Practical Advice for El Calafate

In El Calafate you can enjoy a wide variety of services:

Accommodations : in first-class hotels with own gastronomy services, tourist hotels, apart hotels, apartments, hostels, cabin rentals, organized or free campsites both in the city and in the immediate vicinity of the National Park.

Restaurants : international food, grill with local meats, trout, choique, guanaco, smoked, pizzerias, fast foods, snack bar and confectioneries, ice cream parlors, shopping for souvenirs as well as clothing necessary for local use, confectionery danceable, concert coffee,

Excursions of the most varied : conventional and unconventional.

Services : Public telephone booths with DDN, DDI and Internet access, cyber café, Wi-Fi, rental of vehicles with and without driver, travel and tourism agencies, airline agencies, transfers of vehicles by means of assistance, mechanical workshops, rubber shops, houses of spare parts, fuels, public and private medical service of medium complexity, pharmacies, official entities, bus terminal for connections to Chile and other localities of the region, photo houses, sale of regional, national and international newspapers.

The tourist seasons to visit our city are divided into: Spring / Summer: which officially begins in August ending towards the month of April during Holy Week, during this time you will share with people from different parts of the world, even from the most remote places. The rest of the year is considered the Autumn / Winter season, including, for some establishments, the winter holiday time, so it is advisable to check in advance. However, this does not prevent enjoying recreational activities, events, excursions to the Perito Moreno Glacier, Uppsala, Onelli and other glaciers.

In the region there are several rooms that despite the passage of time and the economic deterioration of the industry have not left their original activity joining the tourist alternatives, so depending on the season and the establishment is It is possible to visit some of them and watch the work of the shearing closely as well as tour the facilities. Others, on the other hand, have been fully dedicated to tourism and provide all the experience and charm of rural work at the request of the visitor, making it feel almost as part of the stay without forgetting the roasts and horseback riding in the area.
CLARIFICATION: It is important to emphasize that some of these rooms operate from November to April inclusive.

El Calafate has a capacity of approximately 8455 beds in high season for accommodation and attached services to make your stay an unforgettable moment. It is advisable to make reservations with no less than 1 (one) month and if possible more, since our town is a center of international tourist attraction, which means that it is visited annually by a large number of tourists who, like you, want Obtain a privileged place to appreciate our beauties and usually request places with a season of anticipation. It is worth mentioning that in winter, the offer is lower.

El Calafate is located near the Cordillera de los Andes and has a vast history in relation to the evolution of Patagonia and is currently considered the most important tourist city of the Province, with a stable population estimated at 20 thousand inhabitants. The most important commercial activity is tourism and the usual way of life is the provincial public administration through the different expressions such as Public Health, Municipality, Security Forces, as well as a remarkable growth of the construction workforce.

If you arrive at our location through the use of a regular bus or charter bus, your place of descent will be the local Bus Terminal, unless your travel company leaves you at your place of accommodation, for If you wish, you can access the Center directly. For your advice you have a report center in the same terminal with a daily opening hours from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

You must hire a remisse / taxi that can be purchased at the same airport and in the city, or otherwise board the private transfer with prior reservation at 02902-494355 E-mail: reservas@vespatagonia.com enabled to travel the almost 23 kilometers that separate the International Airport of El Calafate from the City Center.

If you are from Argentina or from neighboring countries, the usual document in your country of origin will be sufficient both to stay and to make local and regional excursions such as visiting Chile. On the other hand, if you come from any other country, you must carry your Passport along with your Assistance Insurance and should consult your Embassy or the Migration Department of your country for visa inquiries. You should consider as "mandatory" for minors the possession of their identity document and the permanence with their parents or legal guardians duly accredited especially for lake excursions, trekking to the Patagonian Continental Ice and to visit Chile, since they will be required to perform them.

Commercial activity in our environment is governed by changes in winter or summer season. Being the first between the months of May and September where the business hours are: Monday to Friday from 09: 30hs to 12: 00hs and from 16:00 to 21: 00hs and Saturdays from 10: 00hs to 13: 00hs and from 16 : 00hs to 21: 00hs although not in all cases. In the summer season the schedules are: Monday to Saturday during regular hours. On Sundays you can find commercial activity in shops for souvenirs and supermarkets as well as in neighborhood shops between the hours of 09:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and from 4:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. especially at this time. For the banking activity the schedule is: Monday to Friday from 08: 00hs to 13: 00hs both at the Banco Provincia de Santa Cruz SA, BTF (Banco del Tierra del Fuego), Banco Nación and Banco Patagonia, being able to operate with ATMs outside of these schedules. For fuels, we currently have two Service Stations: YPF and Petrobras, which maintain their business hours 24 hours, although for spare parts or services you must wait for business hours. The Provincial Public Administration attends from 08:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The post office serves all year round from 9 am to 4 pm.

This question is not uncommon because although the legal currency of course is the Argentine Peso, it is no less true that since our city is an international point of tourism it is possible to make payments in US Dollars (US $) or Euros in almost all shops, there are also those that accept traveler's checks at bank rate and in some cases Chilean currency is also accepted .

If you want to change money on paper, banknote or traveler's checks or need to make withdrawals from your bank account or credit card, the ideal is to go to any of the three Banking Entities of our city: Banco de la Provincia de Santa Cruz SA, BTF (Bank of Tierra del Fuego), Banco Nación Banco Nación and Banco Patagonia, from Monday to Friday from 08.00 to 13.00 h. Exchange office South Changes Av.Del Libertador n ° 963 local n ° 2 contact: 02902-491455 E- mail reservascalafate@gmail.com opening hours from March to August from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. from September to April from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. every day.

If for any reason you will need an emergency service, consider the following:

 

• All hotels can call any of the medical, police or fire emergency services.

• Check your medical assistance service for travelers about the professionals you have in our environment and their specialty.

• The local Hospital has qualified services of Medical Clinic, Pediatrics, Gynecology and Obstetrics, Traumatology, General Surgery, Trauma, Cardiology, Anesthesiology, General Medicine and ambulance vehicles for land transfers (time to arrive at reference hospital and high complexity in summer: approximately two and a half hours) as well as qualified personnel for air transfers.

Useful phones

Hospital 107

Telefonia 110 customer information

Official Time 113

Long Distance 19

Access to DDN 0

Access to DDI 00

Serv. International per Operator 000

Firemen 100

Police 101

Civil Defense 103

• If your emergency were on the access routes, keep in mind that passenger vehicles have radio equipment to communicate with El Calafate, Río Gallegos or La Esperanza on the Civil Defense frequencies: HF 3857.5 USB - 6970 USB or VHF 149.335 and so be able to request the necessary assistance.

The Secretary of Municipal Tourism has three Report Centers, in the following locations: Bajada de Palma n ° 44, Bus Terminal: in Antoine De Saint Exupery n ° 87 the schedules are as follows: All year round all from 08: 00hs to 20: 00hs and in the Amphitheater of the Forest located in Av. del Libertador and Valenting Feilberg giving attention all year round every day.

Los Glaciares National Park is home to numerous species of native fauna and flora that we must conserve and protect. therefore it is forbidden to enter the Park with pets.The Calafate has dog kindergartens.You can make your inquiry in the following contacts:

Nursery Chary 02902-497676 / 489776 02966-15664411

Canine space nursery 02966-15604141

Pet Hotel Footprints 02902-451637

To enter Los Glaciares National Park with your private vehicle or in a rented car, you must enter with covers with nails or chains, on a mandatory basis, in case you do not own these, you can rent them at our location Or request them at the rent a car.

If you need information on the status of routes, go to the following page and search by district, route or section https://www.argentina.gob.ar/vialidad-nacional/estado-de-las -paths

The intention of Los Glaciares National Park reminds tour operators and visitors that, as established in Resolution No. 136/19 of the National Parks Administration Directory, since June 1, 2019, the new Entrance fee to Los Glaciares National Park, with the following values

General Rate ……………………………………………………… .. $ 800

National Residents ……………………………………………… .. $ 410

Children 6 to 12 years ……………………………………………… ... $ 200

Univ / Tertiary Student in the country ………………………………. $ 80

Provincial Residents …………………………………………… ... $ 80

Local Residents ………………………………………………… ... $ 0

Argentine retirees and pensioners ……………………………… .. $ 0

People with Disabilities …………………………………………. $ 0

Under 5 years ………………………………………………… .... $ 0

• To access each category, the corresponding condition must be accredited

• A 50% discount in value of the right of access on the second consecutive day of the same visitor is implemented.

• Exempted from the application of the access card for students up to 16 years of age, from public and private schools to the Argentine Republic, as long as they are part of an excursion organized by the school establishment to which they belong, for educational purposes properly accredited in the National Park Administration.

• Both in the Río Miter-Glaciar Moreno corridor and in the Port of Punta Bandera, the access ticket can be purchased with a credit card (Visa / Mastercard), debit card (Electron) or cash (ARGENTINE PESOS).

• You can also get ONLINE tickets by entering here

The entrance times to Los Glaciares National Park are: Summer from September 1 to April 30 from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Winter from May 1 to August 31 from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

In our city you can find the most varied range of products from all parts of the country being especially recommended, as they are handmade and locally manufactured products, Dulce de Calafate, Liqueur de Calafate, handmade chocolates, various sweets from the area: Corinthian, rosehip, raspberry, rhubarb. The traditional Cordero al Palo, choique, guanaco, and trout varieties from the area within the food category. You will also find a space on the stairs of the main avenue where local artisans make different types of souvenirs in sight.

To find out the costs of airport auto, motorcycle, pick up, mini bus, bus with more than 20 passengers should contact the following contacts: 02902 488279 E-mail parking.fte@gmail.com

To know flight status go to the following page: https://www.aa2000.com.ar/

You can hire excursions and trips in any travel agency or make excursions enabled in particular. You can also request a guide or write to info@elcalafate.tur.ar for advice

You can hire regular buses from the bus terminal located on the street: Antoine de Saint Exupery n ° 87 contact 02902-491476

to the Perito Moreno Glacier: it has the following companies

1- Cal-Tur tel: 02902-491842 caltur@cotecal.com.ar No. 5 of Box. In terminal

2- Taqsa tel: 02902-491843 taqsafte@taqsa.com.ar No. 8 of Box. In terminal

3- Chalten Travel tel: 02902-491-833 terminalfte@chaltentravel.com Box No. 1. In terminal

4-Always Gleciers tel: 02902-488-255 terminalalwaysglaciers@gmail.com Box No. 2. In terminal

5-Andesmar tel: 02902- 494250 mmrepresentaciones3@hotmail.com Box No. 10: In terminal

6-Patagonia Dreams tel: 02902-494450 / 496100 int.3 terminal@patagoniadreams.com.ar No. 3 of Box. In terminal

Towards El Chaltén:

1- Cal-Tur tel: 02902-491842 caltur@cotecal.com.ar No. 5 of Box. In terminal

2- Chalten Travel tel: 02902-491-833 terminalfte@chaltentravel.com Box No. 1. In terminal 3-Always Glaciers tel: 02902-488-255 terminalalwaysglaciers@gmail.com Box No. 2. In terminal

4- Taqsa tel: 02902-491843 taqsafte@taqsa.com.ar No. 8 of Box. In terminal

Towards Río Gallegos with combination to different cities of the Country

1- Taqsa tel: 02902-491843 taqsafte@taqsa.com.ar No. 8 of Box. In terminal