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Los Glaciares National Park

Argentina

Background

World Heritage since
1981
Type of site
Natural
National park created
1937

Los Glaciares National Park is an area of exceptional natural beauty, with rugged, towering mountains and numerous glacial lakes, including Lake Argentino, 160 km long. UNESCO describes three glaciers meeting at its farthest end to dump their effluvia into the milky grey water, launching massive igloo icebergs with thunderous splashes.

Established on 11 May 1937, the park covers 726,927 hectares, the largest in Argentina, and takes its name from the Andean ice cap, the largest outside Antarctica, Greenland and Iceland, which feeds 47 large glaciers. Wikivoyage divides it in two: the Perito Moreno glacier and Lake Argentino in the south, reached from El Calafate, and Mount Fitz Roy above El Chaltén and Lake Viedma in the north, 220 km by road.

More on the UNESCO listing More on Wikipedia

  1. 1937Los Glaciares National Park is established
  2. 1981Inscribed as World Heritage

Find Your Way Around

The main parts of the site, in the order most visitors see them

  1. 1
    Perito Moreno Glacier
    The best-known glacier, its wall calving into Lake Argentino; every few years it dams the lake and bursts with a roar.
  2. 2
    Upsala Glacier
    The largest glacier in the park, approached by boat among the icebergs.
  3. 3
    Mount Fitz Roy
    The jagged peak above El Chaltén and the trails to its lagoons.
  4. 4
    Lake Argentino
    The country's largest lake, with El Calafate on its shore.
  5. 5
    Ice Trekking
    Guided walks on the Perito Moreno ice, and kayaking in the lake.

Know Before You Go

From Wikivoyage and the GoGo guides

Fly to El Calafate
Wikivoyage: regular flights from Buenos Aires, Bariloche and Río Gallegos; buses link Calafate and Chaltén.
Stay on the Paths
Never leave the official walkways: pieces of ice 50 m long fall from the glacier walls.
Register for Treks
Climbing and remote trekking need registration at the park office; from May to September the trails do too.
Patagonian Wind
Layers and a windproof shell, even in summer.

Perito Moreno Day

Not yet in a GoGo guide

  1. 08:00
    Perito Moreno Glacier Walkways4 hrs
    The glacier front from the boardwalks, with a boat to the wall.
  2. 14:00
    Mini Ice Trek2 hrs
    Crampons on the glacier with a guide.

Best Time to Visit

Best months: Sep–Oct, Dec–Mar. Freezing days in Apr–Nov.

Typical highs

Best monthsRain: wettest Mar (125 mm), driest Sep (89 mm)

Climate: NASA POWER

Sources
UNESCO World Heritage Centre, listing 145 · Wikipedia: Los Glaciares National Park · Wikivoyage: Los Glaciares National Park (CC BY-SA 4.0) · UNESCO listing