Any information about Punta Tombo?

This is a question for anyone who may have gone to see the penguins at Punta Tombo this season. We are considering a private tour, but would like a bit more information about the day...

How long a ride is it? Was the vehicle 'comfortable'? Are there 'facilities' along the way? And most of all was it worth the ride? Any other info?

The Celebrity description sounds ghastly in a dusty old bus with only the possibility of an English speaking guide!! So we really would prefer to go private!!

We have already booked a similar journey in the Falklands, but we are worried that the ship may have to bypass Port Stanley and we do want to see penguins up close. There appears to be a 1 mile walk at Punta Arenas and I could not do that, so we are looking at Punta Tombo as an alternative to Falklands.

Thanks!

Dorothy

We returned last week from our cruise and our day at Punta Tombo was our most wonderful day of the cruise. We had a private tour arranged with Whalespatagonia and they were great. The drive was about 2 hours on a mostly monotonous but comfortable road. The last half hour was unpaved but not bad at all. We had a washroom break along the way and it was clean and comfortable. I don't know when you're going but when we were there (Feb. 19) there were about 500,000 penguins and they were absolutely adorable. You walk among them and get to see them really close up without having to walk long distances. Punta Tombo also has the advantage of being warm and sunny most of the time, as opposed to the Falklands. Don't miss this wonderful place!

The Celebrity description sounds ghastly in a dusty old bus with only the possibility of an English speaking guide!! So we really would prefer to go private!!

Azamara had the same warning on many of our South American ports, but the vehicles and guides were much better than that. The vehicles were usually not plush, restroom-equipped tour buses but they were not uncomfortable, old, unsafe or dusty. Private tours can save you substantial money but probably won't get you better vehicles in this area.

In Puerto Madryn, we went to Peninsula Valdes rather than Punto Tombo. Our private tour was provided by Cuyun Co Turismo, which also does Punto Tombo. In a group of 12, we saved $100 per person compared to the ship tour. We were very satisfied.

In Puerto Madryn, we went to Peninsula Valdes rather than Punto Tombo. Our private tour was provided by Cuyun Co Turismo, which also does Punto Tombo. In a group of 12, we saved $100 per person compared to the ship tour. We were very satisfied.

Thanks for the info rdowney. What did you see at valdez?? We were only considering Punta Tombo because of the penguins.

Thanks for your input! I have contacted the tour company to see what they offer (twice, actually!) and get a quote.

We are trying to book a couple of penguin viewing opportunities in case we have to miss a port.

Dot

Thanks for the info rdowney. What did you see at valdez?? We were only considering Punta Tombo because of the penguins.

Our itinerary had several ports with penguins so they weren't our top priority at this one. Peninsula Valdes had penguins (but not in huge numbers) plus sea lions, elephant seals and guanacos. It's best known for the elephant seals and whale watching, but the whales leave by mid-December. It is about as far from port as Punto Tombo but in the opposite direction.

We too used whalespatagonia to visit Punta Tombo. We had a car with a driver whose English was excellent and who sort of shepherded us along at Punta Tombo to make sure we didn't miss any highlights. The ride is about 2 to 2 1/2 hours, with a rest stop en route. This tour was better than I expected. Seeing that part of Patagonia, with nary a tree in sight for miles and miles, was fascinating, so even the trip itself was interesting to me. Of course, the penguins were the focus of the trip, and they made the long trip worthwhile. By the way, our trip cost about the same for the two of us as the cruise line's bus trip cost, and we arrived at Punta Tombo well in advance of the crush of the tours.

Great recommendations! Thanks!

Now, if Whales Patagonia would only reply!! I have emailed them twice. Still waiting to hear from Cuyun Co Tourism as well.

Dot

Now, if Whales Patagonia would only reply!! I have emailed them twice. Still waiting to hear from Cuyun Co Tourism as well.

My experience was that replies from tour companies, guides and hotels in Argentina and Chile took longer than I expected. I had only five weeks between booking the cruise and flying to BA. The extra days waiting for replies made planning more difficult.

We just got back from our cruise yesterday. We used WhalesPatagonia to Punta Tombo and were very satisfied with them--and loved the penguins. The ride is long, but not awful. We enjoyed it. It wasn't dusty at all, nor even particularly bumpy. We went to some little town (I forget its name) for a Welsh tea afterwards; we could have done without that. It was good and the place was scenic, but a little pricey, we thought. You might want to tell them to skip that part of the trip. But Punta Tombo itself was great, the buses were comfortable, and the ride was long, but okay otherwise.

PS: Our guide, Lucilla, was adorable and spoke fine English. We had friends who were in another bus with Whales Patagonia and they had a similar experience (when I say "bus", they were 12 or 14 passenger mini-buses; quite comfortable and not like a crowded tour bus...) I recommend them without reservation...

Just back from our cruise yesterday so will post the section of my review from Punta Tombo.

Puerto Madryn Here we had booked a private tour with Monica to Punta Tombo with another Cruise Critic couple (Joanne and Garry). This is the largest penguin rookery in South America. Totally different from the area we saw penguins in Punta Arenas. I know when I was always reading questions on the boards about which penguins to go see if you only do one....I can definitely see why the question would be hard to answer. They are very different kinds of terrain. This is flat country and semi arid. The penguins are spread out over a larger area and it's more scenic where as the other one was wall to wall penguins all on this one very small island. This in many ways was more fun since the penguins were walking in front of you all the time and the rule says that the penguins get the right of way when doing that. After spending some time here, Monica had brought us a picnic lunch in a cooler since she said that many complain about the food at Punta Tombo since it appears to basically be overpriced sandwiches. The lunch she had for us was a little what we would do in the U.S. but also much more so a taste of what they may have on picnics in Argentina, so I can't tell you everything she had us eating. Today was Monica's birthday so she said she had brought the brownies to us for that since she couldn't do a cake. She's had some negative press on these boards, so I know she was bending over backwards to try to reverse some of that. We definitely had a good time with her.

From there we went to Gaiman which is a cute little Welsh mill type town. When you get to this town, it's full of canals and an oasis of green. We stopped at one of the more famous and very beautiful and upscale tea houses. This is one that Lady Diana frequented and is probably one of the more famous local tourist attractions in this town. We bought some of the jams that were sold in the gift shop there and tried some this morning. Very, very good.

Hope it helps.

Cathy

Thanks, Cathy. Glad to read your review. I still have not had any replies from ANY of the tour companies in Puerto Madryn. Could you tell me which company Monica is with? Sounds like we should get a quote from her!!

Dot

Dot,

Wow....I guess my internet "housecleaning" started too soon. I decided today that I should dump all the South American web pages out of my favorites box since I have everyones address anyway. For the life of me, I can't find her page, but can give you an email address. It's rymmato at infovia.com.ar and I'm sure she will send you her web page in a response back.

She owns a bed and breakfast but has gotten her tour license in the last couple of years and does tours to various places in this area. We just got back but at that time, her rate was $200 for 2 or $300 for 4 for what we did. Good luck to you and have a great trip. I wish I could go back with you. :)

Cathy

Thanks, Cathy. Glad to read your review. I still have not had any replies from ANY of the tour companies in Puerto Madryn. Could you tell me which company Monica is with? Sounds like we should get a quote from her!!

Dot

Hi: I was with Monica the day before she took Cathy. I thought she was just terriific. She was right on time and being a teacher gave us a great insight into Port Madryn and the Rookery. My husband uses a walker and although we got information on the boards telling us that using a walker would be no problem - it was a terrible problem. After you get to the Rookery there is a very long walk to the beach where most of the penguins are. Pushing a walker through 2 inches of soft gravel is nearly impossible. Monica found him a place to sit after he dragged the walker for a good 45 minutes and insisted he was OK ...this is rugged even for the able bodied. Monica and I then went the rest of the way. Was it worth it - absolutely! When we got back to the car, we had prearranged for Monica to bring us lunch as did Cathy. I think that Monica went a bit overboard :eek: she packed two lunch trays - one could feed a family of four. She had two sandwiches, a large salad, a bowl of fruit, breadsticks and drinks. We missed did out on her birthday brownies! All in all, it was a wonderful day and we happy to just chat about family and rest for the drive back to the pier. I would recommend her highly. She was prompt, she knew the area and history, was warm and funny and truly concerned with my husband and his comfort. I think that there will always be folks who will find something wrong with everything. I think that Monica went out of her way to make us feel at home in her very beautiful country. I was able to reach her at either monica.tours@gmail.com or rymmato@infovia.com.ar.

Hope this helps,

Ronnie

Thanks Cathy & Ronnie! I have just emailed Monica for a quote - she sounds like a gem!

How far would you say the walk is???:eek: I have arthritis and cannot walk too far or stand too long without a break! But would hate to miss out on this fabulous tour. Cathy - you'd like to go back? maybe you could come along and pull me in a little red wagon or something!!! :D

Dot

Thanks Cathy & Ronnie! I have just emailed Monica for a quote - she sounds like a gem!

 

How far would you say the walk is???:eek: I have arthritis and cannot walk too far or stand too long without a break! But would hate to miss out on this fabulous tour. Cathy - you'd like to go back? maybe you could come along and pull me in a little red wagon or something!!! :D

 

Dot

Dot:

I am being very honest with you when I say that I just don't think you are going to manage. It is not only a long walk (at least an hour to the water) but it is a very strenuous walk - dirt roads that are heavily graveled. There were several people on the bench with my husband when Monica and I got back. We never got to the Welsh tea house because it took us so long to get just to the point where he sat with him trying to negotiate the walkway. Saying that, let me just add that the penguins walk all around you on the roadway and along the side. They build their nests into the dirt as far as the eye can see and you see them walking around all the way to the water...so if you don't mind missing the majority of the penguins, playing and swimming - then by all means - go. I am just telling you that many people stopped and had to either sit and wait for their partners or they turned back. You might want to have Monica take you touring a bit and then to the Welsch tea house (which I was sorry to miss).

Let me tell you what I learned. You will be in Puntas Arenas and the Natural Reverve Penguin Rookery is there. We were told that there would be at least a mile walk to the beach (and then another mile back), where once again the majority of the penguins are swiming and playing. We were also told that it was mostly a board walk to the beach. We got there by private guide and after paying our entrance fee ($10pp) we again started to walk. Once more we realized that until we reached the board walk it was a rough dirt road - Turns out that they rent small scooters for people with problems walking. I turned back and paid the fee and my husband ("I don't need that thing") was one happy camper. They charge an additional $15.00 for the scooter and send someone that works there to follow you to make sure there are no problems. It was worth every penny - I only wish they had those in Port Madryn. My husband was thriiled to see the penguins in all their funny glory. So, if you have doubts about Port Madryn ask Monica (or whom ever) what else they suggest and don't despair. The Puntas Arenas penguins will be there and you will not have to struggle with another long and very difficult road to get there. As I told my stubborn husband "kick that thing into second gear and let's go!"

Ronnie

Ronnie,

Glad to hear that you too had a good experience with Monica. I definitely agree with you about that lunch she brought. It was much more than any of us could eat all by ourselves, but I think she wants to make sure that no one is complaining about still being hungry.

Dot,

Regarding the arthritis.....this is a tough question to answer. There are so many different levels of pain associated with it and without knowing your walking restrictions, it's hard to make an accurate assessment. But I may also need to lean a little towards what Ronnie is saying. Basically Punta Tomba is like a gravel but with larger stones that lead down to a path to the water. There are some minor hills but nothing too much but with that said, when you are walking along gravel, it is more exhausting than a paved pathway.

As Ronnie said, you would still be able to see penguins from the early entrance and not everyone needs to go to the end of the walk, so this would have to be a decision only you could answer since I'm sure some days are harder for you than others and it could be hit or miss.

Also, as Ronnie said, you may want to consider doing Magnalena Island at Punta Arenas instead. This is a two hour ferry ride over, but the penguins are wall to wall on an island and although there is a walk to the lighthouse up top, you do NOT need to walk very far here to see loads of penguins.

This is NOT to discourage you from Punta Tomba since they both are very different but as Ronnie said, your questions may be best answered by Monica or another tour guide in the area to help you with a better understanding.

As far as your little red wagon.....as with a walker, I just can't see it being an easy haul over this type of gravel. :) I don't have my pictures up yet, but just started searching web pages and if you look at the second picture on this one, you will get an idea as to what this pathway is made out of. http://windowtoablueplanet.blogspot.com/2005/12/punta-tomba-argentina-penguin-beach.html

I hope this will help in making your decision. It was a wonderful experience but would hate you to go all that way and find you couldn't navigate this kind of terraine.

Cathy

Thanks AGAIN, Cathy & Ronnie for your words of advice. We will really have to think carefully about this. Although my husband does not have arthritis, he certainly could not walk for an hour on a gravel road. If there are places to sit along the way and still see penguins we might still consider it. In any case, I have mentioned my inability to walk far or long in my email to Monica, so we'll see what she comes back with

We have already booked with Patrick Watts at Falklands where we can be driven right to the penguins. I am just so afraid that we might not be able to stop there (from the reports on CC it's the most frequently missed port due to winds/weather). Having said that, I haven't heard anyone mention recently that they didn't stop there, so who knows.

We just want to get up close to at least ONE group!!

Thanks again for your helpful posts.

Dot

Thanks AGAIN, Cathy & Ronnie for your words of advice. We will really have to think carefully about this. Although my husband does not have arthritis, he certainly could not walk for an hour on a gravel road. If there are places to sit along the way and still see penguins we might still consider it. In any case, I have mentioned my inability to walk far or long in my email to Monica, so we'll see what she comes back with

 

We have already booked with Patrick Watts at Falklands where we can be driven right to the penguins. I am just so afraid that we might not be able to stop there (from the reports on CC it's the most frequently missed port due to winds/weather). Having said that, I haven't heard anyone mention recently that they didn't stop there, so who knows.

 

We just want to get up close to at least ONE group!!

 

Thanks again for your helpful posts.

Dot: If you want to get up close and personal with the penguins and sea lions, get off the ship in Ushusia and walk to the end of the pier. Go outside of the dock and cross the street. There you will find small kiosks where at 8:30 you can buy tickets for small boats. We waited and 7 other people joined us ( I think I paid $40pp) and they took us to down the beagle channel to the small islands where ther were literally thousands of penguins and sea lions. We were thisclose to them becaue the boat was so small. They gave us cookies and tea, coffee and hot chocolate and I will tell you it was the highlight of our trip. NCL does a similar tour for much more $$$ and they use a catamaran - can't get close to the islands and everyone is pushing and shoving to get their photos. We were outside on the small deck and I could have leaned over and touched them. What a great day. Don't worry about timing - they dock right on the pier and you get back to the ship with time to spare. In fact, after that, I stopped on the way back to the ship and bought myself onyx penguins to take home. I think the company we went with was patagoniaadventure, but baraccuda was right next to it and we got good reviews about them as well. Good luchk and Happy travels...

Ronnie

Hi again Cathy & Ronnie,

What a tough decision! I did hear back from Monica and she was basically suggesting my husband and I do a private tour with her so she could 'guide' the tour properly, and due to our limitations with walking she would not be torn between staying with us, and being with anyone else on the tour. She was figuring 1.5 hrs at Punta Tombo (so the walk to the sea would not be part of her plan). Given the cost she quoted of $300 for the two of us, and not getting to the most spectacular part of the trip, I think we've decided to give up this idea.

:(

Instead, we will continue to pray daily for the next 314 days for a stop at the Falklands where we have booked the trip out to Volunteer Point.

:D

The other option you have recommended sounds good too - the small boats at Ushuaia! Will I need my ginger capsules for that trip?? This sounds like a great option, even after seeing the Kings at Volunteer Point! ...maybe even a better choice than the ferry to Magdalena Island in Punta Arenas.

Thanks so much for all your advice. We really appreciate all the helpful people on CC.

Dot

Dot,

I can certainly understand all of your uncertainty when there are health issues involved that may make a trek harder. I know that what ever you do, you will find this part of the world a lot of fun.

As far as the Beagle Channel tours, they have many and different amounts of time spent on various points. It would definitely be a MUCH MUCH easier way to see wildlife for someone having struggles with walking since you are on the catamaran that pulls up right next to the shore of where the wildlife is.

In regards to the ferry ride.....I can only speak about when we were there and it was basically as smooth as glass. With that said, I have heard the total opposite extreme so it's luck of the draw and totally unpredictable.

Just as weather will be on your actual cruise ship. We had fantastic weather until we hit Cape Horn and then we weren't able to get as close as past cruises and we didn't make a circle around it so our pictures of Cape Horn are EXTREMELY stormy. But weather is weather and you can't predict it.

I do know that if penguins are important to you, you may want to have a back up plan with two different port calls since missed ports are sadly something that does happen on this itinerary. Good luck!

Cathy

Hi Kathy and Ronnie. Can you tell us how long your tour with Monica lasted? We are in Puerto Madryn from either 10-5 or 8-5 (the confirmation says 10-5 but the website now says 8-5) and we wondered if that is enough time. The cruise ship excursion says it takes 8 hours which indicates we might be there the longer time.

Thanks.

Liz

Sorry - that should be Cathy!

Monica was really prompt answering email and told me 2.5 hrs to get there (and 2.5 to return?) and others have said it's an hour walk to the sea (and an hour back?) = 7, plus time you spend there and lunch.

Cathy & Ronnie have just returned so they will be able to give you a better idea.