W Trek from Puerto Natales: Packages and Transport

Express package with guiding on the first hiking day

The five-day express package combines three nights in shared accommodation in Puerto Natales, one camping night and three hiking days in the national park. Guiding is included on the first hiking day, the Base Torres group trek. The remaining hiking days are unguided. Choose it with that division in mind, particularly if you want someone accompanying you throughout the journey.

Its services include private transportation between hikes, ferry and bus tickets, a trek briefing with a welcome dinner and drinks, listed meals and luggage storage in Puerto Natales. Trekking poles are provided for the first hiking day. Park admission and the required health, hospitalisation and travel insurance are extra. Keep those costs separate from the package price, and organise cover appropriate to the booked activity.

Camping package with park admission and Grey boat trip

The camping package includes transport from and to Puerto Natales, park entrance, camp accommodation, an erected tent, sleeping bag and camping mattress. It also includes breakfast or a lunch box and a Grey Lake catamaran trip for glacier views. Personal trekking equipment is optional, and travel insurance is extra. No guide is promised as an included service for this package.

The Grey boat element belongs to the experience associated with Grey Glacier. It is separate from the crossing between Pudeto and Paine Grande on Lago Pehoé. When comparing transport, identify the purpose and endpoints of each boat ticket rather than treating every catamaran mention as the same journey.

Shared-transfer package and departure point

The other W package includes a shared round-trip transfer, accommodation according to its itinerary, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Its departure point is the bus terminal at Avenida España 1455 in Puerto Natales. Those are concrete inclusions for comparing the package with an independently assembled trip; do not add continuous guiding or park admission to its listed services.

Match your city stay to the departure details. The accommodation location guide helps you think about the terminal, waterfront and town centre without assuming a particular transfer covers every address. Keep the package meeting point with your travel documents, and allow room to deal with luggage before departure.

Reservations and park admission

The park administration's reservation guidance, consulted on 6 November 2026, requires confirmed overnight reservations in authorised camps or refuges for multiday W and Macizo Paine trips. The park pass must be arranged at least 24 hours in advance. Make the overnight sequence and admission part of the preparation, even when a package includes one of those services.

For the express package, luggage storage in Natales is included. For other bookings, arrange any storage you need separately rather than assuming that service follows the W name. Pack warm waterproof layers and appropriate hiking equipment. Wind, rain, snow and fast weather changes can affect the mountain days; the weather advice covers practical preparation without promising conditions. Microspikes and trekking poles may be required depending on conditions. Check the park administration’s equipment requirements for your dates before departure.

Park buses and the Pehoé crossing

The published park-bus season runs from September to April. Services connect Natales with sectors including Laguna Amarga and Pudeto. A Laguna Amarga shuttle can form a separate land connection; verify its current fare for your date. For Pudeto, the Pehoé catamaran crosses to Paine Grande. Check the booking method, check-in and current timetable for that particular crossing before committing to the onward bus.

Allow flexibility around the bus, shuttle and boat rather than relying on a guaranteed chain of connections. Boat crossings and glacier excursions are weather dependent and can be cancelled. Remain on marked trails, register at ranger stations and respect closures. Fire and smoking are prohibited in the park, stoves are limited to authorised camping areas, and wild camping is prohibited. Do not feed or disturb wildlife; recreational drones are prohibited.

Questions before departure