accommodations in Patagonia
 

Hi,
on october 3 I'm starting a motorbike trip from Bogotá to Ushuaia. I'd like to leave my tent at home and therefore I wonder if someone knows if there are sufficient hostels or other accommodations between Bariloche and Ushuaia to manage this trip without using a tent. :helpsmilie:

Peter

I should think so. It's a massive gringo trail.

You got a guide book yet ?

Hi Ted,

yes I've got the "Lonely Planet South America", but for this region there are only a few recommendations of hostels.

regards
Peter :mchappy:

Hotels in Arg. Patagonia are bl@@dy expensive!
 

Take a tent! I travel with a tiny 1-man tent and thought I'd only use it in emergencies. But in Argentina it's close to impossible to find a room for less than US$30, even a bunk bed in a dorm (and hostels usually don't have parking!) will set you back US$20. Once you're in Patagonia, prices are plain ridiculous. You won't find anything under US$ 40. And that's for a room worth $20 max. So I used my tent about 60 nights - basically anywhere in Arg. Patagonia. In Chilean Patagonia you find a class of hostel called Recidencial where they charge US$ 15 to 30 for a single room with shared bathroom. That I found acceptable. These prices are from Nov 2010 to March 2011. Argentina has over 20% inflation. Enjoy your trip!

I only went about half way up Argentina/Chili on the RTA 40. I can't ever remember having a problem.

There is usually always a small pension about in the towns/villages. I assume you aren't carrying any camping equipment ?

Its easy to find a place to stay in any small town in Patagonia as its very touristy. But as mentioned, prices are more expensive during the high season. I think I paid about $20 for a bed in a dorm room in Ushuaia. But, after Peru and Bolivia, anything will seem expensive.

I didnt camp too much in Southern Patagonia mostly because of the winds and rain. At the end of the day I just wanted to dry out and warm up.

However, there are epic places to camp all over South America, so I would for sure bring a small tent and warm sleeping bag. Some of my best experiences were camping off the beaten path where rooms were not readily available. Once in the highlands of Peru and Bolivia it will get cold.

Yeah.. Argentina and Chile have some of the best camping in the world.

A small 1-2 man tent and small down sleeping bag take up very little space. I guess you could even buy one there if you don't want to carry it all the way and then give it away/sell it when you're done with it.

Then again, it depends on your budget. If you don't mind paying the tourist prices, then I don't think you will have much of a problem finding a bed for the night.

You might check HostelWorld.com to see what cities along your route have hostels. If your taking a GPS you could drop waypoints for them. There's several Itouch/Ipad hostel apps that might prove helpful too.

Hostels Worldwide - Online Hostel Bookings, Ratings and Reviews

Good luck on your trip.

daryl

If you dont want to carry camping equipment on your entire trip, I would recommend buying a tent and sleeping bag in La Paz as the really amazing camping starts in Bolivia. You can get some decent knock of stuff cheap in La Paz. I bought a cheaply made -20C down bag for 50 bucks. It was poor quality, but very warm. Make an alcohol burning stove out of beer cans. You can buy 96% alcohol for burning and drinking all over Bolivia in any market for about $1 per liter. Pour a little in your stove, then pour a little in your coca tea. bier

And if you do buy a tent, make sure it is not a dome / igloo type of tent but something more windproof! Enjoy..

Adventurous greetings,
Coen

hello crashmaster,

thank you so much for these wonderful advises! ..... and at night you can start amazing fireworks with the Dynamite which you can buy in Potosi!:thumbup1:
I've been in Bolivia (without a tent), but I gave the 96% alcohol including the coca to the miners of the "Cerro Rico".

Peter:mchappy:

I have to agree about the fabulous camping in Chile and Argentina. And that the prices in Patagonia are pretty high. We camped in some wonderful places, almost always for free. And usually much quieter than hotels, because towns have dogs, roosters, trucks, etc., and wild camping has nothing. Not even coyotes down here.

If you don't have camping gear, you can usually find a place. We certainly passed lots. There were only a few stretches where you'd have to think ahead a bit.

But if you don't mind camping, it will make you love camping.

As for prices, when we did get hotels in Patagonia, we finally started paying more. In many places, a US$50 room was crap (maybe no toilet seat) where a US$75 was a business class hotel. the $25 was worth it to us. Clearly we're not budget travelling, although with all the free camping, it does balance out pretty well.

Have a great trip!

-Laura
ridingaround.wordpress.com

I'm in Patagonia at the moment presently stopping in the Casa del Pueblo in Esquel, safe parking, Wi-Fi, sat TV, good dorms, good kitchen, breakfast and a very nice young couple of owners. They have just told me mid November is the start date for some BP's, early/mid December for most and the rise seems to be about 30% but that probably does not include Ushiaia. I'm paying Arg$60.00 a night for a 6 bed dorm c/w bano which so far has been standard mas or minus 5% once you are away from the big tourist cities. But remember, January and February, Patagonia is completo. Just in passing, Argentina has a version of the AA called ACA and their hotels are very good value indeed, last night in the back of beyond up on the Pampas I was given a discount on production of my AA card from Arg$120.00 for mere mortals to Arg$80.00 for the blessed ones Ride safe and as cheap as possible.