Next leg through Patagonia was getting from Puerto Natales, Chile, to El Calafate, Argentina. I’m said to say this either wasn’t the most exciting bus ride I’ve undertaken. The mountains of Torres del Paine still spiced it up, but besides that, it was pampa all the way – and in my opinion, that is not the most alluring landscape. I guess that’s how much 35 USD will get you 😀 Scheduled to take 5 hours, it took a little longer, but wasn’t much delayed. I guess border crossings are unpredictable, but I think it went like a breeze, considering how many buses and people on the buses. At the Chilean border post, there is a small shop/cafe next to the immigration office. Since I was among the first to be stamped out of Chile, I put my head in real quick. The Argentinian border post in a whole another matter, just a small shack in the middle of nowhere.
For this part of the trip I traveled with Turismo Zaahj. This was actually due to me finding out in my pre-trip research that no other bus operator was doing this route on the day in question, a Sunday. However I saw other buses leave with the same destination, so not sure about what’s right and what’s wrong. Regardless, travelling with Turismo Zaahj, there were not hiccups, unless you count the two couples who loudly argued about reclined seats… Check in at the ticket office at the bus terminal, which is outside the town centre of Puerto Natales. Tag bag, and go. In El Calafate you can actually walk from the bus terminal if you’re staying on the right side of town… – just know it is a bit further than it looks on the map, and a bit harder to find the way. A taxi will cost you 130 Argentinian pesos, which is like 2 dollars 🙂
