Suggestions for Chile /Argentina

Hi! We just did pretty much the same itinerary, only in the reverse direction! Some things we wishe we would have known before we did the trip?
-You cannot pack enough warm clothes! We fell in love with Smartwool products on this trip!
-In Pucon, take a trip (via rental car, not that much $$$ for the compact) to the country side and hotsprings. There is an amazing little farm with an underground (you enter through a cave) hot spring- headlamps recomended, but not necessary! It is briefly mentioned in the Lonely Planet, but is called the contact info is old. The name of the place is "Recuerdo de Ancamil", if interested I can get you the new contact info (am away from my address book right now). The other hot springs were way overpriced and mostly consisted of cement squares...sorta dissapointing.
-The Navimag can get pretty tough to handle for 4 days. We did not take it but have met MANY a traveler who did, and said that everyone on board was sea sick the entire time. We did attempt to take a ferry farther south, and they are often out of commission, or experiencing a day delay. We gave up and took a bus.
-Do not take any mini-busses for long distances. Many of the locals don't even trust the drivers, as they do not need a bus licence, and literally fall asleep at the wheel on a regular basis.
-Take a good book and snacks on any long bus rides, even if they say they will serve you a meal- it is usually a trifle, and for a 17 hour ride (the one we took had no stops at all) you get pretty hungry.
-Stop in to Valporaiso if you can- its so colorful and has a different fel for a city!
-Always ask a hostel or hotel owner, "Is this the best price you can give me for the room?" They are almost always willing to negotiate a bit, especially if you are staying more than one night. You should be getting the off-season prices as well, which is great!
-Don't book the Perrito Moreno Glacier tour through an H.I. affiliate. Their tour is a little bit more, but not as good as the ones you can buy at any bus station. (You buy the ticket just like a regular bus ticket, but they take you in a smaller, comfy van, that is WAY less crowded than the HI tour, and allow more free time at the glacier.) The glacier is incredible!
-Prices are more than they say in all the Guide Books, but not to be discouraged! Argentina and Chile are fabulous and worth the effort! Reply to this

In our opinion, flying would be a smart move. Puerto Madrin is an ok town, and because we did soooooo much bus traveling, it ia a town that makes an easy stop-over. During penguin season in the summer, you can rent a car and drive out to see the massive penguin colony, but I don´t think there will be much to see the time of your you will be traveling. There probably will be whales however, so the importance of that depends on what you want to see. The SCUBA Diving, though heavily advertised, is actually pretty terrible. The bus rides are exhausting, and any part of the journey that you can avoid them, is a plus! (looking back, we would have spent the little extra on a plane- and seriously, sometimes it is only a little extra). Good luck! If you have any more questions, throw them our way!
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