Tips, Tricks and FAQs for Hiking the W Trek in Patagonia- If looking to take on hiking the 4-5 day trek of the W in the Torres del Paine you may be thinking of these frequently asked questions on how to best be prepared for the hike. Here I will answer your questions on how to book refugios and camping spots, what the food is like in the refugios, how hard the hike is, what to bring, transportation, cell service, wifi, and much more!
I will say that this hike was one of the hardest travels to plan for, a lot of thought, preparation of booking and figuring out logistics went into this part of our South America trip. After going on this hike I had a lot of frequently asked questions that I thought I would address some for anyone wanting to complete the W or O Trek in Torres del Paine.
During this trip we also spent time in Santiago, Mendoza, El Calafete and El Chalten.
Questions
Do I Need To Bring My Own Bedding?
How To Get There? – Transportation
Will You Have Cell Phone Service Or WiFi?
What Was Our Route On The W Trek?
Where To Stay Before and After The W Trek?
How To Book The W Trek?
We traveled over the Christmas and New Years holidays to South America. This is a popular travel time as many people get extra days off work and it is also the peak of the Patagonia summer. This makes booking refugios and camping spots more competitive. Pay attention to when each company opens up their availability if wanting to book, we thought we were on top of it but we missed out. Chile Nativo came to our rescue, we first thought this would be a lot more money booking with a tour company, but when we totaled it out it was a very good deal compared to what we planned on spending. They took care of everything, which made the trip a whole lot easier, less stressful and more enjoyable.
Chile Nativo had everything taken care of. We met with them the day before our hike, where they gave us all of our tickets, all of the transportation, park tickets, refugio, cabin, bunk, and meal tickets. All in order of when we would need them. They gave us times, addresses for transportation and even went through the trek with us giving us some tips of how long it should take, difficulty in certain sections and more.
If you are hesitate and confused on booking the trek yourself definitely reach out to Chile Nativo!
How Many Days Is The Hike?
This varies per person as well, it really depends on if you are tight on time or rather relax more and enjoy the views and refugios. I have heard of people skipping some of the add on hikes, like Britanico Lookout , powering through it and getting it finished in 2 nights and 3 days. I believe at least 4 days is typical.
The way ours was set up was that we did it in 4 nights and 5 days. I liked it this way as I felt like it was enjoyable, we were never miserable. It was also nice to have the time to start later or earlier to avoid bad weather. Many of the refugios were fun to hang out at, so I am glad we had plenty of time to shower, get organized and have a few drinks with new friends. If I was suggesting this to anyone I would say to plan on at least 4 full hiking days.
Where Do You Sleep?
Each refugio is different but most of them have two options of how to stay at their location. A bunk bed in a shared room or a camping spot.
Bunk Beds
The bunk beds are in rooms of usually 6 beds. Unless you are travelling in a group of 6 then most likely you will share a room with other people. Each place we stayed had bins and lockers available to store your gear safely, just make sure you bring your own lock. I felt pretty safe leaving things out in the room but I did always lock up our wallets, cameras and valuables.
Camping
For a camping spot you have a few options as well, some refugios will provide you with a tent and some you have to bring your own as it is just a camping location. So make sure you double check before booking. Any of the Refugios that has camping available as well is where you can book a spot in which they provide the tent for you or just the camping spot if you plan on carrying your own tent.
Do I Need To Bring My Own Bedding?
Most of the refugios, tent or bunk will again let you add on for an additional cost a full or partial bed set. Our booking through Chile Nativo included full beddings, which meant a blanket, pillow and sheets (even for the tent) for each night. This is something you might want to decide on your own if you want to carry a sleeping bag and pillow for 4 to 5 days or purchase it with your bookings.
What Do You Eat On The Trek?
Again this is something for each person to decide, you can bring your own meals, purchase set meals from the refugios or some refugios you can buy individuals dishes.
Meal Plan
You can book all meals through the refugio or individual ones to fit your needs. Our booking with Chile Nativo came with breakfast, a packed lunch, and dinner. All the meals are a set course, and they do have vegetarian options, but make it clear at the check in counter at each location that your need that option. I always felt like they gave us more than enough food, took into account of having a complete meal, protein, fiber, carbs and veggies.
Some refugios you didn’t have to purchase the entire meal, you could just order individual platters. I know I saw people at Central ordering quesadillas, chips, cheesy potatoes and more. But the sit down family style meal plan dinners are fun! I great way to meet new people along the hike.
Bring Your Own
You have the option to bring your own meals as well. Again this will require you to bring you own cooking gear and food. You can not have camp fires within the park, so gas canisters will be your personal cooking option. You will also need to carry a lot of your own food, a few refugios did have very small options of snacks and food you could cook on your own, almost like mini grocery store. But I didn’t see this at every stop.
What Is A Typical Meal Like?
Breakfast
Most of our breakfast consisted of eggs, bread, jam, cheese, sliced meats, and cereal to choose from. There was always tea and instant coffee available, along with milk and yogurt. I usually love breakfast but I wasn’t even impressed with any of ours, completely still edible though. If you love a strong coffee think about bringing your own, we brought these pour-overs, so much better than instant and easy to pack and use.
Lunch
The bagged lunch is picked up after breakfast. This was always some type of sandwich (chicken salad or roast beef), granola bar, a piece of fruit (apple or orange), trail mix, and chocolate (which was really good!). The sandwiches are usually pretty hefty so it should keep you full for most of the day until dinner. We also brought a long a few of our own granola bars and jerky sticks.
Dinner
Since we did the meal plan every night, dinner was also usually a family style meal. Typically we always had bread with butter, oil and vinegar and sometimes a dipping sauce. First course was usually a soup. Second course is some type of beef or chicken and a grain. The beef was always cooked nicely, very tender. Then they always brought a small dessert course. They seemed to let people refill on bread and such, so don’t feel afraid to ask for more sometimes.
All meals were family style besides our stay in Paine Grande, that was more buffett but having similar options for food.
Drinks
Each place we stayed had a bar you could order drinks at, before, during and after dinner. They always had a variety of options, beer, wine and cocktails. Here I listed some average pricing for drinks.
Beer Pitcher $18000 CLP ($23 USD)
Beer Bottle/Draft $4-6000 CLP ($5-8 USD)
Wine Botle $ 12-22000 CLP ($15 -30 USD)
Cocktails $5-6000 CLP ($7-8 USD)
What Should I Bring?
Layersss!!! Patagonian weather is constantly changing by the minute. Along the hike I was sometimes in a coat and ear warmers, and some points I was in a short sleeve top and wishing for a pair of shorts! Here is the basics to what I brought, but you can check out my complete W Trek Packing List on this article.
40L Back Pack with Rain Cover
Ear Warmer or a Beanie
Travel/ Collapsible Hiking Poles
Hiking Pants/ Athletic Pants -Use this link for a great discount, my favorites are the 7/8, I swear by them!
Collapsible Travel Water Bottle and/or Hydration Bladder
Turkish Towel for showers in the evenings
Shower Shoes/Evening Shoes- I used Chacos and my husband used sliders.
Light Sweatpants (what I brought, what my husband brought) and a sweatshirt for evening dinners and sleeping (what I brought/ what my husband brought)
Check back later for my more detailed and complete packing list for the W Trek.
How Hard Is The Hike?
I wouldn’t rate this trail as super difficult. The terrain of the W Trek varies depending on the day and section of the hike, but for the most part it is nothing too difficult. The trails are clearly marked and cleared. There was never a time where we were unsure if we were on the right path.
Some days such as The Three Towers or Britanico there was some rocky terrain where you might need to be a little more sure footed. Hikers of all types go to The Three Towers as a day hike.
This hike more than anything requires stamina. Some days you may hike more than 22 kilometers, which takes a while. I would say if you are used to all day hikes the W Trek shouldn’t be too difficult for you.
How To Prepare For The Hike?
Being in shape before a long hike will always make the hike more enjoyable. If you are used to hiking at least 8 miles on one trek I think you could definitely do the W Trek! Just get some miles on those hiking shoes before to break them in! You definitely do not not want to blister.
How To Get There? – Transportation
Transportation was another reason why booking with Chile Nativo made this trip SOOO much easier. They had this all booked and laid out for us! To get to the hike you will need some type of transportation, either rental car or public transportation. Most people go with public transportation as they do not want to pay for a rental car while it sits as they hike for 4-5 days.
The bus station in Puerto Natales is located just about a 15 minute walk from the city center. Here they have many different companies that makes trips in to Torres del Paine every day. You can either book ahead of time or buy tickets at the walk up windows. They do leave at certain times of the day so be sure to double check what time to get there. Ours left at 7:00am on the dot.
If booking yourself check out the Bus Bud site for booking your tickets in advance.
Will You Have Cell Phone Service Or WiFi?
Most likely if you are depending on cell phone service, it won’t be available. There is a slim possibility at the start and end of the hike. Wifi is available at some refugios for a fee, and bought only through PayPal. Prices were typically $1 for 5 minutes, about $5 for an hour. We saw WiFi available at centel, cuernos and paine grande.
What Was Our Route On The W Trek?
Here is a short layout of our trek, check back soon for a full guide to about our W Trek Hike.
Day 1:
- Bus Transfer from Puerto Natales to Torres del Paine (2 hour drive)
- Drop your backpacks off at Central Refugio
- Hike 22km round trip to Three towers base and back to Central Refugio to stay the night.
Day 2:
- Hike 4 to 5 hours to Refugio Los Cuernos.
Day 3:
- Hike 5 km to camp Italiano Ranger Station, leave bags
- 1.5 hours to the French Valley lookout, the Britanico Lookout and, then back to Italiano ranger station ( 3-4 hours total)
- Hike with bags to Refugio Paine Grande, 7.5km
Day 4:
- Hike 11 Km with bags to Refugio Grey
- Leave bags, and hike to Glacier Lagoon and the two Hanging Bridges (2-3 hours)
- Hike back to stay for the night at Refugio Grey
Day 5:
- Hike back to Refugio Paine Grande, 11 km
- Get on boat, then bus to head back to Puerto Natales
Where To Stay Before and After The W Trek?
We wished to stay at the same place in Puerto Natales before an after the hike, but that didn’t work out for us. But we did stay in two great places before and after the W Trek. I would highly recommend both of these!
Hotel Vendaval (great restaurant next door, we ate there twice!)
Feel free to reach out to me for your other questions on the W Trek. Check back soon as I will be writing about the entire hike on the W Trek. Highlighting the terrain and views along the trail.
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What To Pack For The W Trek in Patagonia
Where To Eat and Drink in Santiago, Chile
3 Days in Mendoza’s Winery Regions
Really nice article. It covers pretty much anything & everything you need to know. This is probably one of if not the best hikes I’ve ever done! So fulfilling 🙂