Buenos Aires & Wild Patagonia

After some time for you to refresh and settle in, you’ll start this half-day exploration of Barrio Norte with a drive along the Avenue Del Libertador, which is surrounded by luxurious mansions. You’ll also drive through Palermo which houses large green. In the neighborhood of Recoleta, you’ll see the famous Teatro Colon and the oldest synagogue in Latin America, Templo Libertad. Continue over to Plaza San Martin where you’ll see some of the finest residences in the city. Finishing up your tour, you’ll stop in the Recoleta cemetery to see the resting places of notable Argentines like past presidents, Nobel prize winners, and even Eva Perón.

Hub Porteño is our favorite luxury boutique hotel in the Recoleta district of Buenos Aires. Its 11 very spacious suites have been designed to bring comfort and tranquility, and overall the hotel feels very intimate. The hotel offers guests a small roof terrace and a massage room with two beds, and it hosts a very popular Peruvian fusion restaurant, Lima Estilo Nikkei.

Head out with your guide and driver to explore some of the more interesting southern neighborhoods of Buenos Aires.

You’ll start with the Plaza de Mayo Square which houses the the Cabildo, the Casa Rosada presidential house and the old city council for a look at official Buenos Aires.Continuing south, you’ll walk through San Telmo, Buenos Aires’ oldest neighborhood that’s known for its extensive contemporary art museums and it’s Sunday market. After some time to explore the galleries, you’ll head to La Boca for an explosion of color at its iconic “Caminito”.

Afterward heading north back toward your hotel, you’ll see the old port as well as the newest area of the city, Puerto Madero, as well as Retiro and the Plaza San Martín area.

For a perfect evening of great food and cultural entertainment, tonight you’ll dine at the Tango Rojo at the Cabaret of the Faena Hotel in Puerto Madero. Here you’ll enjoy an intimate show featuring skilled dancers, vocalists, and musicians. (Dinner and transfers included)

Meet your driver and guide for your transfer to the airport for your flight onward to El Calafate. (Flight not included.)

Upon arrival, you’ll meet your Exeter Latin America driver and English-speaking guide just outside baggage claim (holding a sign with your name on it) for your private transfer to your accommodations at Xelena Hotel. (Optional upgrade to EOLO Patagonia at an additional cost.)

The rest of the day is yours to enjoy at leisure.

Today you’ll head out from your hotel to make your way to the famous Perito Moreno Glacier in Los Glaciares National Park. Here you’ll enjoy sailing around the south wall of the glacier before hiking along the lakeshore. After this short hike, you’ll get the appropriate hiking gear and learn about the basic techniques of walking on ice from trained guides. You’ll walk for about 2 hours on top of the glacier, at a comfortably moderate speed, and learn about the typical formations within the glacier. (Please note this is a group activity, and the national park limits this glacier hike to those 65 and under. If hiking on the glacier itself is not a priority and you prefer to have a private driver & guide to take you to walk the balconies, we can arrange this instead.) A box lunch from your hotel is included for this full-day excursion.

Board the Estancia Cristina boat, which departs Puerto Bandera at 9 AM and arrives to the estancia at 11:30 AM. This transfer is your first expedition of your stay, with your boat sailing past icebergs through the Upsala arm of Argentino Lake as well as the Cristina Channel.

Estancia Cristina offers travelers a luxurious and unique stay smack in the middle of the Patagonian wilderness that encompasses present-day Los Glaciares National Park. Guests can relax and enjoy breathtaking views from the 20 individually-decorated guest rooms with top-quality bedding, deep soaking bathtubs, and blackout curtains for those late Austral summer sunsets. Estancia Cristina is only accessible via a 3-hour boat trip from El Calafate, offering guests the truly remote and wild experience that one seeks in Patagonia. Days are filled with guided hikes and 4×4 excursions to explore the Upsala Glacier, canyons full of prehistoric fossils, the dramatic viewpoint atop Cerro Carnero, or the roaring Cascada del los Perros. There is no fitness center on-site, as you get plenty of exercise daily, and satellite wi-fi is limited only to the main Octagon building where guests dine.

After disembarking the Estancia Cristina boat, you’ll have a shared transfer with other guests to drop you off at El Calafate airport for your flight onward back to Buenos Aires (flight not included).

Upon arrival, you’ll meet your Exeter Latin America driver and English-speaking guide just outside baggage claim (holding a sign with your name on it) for your private transfer to your accommodations at Hub Porteño.

The rest of the day is yours to enjoy at leisure.

Meet your specialist guide & driver a look at the Buenos Aires street art scene, one of Latin America’s best and featuring work by local as well as top international artists. You’ll see murals across several neighborhoods and covering a wide range of Argentine politics and culture – everything from soccer and Maradona to tango, the military dictatorship of the 70s and 80s, and women’s rights. This is also a really terrific way to experience some off-the-beaten-path neighborhoods.

Enjoy the afternoon at leisure.

Early evening, meet your driver and guide for your transfer to the airport for your overnight flight back home. (Flight not included.)