Give it at least 10 days: 3 in Buenos Aires and 7 in Patagonia. Budget at least US$800 round trip for the domestic flight, and plan one extra day for weather. If you only have a week, pick one of the two.
Why not both in a week?
I get this question a lot, and my honest answer is: don’t. Patagonia deserves at least a week on its own. With 7 days total you’ll spend a big chunk of them in airports and on buses, and you’ll see the glacier and the mountains through a bus window. Argentina has plenty of shorter routes that fit a week much better. Name one or two: Iguazú + BA? Mendoza + BA?
How many days in Patagonia?
For El Calafate and El Chaltén, here’s the minimum that makes sense:
- 1 day for the Perito Moreno glacier.
- 1 day to explore El Calafate and settle in.
- About 8 hours of travel back and forth between El Calafate and El Chaltén (around 3 hours each way by bus, plus waiting). check the exact time
- At least 3 days for the classic hikes in El Chaltén: Laguna de los Tres, Laguna Torre and a shorter one. You can rush them in one day, but then why not just watch a documentary about Patagonia?
- 1 extra day for the weather. Wind and rain close trails and cancel boats. Always keep a spare day.
That’s 7 days, which is exactly why our Patagonia trip is 7 days.
Domestic flights in 2026: brace yourself
Flights to Patagonia went especially crazy this year. In mid-2026 Flybondi, one of the three airlines flying domestic routes, stopped flying for weeks because of a deep operational crisis, so Aerolíneas Argentinas and JetSMART took on the load and raised their prices. Check Flybondi’s status right before publishing.
My advice: budget at least US$800 round trip for Buenos Aires – El Calafate. If the worst happens, it won’t be a shock. And if you manage to grab a ticket for US$120, you’ve just found extra budget for steaks.
A realistic budget for 10 days
Recalculate with your real numbers. Your notes say: about US$600 for Patagonia and US$300 for Buenos Aires for 4 + 3 days at a decent comfort level, without the flight. Check if that includes hotels.
| Item | Budget (US$) |
|---|---|
| Domestic flight, round trip | 800 (plan for it, hope for less) |
| Buenos Aires, 3 days | ? |
| Patagonia, 7 days | ? |
| Park tickets (Los Glaciares, foreigners) | 50,000 pesos per visit convert and check |
Trails around El Chaltén now need a national park ticket too (since October 2024). You buy it online on the Parques Nacionales website and show it on your phone at the trailhead.
Do it yourself or join a group?
Both work. On your own you control every day, but you also handle the buses, the weather changes and the bookings. In a small group the logistics are handled, you share the costs, and someone takes your photos. If you’re curious, here’s our 7-day Patagonia trip.
Sources: Flybondi crisis, July 2026 (ANBariloche, in Spanish) · National park prices, May 2026 (iProfesional, in Spanish) · El Chaltén trail fees (iProfesional, in Spanish)
