Perito Moreno Glacier Tour in El Calafate: Drive, Walkways & Boat

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/11

Duration8h

GroupUp to 20

LanguagesEN · ES

PickupAt your hotel

Walk the glacier's viewpoints, then sail its ice face from the water

This full-day tour from El Calafate includes an 80 km drive to Los Glaciares National Park, a bilingual guide, and access to multiple walkways and viewpoints facing Perito Moreno Glacier. The glacier's 60-meter front continuously sheds massive ice blocks into the water below. You can add a one-hour boat ride on Lake Argentino's Rico Branch, which sails within 150 meters of the glacier's south face — the only way to see the ice calving from water level. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included; the National Park entrance fee is separate.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore Perito Moreno Glacier

Depart early from El Calafate
Drive 80 km to glacier walkways
Walk paths and stairs to viewpoints
Observe glacier from multiple balconies
Optional one-hour boat ride near glacier

The Experience

The day starts early from your El Calafate hotel with a drive across 80 km of Patagonian landscape to reach the park. Once there, you walk a network of connected pathways and stairs that climb to different levels, each one framing the glacier from a new angle. The Perito Moreno Glacier's front face rises over 60 meters above the water and stretches 5 km wide — pieces of ice break off continuously throughout the day, producing a sound like thunder as they crash into the Canal de los Témpanos below. The walkways let you stay in one place and watch this happen, or move between viewpoints to see how the light and distance change the perspective.

If you choose the optional boat ride, you'll board a vessel on Lake Argentino's Rico Branch after the walkway section. The boat sails to within 150 meters of the glacier's south face, putting you at water level where the ice calves directly in front of you. This is a one-hour navigation that turns the glacier from something you watch from above into something you're inside of — the scale and the sound shift completely when you're close enough to see individual blocks falling. A bilingual professional guide travels with you the entire day and explains what you're seeing as it happens.

Your hotel pickup and drop-off are included, along with an air-conditioned vehicle for the drive. You'll need to purchase your National Park entrance ticket separately, either online before you arrive or at the park entrance in cash or card. The tour runs 8 hours total. Infants can sit on an adult's lap, and specialized infant seats are available if you need one. Snack bars and restaurants operate inside the park if you want to eat during the day.

What’s included

Bilingual professional guide.
hotel pickup and drop-off.
air-conditioned vehicle for the 80 km drive.
access to multiple walkways and viewpoints facing the glacier.
one-hour boat ride on Lake Argentino's Rico Branch (Walkways and Navigation option only).

Good to know

Easy physical levelInfant seats availableInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Tours Buenos Aires

Is this one for you?Choose the Walkways and Navigation option if you want to experience the glacier from both above and water level — the boat ride is the only way to see the ice calving from the lake itself, where the scale and sound are completely different from the viewpoints. The walkways-only option works if you prefer to stay on land and move between different angles to watch the glacier from a distance.