Torres del Paine National Park – Sights, Hikes, and Excursions

The wild and sublime nature of Patagonia is amazing, and you don’t have to be a backpacker to enjoy it to the fullest. As an active traveler who prefers day hiking, I thought it would be helpful to put together this list of sights, hikes, and excisions that we did during our visit to Torres del Paine National Park. Don’t get me wrong, the popular 3-5 day “W” trek or the 7-9 day “O” circuit sound like truly amazing experiences, it just wasn’t the way we wanted to travel this region of unpredictable weather.

Mirador De Las Torres

The three towers are the icon of this park and they are not easy to get to. That said, this 16+ mile day hike is 100% worth the effort if you are rightly prepared for its undertaking. This hike is also a segment of the two popular “W” and “O” treks that I mentioned above, so you will be hiking alongside backpackers on the trail if you chose to do this as a day hike.

Glaciar Grey

Glaciar Grey is the park’s prominent glacier that spills into Lago Grey and there are several ways you can view it up close; from the water while on deck of a ferry, from above while hiking, from an arms length away on a kayak, and from directly underfoot on an ice trek. We opted for the Ice Trekking Excursion through Bigfoot Patagonia which consumed our entire day and was an experience we will never forget. Choosing this excursion also meant we rode the Grey III Ferry across the lake to meet our guides.

Lago Grey 

One glance at the opaque and sediment rich waters of Lago Grey (Grey Lake) will tell you how it got its name. Even if you are not staying at Hosteria Lago Grey or catching the Grey III ferry, I still recommend a visit to this end of the park to hike to the water’s edge and view Glaciar Grey from afar. There’s a well-trod, 2 mile out and back trail that goes over the river and through the woods and to the gorgeous lake shore pictured above. This well-trod path leads to the ferry “dock” as well as a large rock in the middle of Lago Grey that contains a nice loop trail and a viewpoint called Mirador Ferrier. Do the full loop trail to see Glaciar Grey from across the lake, you may even see icebergs floating adrift close by. 

Lago Grey is opaque because while Glacier Grey recedes, it creates friction against rock which deposits sediment into the water.

Salto Grande

The name says it all – Big Waterfall. Vivid blue glacier water tumbles from Lago Nordenskjold to Lago Pehoe and the best part, it’s a relatively easy walk to get to! There’s a descent sized parking lot at the end of the road near Pudeto Guarderia and the relatively flat walk takes you right to the viewing platforms alongside the waterfall where you can hear the water roaring as it makes it’s long fall. Combine your visit to Salto Grande with Mirador Cuernos as you are already hiking along the same trail.

Note: Theres a catamaran (boat) that docks near Pudeto Guarderia. While we didn’t take this particular boat ride, I understand it to be a more budget-friendly means of transport across Lago Pehoe if you want to hike into Valle del Frances or over to Glacier Grey.

Mirador Cuernos 

I’ll be honest, I think the Cuernos (Horns) are more beautiful than the Towers. In my mind, I can’t not see the heart shape inside it’s large granite body and so this beautiful formation simply gets my vote for favorite. Feel free to disagree! The Mirador Cuernos (Horns Lookout) is also not nearly as popular nor difficult to get to with just a 4 mile out and back hike across relatively flat terrain. Plus, you get to walk along the shores of Lago Nordenskjöld for most of the way, pictured above. We enjoyed this hike so much that we did it twice… in very different weather. 

Salto Chico

The boardwalks here are nearly as picturesque as the crazy blue waterfall of Salto Chico itself. Plus… we didn’t see a single other person here during our first visit to this gem of a spot. Explore every length of boardwalk in this area as it crawls around the lake shores, waterfalls, and to one of the most grand views of the Paine Grande and Cuernos mountains peaks in the park.  

Mirador Condor

We visited the trailhead of Mirador Condor (Condor Lookout) every single evening and nearly every morning that we were in the park. After all, our accommodation was literally across the dirt road, and being able to wake up to this view was the best thing about staying at Hosteria Pehoe. If you do want to climb the 1.5 miles out and back to the Mirador Condor lookout, you will get a fantastic elevated view of all of the mesmerizing mountain surroundings. The picture above was taken from the trailhead.

Fact: All of the roads inside the park are gravel which means you won’t be driving fast and distances across the park are far.

After completing and re-reading this list, I feel like I could have made each of these sights, hikes, and excursions their very own blog post. I threw a lot out there! But I’m also happy with the amount of visuals it provides to help display the beauty of this wild park. Just let me know what specific questions you have, planning a trip here can take a lot of logistics planning!

We opted to rent a car to give us flexibility during our stay. Not having to rely on tour vans, hitchhiking, or bus schedules meant we could follow the weather, get to the popular areas before anybody else, and stop at random wherever there was a scenic pullout or the wild guanacos were grazing.

Don’t forget to check out my Patagonia Chile 13 Day Itinerary post for further travel planning inspiration. 

Tip: I always find the best trip planning maps on official websites, like this one of Torres del Paine National Park. I’m also sure to download my AllTrails hiking maps prior to leaving America. On this trip, we also purchased a paper map from the Nandu store in Puerto Natales as we never had cell service while in Chile and only had access to Wifi once per day while staying within the park.