I visited in January 2012. During the fires. We had planned on hiking the W, but part of it was closed. We did a Laguna Azul hike, which I do not recommend. If you want to see the lake, take a bus or else you can choose to walk on no trails the first part if you know how to navigate. However, you must dodge the droppings from guanacos, but if you want to see lots of guanacos you may consider this option. As for the park, there is a shortcut between Los Cuernos and Chileno, which was helpful with our packs on.

If you stop in at Puerto Natales, make sure to stop by Erratic Rock for weather updates and information at 3pm daily. You can also rent gear and stay there. The Via Paine bus will pick up here, which is convienient.

We stayed in the park 5 days, saw the 3 torres (towers) which are very special and impressive, the cuernos (horns), also beautiful, lake nordenslyk, glaciers.
The winds where very impressive too. On the last day they where so strong that a few people fell and got injured. One man lost his glasses and did not find them again.
We got only bruises. The bad thing is that we weren't warned. At the torres restaurant they displayed the weather forecast from 1 day before, which sayed "sunshine".

I can not recommend visiting the park because it is a complete rippoff. They try to make money so hard, it's no more fun.

Go South Adventures is an exceptional travel agency that exceeded our expectations in all aspects. My boyfriend and I booked a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Patagonia (Torres Del Paine, Chile) using Go South Adventures and are grateful we did! I rarely write a review, but both Jessica and Troy deserve to be recognized for their excellent customer service and passion for travel. My boyfriend is in the military and I am a resident physician, so getting our holiday vacation schedules together gave us very short notice to throw this type of trip together. Troy, having been to Patagonia five times previously, was extremely knowledgeable and accommodating. He went above the call of duty in answering our questions about Patagonia/Chile and providing recommendations outside of our itinerary. We decided to do the 5-day EcoCamp Safari tour and it was amazing. The facilities were clean, beds were comfy, and food was delicious. In addition, the guides were friendly and knowledgeable. If you are active, I highly recommend trekking Towers Base for many breath-taking views. An unfortunate incident that took place during our travels was that one of our luggage was “lost” somewhere between Miami, Lima, and Punta Arenas by the airlines. I was able to send a quick email describing what had happened to Troy and Jessica before heading out to remoteness of Patagonia. They graciously offered to help (despite the fact that it was around Christmas time) and we were pleasantly surprised to get our lost luggage delivered to the EcoCamp the following day (the EcoCamp is located 5 hours by car from the airport)! This should speak volumes about the level of customer service and care you receive from Go South Adventures. Furthermore, prior to leaving for our trip, I asked Troy about the possibility of traveling to Isla Magdalena after our Safari tour. He did extra research and made it possible! I am certain that our amazing trip to Chile could not have been pulled off without Go South Adventures. We endorse this company with the highest possible recommendations to our friends, family, and other travelers we have met through our journey.

Visiting Torres del Paine national park in southern Chilean Patagonia was an amazing experience - the voyage getting there, the radically different rock formations of the mountains (blue towers, the blue massif and the cuernos (horn like) tips were jaw dropping! The blue skies, glacier blue waters, fantastic shrubs (that were in bloom with a sweet smell), the guanacos were plenty as were the numerous birds, including rheas. We missed the pumas - but are around! The grassy green Argentine hills and mountains with estancias along the way on your trip up made this visit a true delight. I am proud of our Canadian Rockies and Banff Springs National Park, and this is just as amazing - if not, more exotic and dramatic.