Illustration.
From El Calafate · 8 hours · Boat optional
Glacier Cruises from El Calafate, Compared
Patagonia Dreams' day at the Perito Moreno Glacier walkways, with hotel pickup and a guide. The from-price buys the walkways day with no boat; the option with an hour on the water in front of the glacier cost US$156 to US$173 a person on the dates we read (checked November 2026). The park entrance is extra.
Pick your boat
Which Glacier Boat from El Calafate?
A glacier cruise from El Calafate is one of four things: a one-hour boat in front of the Perito Moreno Glacier, a day at the glacier’s walkways with that boat as an option, a boat and shore walk beside the glacier’s south side, or a whole day on Lago Argentino. The day to book first is Patagonia Dreams’ El Calafate: Perito Moreno Glacier & Optional Boat Cruise, from US$80 a person (checked November 2026), with hotel pickup. That price is the walkways day with no boat; the option with an hour on the water in front of the glacier cost US$156 to US$173 on the dates we read. The park entrance is extra on every boat here.
If you want the boat itself, these are the three to look at first:
Blue Safari: The Perito Moreno Glacier in your hands.
Hielo y Aventura S.A's Blue Safari: a boat across the Rico arm, an easy walk along the shore to the glacier's south side, then a sail close to the south face. Not a walk on the ice. The from-price is 3 hours from the port, no transport.
See the trip →El Calafate: Glaciers Gourmet Experience - Full Day Cruise
Cruceros Marpatag: 8 hours on the lake from its La Soledad port, the Spegazzini channel, a panoramic view of the Upsala and the Perito Moreno's north face. From-price: classic deck, lunch box, no transfer.
See the cruise →El Calafate: All Glaciers Cruise Tour | Spegazzini & Upsala
Solo Patagonia SA: the Upsala channel's icebergs, then a landing at the Spegazzini base with its refuge and walkways. No Perito Moreno. From-price: ticket only, no transport, no food.
See the cruise →Prices, ratings and review counts from the listings (GetYourGuide checked November 2026). Operators price by date and season, so treat the figures as the shape of the market, not a quote.
The comparison below sets four of them side by side. Glacier cruise prices lists every option we read.
- 4.7 / 5 2800+ Reviews
- ARS 50,000 The park's general day rate (Administracion de Parques Nacionales, from 1 June 2026), paid on top of every boat here
- 1 hour On the water in front of the glacier, on the boat option of this day
- Free Cancellation
The Experience
What the Glacier Day Includes
Hotel pickup, a bilingual guide and hours on the walkways; the boat is an option, and the park entrance and food are extra.
Patagonia Dreams's own highlights, inclusions and notes, as listed on GetYourGuide in November 2026.
Highlights
- Enjoy an optional boat safari to get even closer to the glacier
- Admire this impressive natural attraction from different perspectives
- Set aside time to explore the park and admire its other wonders
What's Included
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Bilingual guide
- Boat ride (if option chosen)
Good to know: You must purchase your ticket to Los Glaciares National Park through the National Parks website by selecting the option Rio Mitre - Los Glaciares National Park · Not Included: Entrance to the National Park, Food and drinks
From Your Hotel to the Glacier and Back
The drive out, the walkways, the boat if you add it, and the drive back.
Pickup in El Calafate
A coach collects you from your hotel in El Calafate, at 10:00 AM or, on the afternoon departure, at 12:00 PM. The pickup is from hotels; the drive to the park takes about 1.5 hours.
The Walkways
About 4 hours on the walkways in front of the Perito Moreno Glacier, 3 if you take the boat. Buy the park entrance online beforehand for the Rio Mitre gate (the park also sells it there, by card or in pesos); bring food or buy it at the park.
The Boat, If You Add It
The boat option adds 1 hour of navigation in front of the glacier. It cost US$156 to US$173 a person on the dates we read, against US$80 without it (checked November 2026).
Back to Town
The same road back, about 1.5 hours, arriving in El Calafate in the afternoon; the afternoon departure returns at about 8:00 PM.
Photo Gallery
Ice Walls, Icebergs and the Walkways
The Perito Moreno front from the balconies, ice on the lake and the forest along the walkways.
Book Your Experience
Check Availability & Prices
Patagonia Dreams' glacier day: hotel pickup in El Calafate, a bilingual guide and hours on the Perito Moreno walkways, with the one-hour boat as an option. The from-price is the day without the boat. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
Plan Your Glacier Boat
Planning a Glacier Boat from El Calafate
What each boat costs, the one-hour boat against a full day on the lake, where the boats leave from, wind and ice, and boats for children and limited mobility.
Prices are each page's featured tour: GetYourGuide checked November 2026. Tour prices on GetYourGuide and Viator are in US dollars; the park entrance and the operators' own prices are in Argentine pesos.
Four Ways onto the Water, Side by Side
The park day with the boat as an option, a one-hour boat at the north wall, a boat and shore walk at the south face, and a full day on the lake: length, where it leaves, what you see and what the price leaves out. GetYourGuide prices with the month they were checked.
| Feature | THIS PAGE Park day, boat optional | One-hour boat, north wall | Boat and shore walk, south face | Full day on the lake |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What You Pay | From US$80 per person (the walkways day only; with the hour of navigation US$156 to US$173 on the dates read; checked November 2026) | From US$50 per person (checked November 2026) | From US$117 per person (3 hours from the port, no transport; US$184 with transport from El Calafate; checked November 2026) | From US$235 per person (the classic deck with a lunch box, no transfer; checked November 2026) |
| Length | 8 hours from your hotel | 1 hour on the water | 3 hours from the port; about 9 with transport | 8 hours port to port; 12 with transfers |
| The Boat | An option: 1 hour in front of the glacier | 1 hour along the glacier's north wall | A crossing of the Rico arm, then a sail close to the south face | A catamaran across Lago Argentino, all day |
| Where It Leaves | Hotel pickup in El Calafate | Puerto F. P. Moreno, near the walkways | Bajo de las Sombras port, or hotel pickup on the option with transport | La Soledad port, Punta Bandera; hotel transfers on dearer options |
| What You See | The Perito Moreno front from the walkways, and from the water with the boat | The Perito Moreno's north wall | The Perito Moreno's south side, on foot along the shore and from the boat | The Spegazzini channel, a panoramic view of the Upsala, the Perito Moreno's north face |
| In the Price | Hotel pickup, bilingual guide; the boat only on the boat option | The boat and a Spanish and English guide; no transport | Boat, guide, the shore walk; transport only on the dearer option | Classic deck, lunch box, guide; transfers on dearer options |
| Not Included | Park entrance, food and drinks | Transport, and the park entrance paid at the gate | Park entrance, meals | Park entrance |
| Best For | A first visit: the walkways, and the boat if you want it | Adding the boat to a day you are already spending at the walkways | Standing on the shore beside the ice without walking on it | A whole day on the lake, Perito Moreno included |
| Check dates | See the boat | See the trip | See the cruise |
More Boats
Other Glacier Boats from El Calafate
One-hour boats at the glacier front, day tours with the boat built in, and the boat ride to Estancia Cristina, on GetYourGuide and Viator.
BOAT ONLY, NORTH WALLEl Calafate: Perito Moreno Glacier Boat Tour with Guide
Southern Spirit Lago Argentino's one-hour boat along the north wall of the Perito Moreno Glacier, from Puerto F. P. Moreno near the walkways, with several departures a day and a Spanish and English guide. Boat only, with no transport; the port is inside the park, so the park entrance is paid on the way in.
BOAT ONLY, SOUTH FACENautical Safari: Sail and feel the energy of the Perito Moreno Glacier
Hielo y Aventura S.A's one-hour Nautical Safari on the Rico arm of Lago Argentino, along the south face of the glacier; the boat stops about 400 metres from the south wall. Transfer to the park and the park entrance are extra; the trip is not cancelled for rain.
NORTH OR SOUTH FACEPerito Moreno Glacier 1-Hour Boat Tour from Glaciers National Park
Bross Travel's one-hour boat at the Perito Moreno Glacier: the north face from Puerto Moreno, at the foot of the walkways, or the south face from Bajo de las Sombras, with a Spanish and English guide. Transport from El Calafate is extra, and there is no public transport to the port, so it suits a car or a walkways tour booked separately.
SMALL GROUP, BOAT OPTIONPerito Moreno Glacier Sightseeing Tour with Boat Safari & Guide from El Calafate
SALUM TOUR & TRAVEL's 8-hour day from El Calafate, limited to 15: transport, a bilingual guide and free time on the walkways. The from-price is the day without the boat; the boat option adds an hour in front of the glacier's northern wall. The park entrance and meals are extra.
BOAT OPTIONPerito Moreno Glacier Full Day Tour with Optional Boat Safari
Say Hueque Travel's 8- to 9-hour day from El Calafate to the Perito Moreno Glacier with hotel pickup and a bilingual guide. The from-price is the day without the boat; the option with the boat safari is dearer. Lunch, tips and the park entrance are extra.
NAVIGATION OPTIONPerito Moreno Glacier Full Day Tour with optional Navigation
Tours Buenos Aires' 8-hour day to the Perito Moreno Glacier with hotel pickup and a bilingual guide. The from-price is the walkways day; the option with an hour of navigation in front of the glacier is dearer. Lunch and the park entrance are extra.
A BOAT TO ESTANCIA CRISTINAFrom El Calafate: Mirador del Glaciar Upsala
Estancia Cristina - ECSA's 11-hour day: transfer to Puerto Punta Bandera, about 2.5 hours by boat through the lake's North Arm and the Cristina channel, the estancia's history tour, then a 4x4 and a 20-minute walk to a viewpoint over the Upsala Glacier. Lunch included; the park fee is extra.
Lago Argentino from El Calafate
The Boats, the Ports and What You Pay
The four kinds of glacier boat, what the from-price on each buys, where each one leaves, and the park entrance none of them includes.
The four kinds of glacier boat
| Kind | On this site | On the water | Leaves from | Price a person |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One-hour boat at the glacier face | Perito Moreno Glacier Boat Tour (Southern Spirit Lago Argentino) | 1 hour | Puerto F. P. Moreno, near the walkways | From US$50 |
| Park day, boat as an option | Perito Moreno Glacier & Optional Boat Cruise (Patagonia Dreams) | 1 hour on the boat option | Hotel pickup in El Calafate | US$80 without the boat, US$156 to US$173 with it |
| Boat and shore walk, south side | Blue Safari (Hielo y Aventura S.A) | A crossing and a sail close to the south face | Bajo de las Sombras | From US$117, no transport |
| A full day on the lake | Glaciers Gourmet Experience (Cruceros Marpatag) | 8 hours port to port | La Soledad port, Punta Bandera | From US$235 |
| A boat to an estancia | Mirador del Glaciar Upsala (Estancia Cristina - ECSA) | About 2.5 hours out | Puerto Punta Bandera | From US$370, with hotel transfer and lunch |
GetYourGuide prices, checked November 2026; the US$156 to US$173 is the boat option of Patagonia Dreams’ day on 27 November 2026, 20 January and 27 March 2027.
The one-hour boats and the park days work the glacier’s front, on the Rico arm and the Canal de los Tempanos. The full days sail the lake’s northern arms, where the Spegazzini and Upsala glaciers are, and only some of them come back past the Perito Moreno.
What the walkways day buys
The US$80 on Patagonia Dreams’ day is the walkways tour: hotel pickup at 10:00 AM, or 12:00 PM on the afternoon departure, a bilingual guide, about 1.5 hours each way by coach and around 4 hours on the walkways in front of the glacier. It was US$80 on all three dates we read, 27 November 2026, 20 January and 27 March 2027.
The option with the boat cuts the walkways to 3 hours and adds 1 hour of navigation in front of the glacier. It cost US$156 a person on 27 November 2026 (US$161 on the 12:00 PM departure) and US$173 on 20 January and 27 March 2027 (checked November 2026). Two adults pay twice the one-adult price.
Food and the park entrance are not in either price. The Administracion de Parques Nacionales charges a general day rate of ARS 50,000 for Los Glaciares from 1 June 2026, sold at the Rio Mitre gate by card or in pesos, or online beforehand. Children up to 6 enter free.
Check dates for the glacier day
The one-hour boats
Three companies sell the boat on its own. Southern Spirit Lago Argentino's boat runs along the glacier’s north wall for an hour from Puerto F. P. Moreno, the port at the foot of the walkways, from US$50 (checked November 2026). Hielo y Aventura S.A's Nautical Safari sails the Rico arm for an hour from Bajo de las Sombras and stops about 400 metres from the south wall, from US$67. Bross Travel sells both sides: US$73.90 for the north face and US$76.80 for the south on the dates we read.
None of the three includes transport from El Calafate. The north-wall boats leave beside the walkways, so they fit a walkways day you have already planned; Bajo de las Sombras is a separate landing, about 6 km by road short of the walkways. The day tours that add the boat as an option, like SALUM TOUR & TRAVEL's small-group day (from US$79 without the boat, US$165 with it), take care of the road.
The full days on the lake
The two full-day cruises carded here both sail from Punta Bandera, and their routes differ. Cruceros Marpatag’s day, sold as Glaciares Gourmet, leaves its La Soledad port with boarding at 8:30 and sailing at 9:00, and is back at 17:00. It takes in the Spegazzini channel, a short walk at Puesto Las Vacas and the Upsala channel, then sails the Canal de los Tempanos to the Perito Moreno’s north face. On its GetYourGuide day the US$235 is the classic deck with a lunch box and no hotel transfer.
Solo Patagonia SA's All Glaciers Cruise boards at 08:30 at Puerto Punta Bandera, sails at 09:00 and is back at the pier at 16:00. It sails among the icebergs of the Upsala channel and lands at the Spegazzini base, with a refuge and walkways; it does not go to the Perito Moreno. Its US$285 is the ticket alone, with no transport and no food.
Neither goes up to the Upsala’s front. On Cruceros Marpatag's day the Upsala and Bertacchi glaciers are a panoramic view, and visiting them up close is not permitted. Full-day cruise or the one-hour boat weighs the long day against the short one.
Estancia Cristina
The boat to Estancia Cristina is a ride to a place rather than a cruise. Estancia Cristina - ECSA's day, from US$370 with the hotel transfer and lunch, sails about 2.5 hours from Puerto Punta Bandera through the lake’s North Arm and the Cristina channel. At the estancia a 4x4 climbs to a shelter, and a 20-minute walk from there reaches a viewpoint over the Upsala Glacier. It takes 11 hours.
What reviewers mention
Patagonia Dreams’ day has 2,800 reviews on GetYourGuide. We read the 350 most recent, dated 7 January to 7 November 2026: 302 give five stars and 12 give three or fewer, 7 of those with a comment. One reviewer in March 2026 found the boat unnecessary, because the view from the last walkway stop was just as good. Another, in January 2026, felt the price was high for what was mostly transport, with the park entrance on top. Others mention time lost collecting guests from hotels (October 2026), about two hours left on the walkways (March 2026) and no pickup from a rented apartment (April 2026).
Before you book
- The park entrance. ARS 50,000 a person at the general rate, on top of every price here; buy it online or at the gate.
- Pickup. Patagonia Dreams’ day collects from hotels in El Calafate. If you are in an apartment, sort out where to meet before the day.
- What to bring. Comfortable closed-toe shoes, warm clothing, gloves and sunscreen; no pets, no smoking and no luggage or large bags on the day.
- Cancelling. Every GetYourGuide boat on this page can be cancelled free up to 24 hours before.
The Glacier Day, with the Boat if You Want It
Patagonia Dreams' 8-hour day from El Calafate: hotel pickup, hours on the Perito Moreno walkways and, as an option, an hour on the water in front of the glacier. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before. Starting from US$80 per person (the walkways day only; with the hour of navigation US$156 to US$173 on the dates read; checked November 2026).
Check datesMore from El Calafate
El Calafate Tours with Open Dates
Glacier days, boats and treks from El Calafate with live availability. What is included, pickup and the cancellation terms show before you book.
Glacier Cruises from El Calafate: Questions
Which boat, what it costs, the park entrance, where the boats leave, how long you are on the water, and the Upsala Glacier.
For a first visit, Patagonia Dreams' Perito Moreno Glacier & Optional Boat Cruise, from US$80 a person (checked November 2026): hotel pickup and hours on the glacier walkways. That price buys no boat; the option with an hour on the water cost US$156 to US$173 on the dates we read. If you want a boat beside the ice and a walk along the shore, Hielo y Aventura S.A's Blue Safari is from US$117. For a whole day on the lake, Cruceros Marpatag's Glaciers Gourmet Experience is from US$235.
From about US$50 for the boat alone to US$235 and more for a full day on the lake (GetYourGuide, checked November 2026). Southern Spirit Lago Argentino's one-hour boat at the north wall is from US$50 a person; a park day with the boat added cost US$156 to US$173 on the dates we read; Solo Patagonia SA's All Glaciers Cruise is from US$285 with no transport. The park entrance is extra on all of them. See glacier cruise prices.
No. None of the boats on this site includes it. The Administracion de Parques Nacionales charges a general day rate of ARS 50,000 for Los Glaciares from 1 June 2026, sold at the Rio Mitre gate on the way to the glacier and at Puerto Punta Bandera, by card or in pesos, or online. Children up to 6 enter free; the park's other categories are for Argentine ID holders, so a foreign adult pays the general rate on our reading of them.
From three places. The one-hour boats at the Perito Moreno leave from Puerto F. P. Moreno, beside the walkways, or from Bajo de las Sombras, about 71 km from El Calafate by road. The full-day cruises leave from Punta Bandera on the lake's north side: the APN puts Puerto Punta Bandera 47 km from El Calafate, and Cruceros Marpatag sails from its own La Soledad port there. See where the glacier boats leave from.
One hour on the boat trips at the glacier front. Southern Spirit Lago Argentino's boat at the north wall, Hielo y Aventura S.A's Nautical Safari on the south side and the boat option of a park day all run an hour. Cruceros Marpatag's full day is 8 hours port to port and reaches the north face in the afternoon; Solo Patagonia's 7-hour day does not go to the Perito Moreno.
They sail the Upsala channel among its icebergs, but not up to the glacier's front. On Cruceros Marpatag's day the Upsala and Bertacchi glaciers are a panoramic view, and visiting them up close is not permitted; Solo Patagonia sets no fixed distance to any front, and its captain decides each day from the ice, the wind and the visibility. From land, the Upsala is seen from Estancia Cristina's viewpoint, reached by boat and 4x4 on Estancia Cristina - ECSA's day.
Only if you want the lake more than the walkways. A full day on the water takes 10 to 12 hours with the transfers; of the two operators' cruises, only Cruceros Marpatag's reaches the Perito Moreno, from the water, in the afternoon. A park day gives you hours on the walkways in front of the glacier, with the one-hour boat as an option. See full-day cruise or the one-hour boat.
Still have questions? Email us at info@glaciercruiseelcalafate.com