Hotel Estancia El Ovejero Patagónico — Hotel in Torres del Paine

This is a new (and still expanding) estancia-themed hotel in Cerro Castillo, about an hour's drive from the Torres del Paine park. It is a stone's throw from the border crossing to Argentina.||||As anyone who's looked for affordable accommodations at Torres del Paine knows, it's impossible to find them. Honestly, the park is nice, but it's much easier, cheaper and nicer to hike at El Chalten a few hours away in Argentina. But since you're travelling to this report part of the world, you'll likely feel compelled to see overpriced Torres del Paine anyway (and you probably should, at least if the weather is OK).||||Honestly, If you're an independent traveller with a vehicle who doesn't want to spend a lot on hotels; and aren't planning on hiking the "W" and just want to do the day hikes, you could skip the Ovejero. Wake up super early in Puerto Natales and either return there or drive to El Calafate afterwards. Start at the Rio Serrano entrance and exit at Laguna Amarga That's a looong day, but doable in summer. You'll save more than $100 on lodging if you do.||||If you don't want to go as far as El Calafate or back to Puerto Natales, you can stay at the Ovejero. It's what we did, after previously spending a night at Rio Serrano. We saw the southern part of the park on the first day, and the northern part on the second, It's still expensive at Ovejero, but not as expensive as closer-to-the-park accommodations. And unlike at Rio Serrano, you can get dinner at the nearby cafe (next to the border crossing, with the same owner as the hotel) for a reasonable price (like 7000 peso a la carte main dishes). The Ovejero itself serves dinner for about 2x that price (probably a little fancier).||||I don't recommend using this hotel to go back and forth into the park. It's just too far. And you might run out of gasoline. Neaest gas stations are in Puerto Natales and Esperanza, Argentina (Tepi Aike in Argentina usually has some gas too: cash only, get Argentine pesos at the Ovejero cafe at the border).||||Other than go to the cafe and take a 20 minute walk around the spruced-up small town (the Chilean government seems to be pumping tons of money into it), there is nothing else to do in the immediate area.||||The hotel mostly caters to tour groups, but is fine for independent travellers. When we arrived, there was no sign on the hotel and it looked deserted. But the lobby became "overcrowded" once the tour bus arrived! The tour buses obviously use the hotel as an overnight-stop from El Calafate to Torres del Paine on expensive tours.||||Rooms are 4-star fancy and look estancia-like. Breakfast is very good by Chilean standards. Good cakes, some cold cuts and...

There is no reason to stay in this town other than proximity to the border for crossing back into Argentina since there is nothing to do here; it's 45 minutes from Puerto Natales and 1.5 hours from Torres del Paine. We ended up here based on a booking by the travel agent when the hotel we were originally going to stay in burned down.||The decor is South American vaquero meets Wild West. The sheep skin covered chairs in the dining area and the leather saddle bar stools all add to the quaint ambience. The common area in the front of the hotel near the bar is filled with leather chairs and couches arranged for a drink and conversation. The coffee tables have a variety of books with subjects that range from guides of Chile to local flora and fauna. ||The rooms are comfortable and clean. The beds are firm and the pillows even firmer, so you may want to bring one with you. The shower is encased in glass and has a fancy rain shower head and wand, which weren't terribly impressive due to the lack of water pressure.||Breakfast was the usual assortment of ham and cheese and bread. Additionally there is fresh fruit, yoghurt, and eggs made to order. Dinner options consist of a set menu of soup, salad, entree, side and dessert. The soup and salad were good. The guanaco steak had a good flavor despite being tough. The grilled salmon was cooked well but under seasoned; thankfully there was a green salsa to put on top. The pasta frutas del mar was inedible; the seafood was mushy and flavorless.||The hotel is new and immaculately clean. The staff is very friendly and helpful and several of them speak English. Laundry services are also available, with a one day...

This hotel has a good location, just across the border into Chile and a 90 minute drive to Torres del Paine national park. We stayed a single night on our way to the park. Note the roads are under construction and once completed, the drive should be less than an hour. The hotel feels very new and is nicely decorated. The bar and reception are very comfortable and a great spot for a drink. Our room had a large and comfy bed, and the bathroom was modern with a good shower. There was good wifi in reception. We had dinner in the restaurant - this was buffet with good choices. Breakfast was equally tasty with a good selection of breakfast foods. The staff were helpful and friendly and it was also nice to walk around the village.||I highly recommend this hotel if you are on your way to Torres del Paine. Compared to the options in the park, this place was very...