Camper vans and 4x4s between the Última Esperanza fjord and Torres del Paine
Compare the 3 campervan and motorhome rental companies in Puerto Natales to find the best price, and book at the price shown, mandatory fees included.
Hiring a campervan in Puerto Natales means setting off from the small capital of Última Esperanza Province, stretched along a fjord facing snow-capped mountains. It is the closest town to Torres del Paine National Park, with its turquoise lakes, the Paine massif and Grey Glacier, and El Calafate, on the Argentine side, is just one long day's drive away. 3 partner companies, Camper Travel, Holiday Rent RV and Kawascars Camper Rentals, hand over their vehicles here.
The models observed are mostly camper vans for two, several of them 4x4, plus a Chiloé Camper 4x4 with four berths for family trips.
Public ratings collected on October 28, 2026 from independent review sites.
| Vehicle | Winter July | Spring October | Summer January | Autumn April |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Campervan | from €133/day median €231/day | from €133/day median €252/day | from €177/day median €255/day | from €134/day median €233/day |
Daily prices observed on October 20, 2026 for a 15-day rental: CoolDrive selling price, mandatory fees included, 2 rental companies compared. 17% of offers with unlimited mileage. Median excess: €2,000.
A loop that enters the park from the south-west: the Río Serrano road, partly gravel, runs along Lake del Toro and reveals the Paine horns from afar. You then cross Torres del Paine from west to east, from Lake Pehoé and the Salto Grande waterfall to the shores of Laguna Amarga and Laguna Azul, before rejoining the paved road at the village of Cerro Castillo to return to town.
A short trip north of town: the former Puerto Bories meat-packing plant, a national monument inherited from the golden age of sheep farming, then the hamlet of Puerto Prat on the shore of the fjord. The Milodon Cave, where the remains of a giant ground sloth were found, comes before Laguna Sofía and the cliffs of Cerro Benítez. From the harbour, boats also sail up the fjord to the Balmaceda and Serrano glaciers.
The Dorotea border crossing, very close to town, opens the road to Río Turbio, a coal-mining town, then across the Santa Cruz steppe to El Calafate and Lake Argentino. The Perito Moreno Glacier, about 80 km further on, deserves a full day. Returning to Chile via the Cerro Castillo border lets you continue straight on to Torres del Paine before heading back.
The austral summer draws most hikers to Torres del Paine: park campsites and rental vans go quickly, so book early. Highs rarely exceed 15 °C and the westerly wind often picks up in the afternoon; bring warm, waterproof clothing, even in January.
October, November, March and April offer the best balance when leaving from Puerto Natales: fewer people on the trails and up to 11 hours of sunshine a day in November. In April, the lenga forests turn red and gold; October, on the other hand, is the wettest month of the year.
The austral winter is quiet and slightly drier, with less than 90 mm of rain a month, but nights freeze from June to August and snow can cover the park's roads. The snow-covered Paine is worth the trip if you choose a 4x4 and cold-weather gear, and check road conditions every morning.
| Month | High | Low | Rain | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 15 °C | 7 °C | 125 mm | 10 h/day |
| Feb | 15 °C | 7 °C | 112 mm | 10 h/day |
| Mar | 13 °C | 6 °C | 129 mm | 8 h/day |
| Apr | 10 °C | 3 °C | 120 mm | 6 h/day |
| May | 6 °C | 0 °C | 87 mm | 5 h/day |
| Jun | 3 °C | -2 °C | 81 mm | 4 h/day |
| Jul | 3 °C | -3 °C | 86 mm | 5 h/day |
| Aug | 5 °C | -1 °C | 89 mm | 6 h/day |
| Sep | 8 °C | 0 °C | 88 mm | 8 h/day |
| Oct | 10 °C | 3 °C | 131 mm | 9 h/day |
| Nov | 12 °C | 5 °C | 126 mm | 11 h/day |
| Dec | 14 °C | 6 °C | 125 mm | 11 h/day |
Averages 2016–2025 computed from Open-Meteo data (ERA5 reanalysis).
Entry to Torres del Paine National Park is charged and is normally paid online before you reach the CONAF checkpoints: check the current arrangements before leaving Puerto Natales and keep the ticket saved on your phone, as there is no mobile signal in much of the park.
Puerto Natales has the province's supermarkets, petrol stations and hiking gear shops; inside Torres del Paine there is neither a petrol station nor a proper grocery store. Fill up, top up the water tanks and buy several days' worth of food before leaving, not forgetting gas cartridges for cooking.
Guanacos, rheas and estancia sheep cross Ruta 9 and the roads to the park without warning, especially at dawn and dusk. Drive at a moderate speed, slow right down when another vehicle passes you on gravel to limit flying stones, and avoid driving at night: animals stay invisible until the last moment.
Three partner companies each have a depot in Puerto Natales: Holiday Rent RV, Kawascars Camper Rentals and Camper Travel. The latter agrees the place and time of pick-up and drop-off individually with each customer. For the other two, the exact address is in your confirmation. Let the company know if you are arriving by bus from Punta Arenas or on an evening flight.
Across 24 offers from two companies surveyed in October 2026, for a 15-day hire with mandatory fees included, camper vans start at €133 per day. For a January departure, the lowest price rises to €177 and half of the offers exceed €255 per day; in July, the median drops back to €231. A search with your dates shows real prices you can book straight away.
Not in summer: a standard camper van reaches the park and its main campsites if driven carefully. A 4x4 gives extra margin on gravel, mud and winter snow. The offers observed include the Calafate Camper 4x4 and the Pucon Camper 4x4 for two, the Ushuaia Camper 4x4 and the Chiloé Camper 4x4, with four seats, as well as the Adventure Campervan and the San Pedro Camper.
Punta Arenas, 192 km away as the crow flies and about 250 km along the paved Ruta 9, is also a departure city of our partners. If a one-way hire is offered, any extra charge appears directly in the total shown when you enter Punta Arenas as your drop-off location. Its airport, better served all year round, then makes the flight home easier.
Yes, if the company agrees to the vehicle leaving Chilean territory: it then issues an authorisation document for the vehicle and insurance covering Argentina, which takes a few days and often costs extra. Ask about it when booking. Each time you re-enter Chile, the Agricultural and Livestock Service confiscates undeclared fruit, meat and dairy products and may inspect the vehicle.
No Chilean road links Puerto Natales directly to the Carretera Austral: overland, you have to go through Argentina and along Ruta 40, for well over 1,000 km. The other option is by sea, with infrequent ferries to Puerto Yungay; check that they are running on your dates. Balmaceda, Coyhaique and Puerto Montt are among our departure cities, for a possible one-way trip.
They have always responded quickly to all my requests and their website is very functional!
Fast service
The booking process is very smooth. I had very good communication with the Cooldrive team. As for the follow-up, it will be seen on site during the vehicle pickup.
The camper vans offered in Puerto Natales are light vehicles that can be driven with a car licence. For foreign drivers, Chile normally requires an international driving permit alongside the national licence, to be obtained before travelling from the authority that issued your licence. Traffic keeps to the right, and each company states in the offer conditions the minimum driver age and the number of years of licence required.
Puerto Natales has a few campsites that welcome camper vans, handy the night before or after the park. In Torres del Paine, overnight stays are only allowed in designated campsites, which need booking in high season, and a few private campsites add to the options around the park. Elsewhere, estancia land is private: do not spend the night there without the owner's permission.
In fewer than one offer in five: in our October 2026 surveys, 17% of Puerto Natales offers included unlimited mileage. The return trip to the park alone is over 200 km, and a loop via El Calafate adds several hundred more. Estimate your route, then compare the included mileage and the price per extra kilometre on each offer.
Our October 2026 surveys show a median excess of €2,000. Around Puerto Natales, typical claims are a windscreen chipped by gravel on the Río Serrano road, a broken headlight or a door wrenched open by a gust in the park. Check the insurance exclusions, which often concern the underbody and tyres, as well as the excess reduction offered.
Puerto Natales airfield, a few kilometres north of town, mainly receives flights from Santiago during the high season. The rest of the year, you land in Punta Arenas, and buses link the two cities in just over three hours. Tell the company your arrival time so the vehicle handover can be arranged the same day or the next morning.
Allow about 110 km to the Laguna Amarga entrance, via Cerro Castillo, and a slightly shorter distance, on a partly gravel road, to the Río Serrano sector in the south-west of the park. Both take about two hours, longer with photo stops: many travellers therefore spend several nights in the park rather than making repeated return trips.
Puerto Natales is the most direct base for Torres del Paine: starting here rather than from Punta Arenas saves half a day's driving and lets you enter the park on the very first afternoon. The town remains human-sized, with its colourful corrugated-iron houses, craft breweries and hiking shops, and it opens up both the Última Esperanza fjord and the road to the Argentine glaciers.
Three partner companies hand over camper vans here, mostly for two travellers and often 4x4, with prices observed from €133 per day in October 2026. Punta Arenas, 192 km away as the crow flies, along with Balmaceda, Coyhaique and Puerto Montt, complete our departure cities in Chile, making a one-way trip possible. The most pleasant season runs from October to April, with peak crowds between December and February.
