Cruce Andino – Crossing the Lakes District from Chile to Argentina

From Puerto Varas (or Puerto Montt), you can cross over in to Bariloche, Argentina via a series of boat and bus rides through gorgeous lakes and the Andes mountain range. One company Turistur (?) has a monopoly on the trip (Cruce Andino) so it’s quite pricey ($230pp) and as far as I know, impossible to buy individual tickets for each segment of the trip which would presumably make it cheaper.

Here’s a map of how the trip goes, going from left to right, starting with the yellow line which means “bus”, and changing to red, which means “boat”:

Here’s a better map:

Despite how beautiful the views were, we don’t think it was worth the hefty price. So, take a gander at the photos here, save your money, and take the bus to Bariloche instead.

If you do take the trip, the Chilean side seemed to have better views. The trip from Puerto Blest to Puerto Panuelo on the Argentine side was a bit boring and the catamaran we were on was already packed to the hilt with people when we got on. Might as well have been a cattle boat. And they all looked bored and tired.