Day 16: Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour from Puerto Natales
Today is a very special day so it's time to get up at 5:30 in the morning with the clear purpose of working a little before starting the Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour from Puerto Natales We will do with the company Agunsa Patagonia.
Although breakfast at The Singing Lamb starts at 6:30 in the morning at 6 o'clock everything is already organized in the lounge, something that by the way is very much appreciated, so we took the opportunity to have a good coffee with a couple of sweets and at 6:45 we start the walk that will take us to the meeting point where we met with Agunsa Patagonia from 7:15 to 7:30 in the morning to start the Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour.
Meeting area with Agunsa Patagonia for the Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour
Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour from Puerto Natales
The Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour It is one of the most demanded excursions from Puerto Natales and, after our experience, we advise you not to get lost.
In our case we did this tour with a collaboration with Agunsa Patagonia, a company that offers you the possibility of sailing on a smaller boat and which also included lunch, an extra we have to say, is a success after of navigation hours.
You can book a cruise on the Balmaceda and Serrano glaciers here in advance or contact other agencies in Puerto Natales.
Agunsa Patagonia boat
Description of the Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour
The duration of this tour, including lunch is about 10 hours, so counting that you leave at 7:30 in the morning, you can count on the return to Puerto Natales about 17:30 in the afternoon.
After boarding, the navigation begins at the Last Hope Fjord, on the way to the Bernardo O'Higgins National Park where the Balmaceda and Serrano glaciers.
During the trip, in addition to breakfast, you can learn part of the history of the city and curiosities of the glaciers through the guide that accompanies you at all times.
The first stop is at the Wall of Cormorants, and then continue towards the Cascade and the Cliffs of the Condors.
Waterfall. Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour
From here the navigation continues to reach Mount Balmaceda where the Balmaceda Glacier is located, one of the most impressive images that we will have throughout the Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour.
Balmaceda Glacier
After this stop where we can observe from several angles the Balmaceda Glacier, the navigation continues to the Serrano Glacier, where to reach it we will disembark and make a walk through a native forest until practically next to the Serrano Glacier.
Serrano Glacier
After about 1 hour at the place, we will return to the boat, where we can have a snack with ice from the glacier to continue to Estancia Consuelo where we can enjoy a typical "roast of Magellan stick" after which we will return to Puerto Natales .
If you have not hired the Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour with lunch here you will find a small bus that will take you overland back to Puerto Natales.
Services included in the Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour with Agunsa
- In standart cabin:
Breakfast: tea, coffee, cereal bar and cookies.
Snack: whiskey or pisco sour and chips.
Lunch (optional): roasted lamb with stick, potatoes, salads, bread, wine, drink and dessert.
Bilingual guide (Spanish and English).
Entrance ticket to Bernardo O'Higgins National Park.
Seats: individual and reclining seats
Boat equipment: air conditioning, music, monitors and life jackets
- In VIP cabin:
Breakfast: tea, coffee, juice, water, cereal bar, chocolate and cookies.
Snack: whiskey, pisco sour, juices, water, chips and chocolates.
Lunch (optional): roasted lamb with stick, potatoes, salads, bread, wine, drink and dessert.
Bilingual guide (Spanish and English).
Entrance ticket to Bernardo O'Higgins National Park.
Seats: individual and reclining seats
Boat equipment: air conditioning, music, monitors and life jackets
Meeting point Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour in Puerto Natales
Boarding map Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour
Tips Tour Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier in Puerto Natales
Although the Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour During the navigation the majority of the time is done inside the boat, at some points it will be more convenient to leave to enjoy the landscapes, in addition to the walk that is done in the Serrano Glacier.
For these reasons it is advisable to wear: warm and waterproof clothing, sunglasses, hat / scarf / gloves and sunscreen.
Prices of the Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour with Agunsa
- Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour with lunch - Standart cabin 86000CLP per person
- Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour with lunch - VIP cabin 110000CLP per person
- Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour without lunch - Standart cabin 62000CLP per person
- Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour without lunch - VIP cabin 83000CLP per person
These prices are at 2017 dates. Check prices to confirm.
Punctual at 8 in the morning, after taking a short walk around the surroundings waiting for all passengers to arrive, we begin the tour, meeting this last day of the year, making the Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour, one of the best ways to end the year.
Saying goodbye to Puerto Natales
After 30 minutes of navigation we are served breakfast: coffee or tea with 3 pieces of breakfast that we enjoy enjoying unique views and that although navigation at certain times may seem long, you only need to look through the windows to enjoy some incredible views that will make the minutes become seconds.
Navigation Tour Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier
Hanging Glacier Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour
Between a sip and a sip of coffee we arrive at Guanaco Island, in the Ultima Esperanza Glacier, where we can already go outside the boat to enjoy the landscape that surrounds us and how could it be otherwise, it leaves us totally Surprised by the beauty that surrounds us.
Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour Waterfalls
After a few more minutes of navigation we arrive at the Wall of Cormorants, where as the name itself indicates, we can see a colony of cormorants that seems incredible can be in this place.
Cormorant Wall
After this stop, we continue with the navigation, although we already chose to stay outside the boat and we have to say that although the interior is fabulous, the views from the outside are really impressive and they give us unique landscapes.
Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour
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Torres del Paine in the background in navigation
So we spent almost 3 hours of navigation until we reach the first glacier, the Balmaceda Glacier, where we make a stop to enjoy this incredible wonder of nature from all possible angles.
Approaching the Balmaceda Glacier
Balmaceda Glacier
At this point of Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour, as you can imagine, all the occupants of the boat are on deck, so being a small place, in principle it will seem impossible to be able to take pictures or see the glacier well.
Book the best rated Spanish tours and excursions in Puerto Natales by travelers:
- Cruise on the Balmaceda and Serrano glaciers
- Excursion to Torres del Paine
- Trekking through Torres del Paine
Book the best rated Spanish tours and excursions in Puerto Natales by travelers:Do not worry. The boats are changing position so that everyone can have more or less the same perspectives, so it is advisable to stay calm and enjoy the views until you have to have the glacier in front of you and it is time to shoot the camera as if there was no tomorrow.
Balmaceda Glacier
Balmaceda Glacier
From here and after only 5 minutes of navigation we arrive at Puerto Toro, the entrance door from the Serrano Glacier, and although we still can't see it, the sky welcomes us with a super clear and sunny day that allows us to make the one-hour hike with spectacular views.
Walk to reach the Serrano Glacier
Keep in mind that the route from Puerto Toro, the point where you disembark to the Serrano Glacier is approximately 20-25 minutes at a constant pace, and the time you give us is 1 hour to make the complete tour and be back on the boat, so it is advisable not to entertain yourself too much so that you can reach the final point and have time to enjoy the place and the time has come, if we have enough time, stop as many times as we want on the way back It is done on the same path.
Serrano Glacier
Serrano Glacier
Once we reach the end of the trail, we find ourselves face to face with the Serrano Glacier, although just like we also find all the boats that have arrived, so we have to be patient and try to make a hole to enjoy for a few minutes of this spectacular gift of nature.
Who said people? Serrano Glacier
Serrano Glacier
Serrano Glacier
Unfortunately, as we said before, we only have one hour, so we have to make the return trip practically running and also, being two boats that we have just arrived, bypassing people on the path to be able to have some last views of the Serrano Glacier It is practically impossible task, although in the end, we get it and we don't leave without that last vision.
Serrano Glacier
It is 12 in the morning when we are back on the boat and they serve us a snack, which we leave somewhat forgotten to go outside and, while we take the way back to Puerto Natales, say goodbye to the Balmaceda and Serrano Glaciers with a panoramic that surely, we will not forget.
Panoramic Balmaceda Glacier
After the last views of the glacier and the aperitif, we continue sailing until we reach Estancia Consuelo, a 20-minute drive from Puerto Natales, where travelers who have lunch included taste a tasty Magellanic lamb.
Roasted to the Magellan stick
We return to the boat of Agunsa when it is 5 in the afternoon to continue an hour of navigation to Puerto Natales where we arrive at 6 in the afternoon after a most complete day in which we have enjoyed the most Balmaceda and Serrano glacier tour.
What we did not like about the Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour from Puerto Natales
After our experience we can do nothing but recommend 100% the Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour even though we we would change A couple of things in the organization:
- The tour in general lines is a must, although counting that it takes 3 hours of navigation from Puerto Natales to the Balmaceda Glacier, we believe that both the time that is in the area of this glacier, and the time you can be in the Glacier Serrano is very limited, so we think it would be better to eliminate lunch time and thus be able to spend more time in the glaciers.
- In the Balmaceda Glacier, our boat has not just approached the glacier, so the views we have are quite distant, something we believe should be solved getting closer so that travelers can have a much closer perspective of the glacier.
It is six in the afternoon when we meet again in Puerto Natales, where after saying goodbye to all the staff of Agunsa Patagonia, the first thing we do is start taking off our clothes, since the city welcomes us with a very high sun and heat amazing.
Here is the moment in which we fall that today is the New Year's Day and we have not remembered until now that we have not reserved any place to have dinner, so the first thing we do is go to The Singing Lamb, give us a Shower and with a coffee in the lounge, start calling different restaurants to reserve a table for tonight.
And here comes the time when what we would never have thought happens: there is not a restaurant in Puerto Natales that has a free table for tonight.
Seeing this we only have one option, approaching to a supermarket that we have near our accommodation, buying a couple of buns and a package of Chilean Iberian ham plus a couple of soft drinks with which we will celebrate our private party tonight New Year's Eve dinner in Chilean Patagonia of this trip to Chile and Easter Island.
* During our trip to Chile and Easter Island We did the Balmaceda and Serrano Glacier Tour from Puerto Natales maintaining a collaboration with Agunsa Patagonia. This has not influenced the opinions that are reported here, which are all a summary of our experience and feelings during the stay.
Day 17: What to see in Puerto Natales in Chile
