxury Lodges
Category: Luxury Lodges
Luxury Lodges Definition
These are world-class lodges with luxury-level private rooms; en-suite, well-equipped bathrooms, plus spa and pool facilities, quality food and wines.
Which Ones are in this Category?
Explora Salto Chico, Tierra Patagonia, Awasi Patagonia, The Singular (Puerto Natales) and Remota (Puerto Natales).
Locations of These Options
- Explora Salto Chico is in the heart of Torres del Paine.
- Tierra Patagonia is in the south-eastern sector, near Lago Sarmiento
- Awasi Patagonia is in the eastern sector.
- The Singular is based in Puerto Natales.
- Remota is based in Puerto Natales.
NOTE: For Explora Salto Chico, Tierra Patagonia, The Singular and Remota hotels and lodges we have offers. Please see the offers section or open up the information on each hotel.
Hotels
Category: Hotels
Hotel Definition
This is a hotel with private room and en-suite bathroom or shower rooms, restaurant, decent food and wine selection. These are located in different areas within the Torres del Paine zone and, of course, at Puerto Natales.
Which Ones are in this Category?
Hotel Las Torres, Hosteria Pehoe, Hotel Lago Grey, Hotel Rio Serrano, Hotel del Paine as well as in Puerto Natales – Hotel If, Hotel Altiplanico Sur and Weskar Lodge.
Locations of These Options
- Hotel Las Torres is located in the east of Torres del Park at the trail head up to the Torres base.
- Hosteria Pehoe is located in the heart of Torres del Paine on its own island in Pehoe lake, not too far from Pudeto, where the catamaran departs and arrives to.
- Hotel Lago Grey is located in the north-western sector of Torres del Paine at the southern shore of Grey Lake.
- Hotel Rio Serrano is located in the western end of Torres del Paine, just the other side of the river Serrano.
- Hotel del Paine is located in the western end of Torres del Paine, also just the other side of the river Serrano.
- In Puerto Natales, we have Hotel IF in the heart of Puerto Natales, and Altiplanico Sur and Weskar Lodge, are a few kilometres away from the city.
Estancia Hotels
Category: Estancia Hotel
Estancia Hotel Definition
This is hotel is located on an authentic, Patagonia working estancia. This means that on the land are sheep, horses and some cattle as well as thousands of hectares of Patagonian space.
The rooms are in the original, but renovated estancia accommodation buildings. With regard to design, this particular one is the country-style with large, private rooms with equally large en-suite bathrooms in its older sector. The restaurant offers good food and wines.
Here, you can experience life in Patagonia and also sense and feel the history of the past 100 years.
There is only one such place and it is located in the Torres del Paine zone.
Which Ones are in this Category?
- Estancia Cerro Guido
Locations of This Option
- The Estancia Cerro Guido is located east of Torres del Paine.
Luxury Camping (Glamping)
Category: Luxury Camping (Glamping)
Glamping Definition
The Torres del Paine Glamping means that the accommodation is luxury level camping in either Yurt or Dome tent (two different places in different areas of the Torres del Paine zone). The exteriors maybe hard, plastic sheeting over metallic frames, but the interiors are decorated with nice fabrics, wooden furniture, good beds and bedding, and en-suite bathrooms that you would normally find in an hotel.
One has communal bar and dining area with wine, and in the other has more of an up-market restaurant with good wines. Both options are located within the Torres del Paine zone.
Which Ones are in this Category?
- Patagonia Camp and ECO Camp
Locations of These Options
Patagonia Camp is located south of Torres del Paine.
- ECO Camp is located eater of Torres del Paine close to the trail head up to the Torres base.
Refugio (Hostel)
Category: Refugio (Hostel)
Refugio Definition
The Refugio means “refuge” and is a simple place, which is basically a hostel with dorm rooms and bunk beds, 6 to 8 people to a room, communal “canteen style “dining room. These are located on the W Trek and the “back country” Circuit Trek.
Which Ones are in this Category?
Refugio Central, Refugio Torre Norte, Refugio Chileno, Refugio Cuernos, Dome Frances, Refugio Paine Grande, Refugio Grey, Refugio Dickson
Locations of These Options
- Refugio Central is located in the eastern sector of Torres del Paine almost next to the trail head up to the Torres base. It is also next to the Torres del Paine Welcome centre.
- Refugio Torre Norte is located 50mt in front of Refugio Central.
- Refugio Chileno is located about halfway up the trail heading towards the Torres base.
- Refugio Cuernos is located half way between Refugio Central and the entrance to the French Valley.
- Dome Frances is located between Refugio Cuernos and the entrance to the French Valley.
- Refugio Paine Grande is located half way between the entrance to the French Valley and Refugio Grey.
- Refugio Grey is located in the far western arm of the W Trek, close to Glacier Grey.
- Refugio Dickson is located on the “back country “O” circuit near Lake Dickson.
Cabin (Cabaña in Castellano)
Category: Cabin (Cabaña in Castellano)
Cabin Definition
This means a self-contained wooden hut (usually). In the case of the W Trek, the only cabins are the small A-framed huts that sleep up to three people that have a small deck. The bathroom and shower facilities are communal, in a separate building and meals are to be taken in the nearby refugio called Cuernos.
Which One is in this Category?
- Cabins Cuernos
Locations of These Options
- The Cabins Cuernos are located 80mts up the hill from Refugio Cuernos, which is halfway between Refugio Central and the entrance to the French Valley on the W Trek trail.
Serviced Camping
Category: Serviced Camping
Definition of Serviced Camping
Serviced camp sites comprise a platform where a good tent is already erected for use. A ground mat, sleeping bag with liner (the liner is cleaned each time after use).
All the camping places have bathroom facilities with hot showers.
Also the people who stay at a serviced camp site can eat all their meals inside the adjacent refugio.
One of the great advantages to serviced camping, opposed to staying in a refugio, is that you will get privacy.
Which Ones are in this Category?
Camping Central, Camping Cuernos, Camping Frances, Camping Paine Grande, Camping Grey, Camping Seron. There is also Camping Los Perros, but this has limited services.
Locations of These Options
- Camping Central is adjacent to Refugio Central at the trail head up to the Torres base, eastern sector Torres del Paine on the W Trek.
- Camping Cuernos is adjacent to Refugio Cuernos halfway between Refugio Central and the French Valley on the W Trek.
- Camping Frances is hallway between Refugio Cuernos and the entrance to the French Valley on the W Trek.
- Camping Paine Grande is adjacent to Refugio Paine Grande halfway between the French Valley entrance and Refugio Grey.
- Camping Grey is adjacent to Refugio Grey in the western end of the W Trek and close to Glacier Grey.
- Camping Seron is the first stop on the full “back country” Circuit “O” trek, walking east and north from Refugio Central.
- Camping Los Perros is past Refugio Dickson, on the “back country” full Circuit “O” trek and just before climbing up the John Gardner pass. Here, there are limited services regarding food, they only have one menu for everyone.
Dome Camping
Category: Dome Camping
Definition of Dome Camping
Dome camping is, effectively, accommodation in a dorm room setup inside a dome-shaped, plastic tent supported by a metallic frame forming a dome shape.
The interior is reasonably spacious.
You will only really stay here if you are hiking the W Trek and going into the French Valley or going on to or coming from Refugio Paine Grande.
Which Ones are in this Category?
Although in Torres del Paine there are two locations for dome camping we have included the ECO Camp under the category of Luxury Camping even though there are dome tents here.
The principal Dome Camping is at Frances on the W Trek.
Locations of These Options
- This spot is more or less, half-way between Refugio Cuernos and the entrance to the French Valley, or Camping Italiano, which is located at the entrance to the France Valley.
Approved Hotels
During our inspections we ask the hotel owners if we can stay overnight at the hotel. We ask this because staying overnight is vastly different to just popping in with a quick visit. We like to know what the noise pollution is, what the breakfasts are like, how comfy the beds are, what the staff are like.
Therefore, if you see “inspected & approved” we are saying that we feel the hotel is perfectly good. If it does not have “approved” it means we have not stayed overnight or we feel it is not up to the level that our clients will require.
Inspected Hotels
The reason we have a selected number of hotels that we choose to work with is because we regularly visit the hotels in Puerto Natales in order to know what they are really like. We cannot rely on the hundreds of often “suspect” reviews published in the internet. Therefore, we try to promote the better hotels that we know will make your trip more enjoyable. However, if you see that we have “inspected” a particular hotel, this does NOT mean that we recommend it necessarily. The ones we recommend are “approved”.
