Self-Launched Patagonia: Buenos Aires, the Lake District, Torres del Paine & Tierra del Fuego

Arrive at Ezeiza (EZE) or Aeroparque (AEP) and take the local Tienda León shuttle or public bus into the city rather than a private transfer (~£8-12). Base yourself in Palermo Soho or San Telmo — both are walkable, sociable and full of cheap parrillas and cafés. Spend the late afternoon wandering the cobbled streets, then do your food shopping at a supermarket (Coto, Día) for breakfast supplies. Remember Argentina's blue-dollar / MEP rate situation: bringing USD cash still gets you a noticeably better effective rate than card ATMs.

🚌Airport shuttle bus ~£10; walking and SUBE-card local buses

🛏Hostel dorm or private room in Palermo Soho (e.g. Milhouse, Rayuela or similar) — £14-25/night

• →Self-guided walk of Palermo Soho and Plaza Serrano
• →Supermarket stock-up and neighbourhood orientation

Fly Aerolíneas Argentinas or JetSMART Buenos Aires–Bariloche (book 4-8 weeks ahead for £60-110 one way; note the 15kg checked bag limit on cheap fares). From the airport take the local 72 bus or a shared remis into town (~£3-5). In the afternoon do the Circuito Chico independently: catch local bus 20 from the centre to Cerro Campanario (~£1.50), pay the chairlift up for the classic panorama over Nahuel Huapi's sapphire lakes and the Andes, then continue on the same loop to Bahía López and the Llao Llao peninsula on foot or by local bus. Chocolate shops and a craft-beer bar on Mitre street round off the evening.

🚌Domestic flight ~£85; local buses ~£4 total

🛏Hostel or hospedaje in Bariloche centre — £13-22/night

• →Cerro Campanario chairlift (~£8)
• →Circuito Chico self-guided loop: Bahía López, Llao Llao, Panoramic Point

Free day — pick your own adventure. Easiest self-bookable option: local bus to Villa Tacul or Lago Gutiérrez for a free half-day forest-and-lake walk along the Sendero de los Arrayanes. Bigger option: book the Puerto Blest and Cántaros Waterfall boat navigation through a Bariloche agency or GetYourGuide (roughly £75-90) — a full day on the lake with a waterfall walk at the far end. Cheaper alternative: hire a kayak on Lago Gutiérrez for a couple of hours (~£20). Eat at a parrilla or cook pasta back at the hostel.

🚌Local buses ~£4

🛏Bariloche hostel — £13-22/night

• →Free forest hike at Villa Tacul / Lago Gutiérrez
• →Optional Puerto Blest & Cántaros waterfall boat trip (~£85)
• →Optional kayak hire (~£20)

Do the famous Andean Lakes Crossing independently rather than as a packaged one-day tour. Take the early public bus from Bariloche to Puerto Pañuelo (~£6), then the catamaran across Nahuel Huapi to Puerto Blest with the short bus link to Lago Frías (~£25-35 for the boat leg booked at the dock or via a local agency). From Puerto Frías a small launch and minibus connect you over the Chilean border through Peulla to Petrohué (~£25-30), where you catch the seasonal public bus or a shared transfer down to Puerto Varas (~£8-12). Do it as a single long day (10-12 hours) or, more pleasantly, overnight in Peulla and finish the crossing the next morning. Bring your passport and expect a slow, scenic border formalities stop.

🚌Bus, catamaran and shared launch/minibus across the lakes ~£65-80

🛏Hostel or guesthouse in Puerto Varas — £15-28/night

• →Nahuel Huapi and Lago Frías catamaran crossing
• →Todos los Santos Lake arrival at Petrohué

Two strong self-bookable day trips from Puerto Varas. Option A: the public bus to Pargua (~£3), ferry across the Chaco Strait to Chacao (~£1), then a local bus down to Ancud for the penguin colony at Puñihuil (small boat out, ~£10-15) and a seafood lunch — Chiloé's palafitos, curanto and crafts are the reward. Option B: bus to Vicente Pérez Rosales National Park and the Osorno Volcano trailhead, then hike the Paso Desolación or the shorter Volcán Osorno base trail yourself — free apart from the park entry (~£5) and bus fares. Book the Puñihuil penguin boat locally the morning of, or through a Puerto Varas agency for ~£45-60 including transport.

🚌Local buses and shared ferries ~£10-15

🛏Puerto Varas hostel/guesthouse — £15-28/night

• →Chiloé Island loop: Chacao, Ancud, Puñihuil penguins
• →Or Osorno Volcano / Paso Desolación hike in Vicente Pérez Rosales NP

Fly Puerto Montt–Punta Arenas (usually via Santiago, ~£120-170; book early) or take the long scenic bus south if you have extra days. From Punta Arenas a public bus or shared shuttle runs to Puerto Natales (~£8, 3 hours), and from Puerto Natales regular daily shuttles run into Torres del Paine to the CONAF entrance (~£12-15 each way). Buy your park entry online in advance (~£30 for foreign visitors, valid three days). Stay inside the park at a refugio or campground if your budget stretches, otherwise base in Puerto Natales and shuttle in on day trips.

🚌Domestic flights ~£145; Punta Arenas–Puerto Natales bus ~£8; park shuttle ~£14

🛏Refugio dorm or campground inside the park, or Puerto Natales hostel — £18-40/night

• →Park entry and ranger briefing
• →Evening walk to a viewpoint over the Paine massif

Skip the private van-and-guide day and use the park's own transport network. Take the shuttle and catamaran across Lago Pehoé, then the Grey II boat up to the face of Grey Glacier (~£30-45) — the cheapest way to see the glacier up close, with a pisco on the ice optional. Walk the short trails to Lago Sarmiento and Laguna Azul for condors and guanacos (the park's wild ostrich), and keep an eye out for foxes and armadillos. If you'd rather do the classic day hike, book a guided Base Torres trek from Puerto Natales for ~£60-90, or walk it unguided and free with park transport. Evening: refugio dinner and wine.

🚌Park shuttle and catamaran ~£20

🛏Refugio or Puerto Natales hostel — £18-40/night

• →Grey Glacier boat trip (~£40)
• →Lago Pehoé, Sarmiento and Laguna Azul walks
• →Optional guided Base Torres hike (~£75)

Take the public bus or shared minivan across the Chilean–Argentine border to El Calafate (~£25-35, 5-6 hours including border formalities; book via a Puerto Natales bus company or hostel desk the day before). The ride is flat and empty — guanacos, rheas and the vast Patagonian steppe. Arrive and check into a warm guesthouse, stock up on supplies, and book your Perito Moreno excursion for tomorrow (hostels and agencies on Avenida del Libertador all sell the same standard tours). Cheap dinner: empanadas and a big pizza.

🚌Cross-border bus ~£30

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in El Calafate — £15-25/night

• →Border crossing and steppe scenery
• →Book Perito Moreno shuttle and optional boat trip

Take the standard shuttle bus into Los Glaciares National Park (return ~£25-30, or ~£40 with entrance fee included from an agency) instead of a private guided vehicle. At the glacier, walk the network of metal boardwalks over the lake for hours watching the front wall calve — you'll hear the cracks before you see the ice fall. Add the boat trip along the glacier's face (~£25-30, bookable at the site or in town) for the closest view. If you want the operator's glacier-expert lecture substituted, the park has informative ranger displays and free explanatory panels, or join a 2-hour talk at the Glaciarium in town (~£10). Return to El Calafate by late afternoon.

🚌Shuttle bus to Los Glaciares NP ~£28

🛏El Calafate guesthouse — £15-25/night

• →Perito Moreno boardwalks (park entry ~£18)
• →Face-of-the-glacier boat trip (~£28)
• →Optional Glaciarium museum (~£10)

Fly El Calafate–Ushuaia (direct seasonal flights, ~£110-160; book early or route via Buenos Aires if needed). Ushuaia sits beneath the snow-dusted Martial range on the Beagle Channel — walk the waterfront, see the 'End of the World' sign, and warm up in a café. In place of the private scientific-research visit, head to the Museo del Fin del Mundo (Museum at the End of the World, ~£4) for the indigenous Fuegian and Yámana history of Tierra del Fuego, and the Museo Marítimo in the old prison (~£8). Both are excellent and self-guided. Dinner: king crab if you're splashing out, lamb stew if not.

🚌Domestic flight ~£135

🛏Hostel or hospedaje in Ushuaia — £18-30/night

• →Museo del Fin del Mundo (~£4)
• →Museo Marítimo y del Presidio (~£8)
• →Waterfront and Beagle Channel walk

Book the Martillo Island penguin excursion directly with an Ushuaia operator (Piratour is the licensed concession; ~£75-95 including the estancia visit, minibus and boat, roughly 2-3 hours on the island trails). You land on the beach among Magellanic and gentoo penguins — around a thousand nests in season — with a naturalist guide explaining their habits. Book 2-3 weeks ahead in high season; the island is capped daily. Combine with an afternoon Beagle Channel boat trip for sea lions and seabirds (~£30-40), then eat at a parrilla on San Martín street.

🚌Shared minibus and boat included in the excursion

🛏Ushuaia hostel/hospedaje — £18-30/night

• →Martillo Island penguin rookery walk (~£85)
• →Optional Beagle Channel sea lion boat trip (~£35)

Morning flight back to Buenos Aires (~£110-150). Check into a Palermo or San Telmo hostel and spend the afternoon exploring free galleries and cafés — MALBA or the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes are cheap and superb, and San Telmo's Sunday market or the Recoleta cemetery cost nothing. In the evening swap the private tango lesson for a group class at a local milonga school (La Viruta in Almagro or a San Telmo studio, ~£10-15 for a beginner class, often including entry to the milonga afterwards). Stay on for the milonga — students and teachers dance together, and nobody minds a learner.

🚌Domestic flight ~£130; local buses/taxi ~£6

🛏Buenos Aires hostel, Palermo or San Telmo — £15-28/night

• →Tango group class + milonga entry (~£14)
• →Optional MALBA or Bellas Artes museum (~£5)

Replace the guided city tour with a self-planned walking circuit: start at Plaza de Mayo for the Casa Rosada and the Eva Perón balcony, walk down Avenida de Mayo to Congreso, then take local bus 64 to La Boca for the colourful Caminito (daylight only, stay on the main streets) — an optional small-group La Boca and Isla Maciel boat/ferry trip can be booked for ~£60 if you want the history context. Finish in San Telmo for the antiques market and a long lunch. Evening: a cheap bife de chorizo and a bottle of Malbec in Palermo.

🚌Local buses and SUBE card ~£4

🛏Buenos Aires hostel — £15-28/night

• →Self-guided Plaza de Mayo, Avenida de Mayo and La Boca walk
• →Optional La Boca & Isla Maciel history tour (~£60)

Last morning for a coffee and medialunas, a final wander through the Sunday San Telmo fair if the dates line up, or a pick-up of any missed souvenirs. Take the shuttle bus back out to Ezeiza in plenty of time — Buenos Aires traffic is unpredictable and Ezeiza is a 45-60 minute run. Book your international flight separately, as the original tour also excludes it.

🚌Shuttle bus to EZE ~£10

🛏—

• →Last-minute café and market shopping