Location:
Under 10 minutes from Teniente Julio Gallardo Airport and ~10 minutes from Puerto Natales, Chile. The hotel is 45-60 minutes from Torres del Paine National Park.
The Hotel:
One of the most unique hotels I've ever stayed in. The Singular Patagonia is a restored cold storage facility, and is both a museum and luxury hotel. It feels so remote, although it is only a ~10 minute drive to the small town of Puerto Natales.
The hotel focuses on its amazing excursions (which I will go into detail on later), and there are so many different activities to choose from. All excursions were extremely well-organized, and thought out; all our guides were so much fun too! Although many excursions are for small groups, we actually really enjoyed meeting other people during our activities, and by the last day, we felt like we knew everyone staying at the hotel. We felt that the staff did a really great job matching up hotel guests for the group excursions as well. One thing to note is the The Singular is about an hour drive to Torres del Paine National Park (as opposed to some hotels located inside the park), so there will be some time spent in the car for many excursions. However, the hotel stay is well worth the driving time in my opinion and I also liked having the option to have dinner, etc. in Puerto Natales rather than only eating at the hotel for five days (although the food at The Singular was amazing!).
We had great meals at The Singular Restaurant and the breakfasts each morning had great healthy options to get you ready for an active day spent outdoors.
A small indoor/outdoor pool is located in the spa. Our spa experience definitely wasn't bad, but it wasn't my favorite either. The design and aesthetic in the spa, however, was beautiful.
Random note - on the way to the restaurant from the rooms, you will walk through the halls of the museum, which were always FREEZING. I learned on day one to always bring a jacket with me around the hotel!
The garage where you will meet for excursions
The Room:
Each room has floor to ceiling windows overlooking the water. We stayed in the Singular King, which wasn't overly spacious but was perfect size for what we needed. The rooms are decorated simply - the views are what steal the show. It was so peaceful waking up to this view every day. You can also order room service and they will set up a table to face the window, which was great after an exhausting day of hiking when we just couldn't pull ourselves together to go to dinner :)
The Excursions:
We booked 2 excursions with The Singular, and did some activities on our own on the other days we were there (fly fishing, etc.).
Excursion #1: Day trip drive around Torres del Paine National Park. It is hard to even find the words to explain this part of the world, but it is some of the most breathtaking scenery I have ever seen. And it goes on for what seems like forever - we spent an entire day driving to different points of the park and taking short walks/hikes, but you could easily spend days here. Lake Pehoe, a bright turquoise lake flanked with twisted peaks, is a must-see, as is Lago Grey /Grey Glacier and Nordenskjöld Lake.
Excursion #2: Base Las Torres Hike. Many people choose to do this hike as a part of the popular 5-day "W trek", but we chose to do it as a one day hike due to time restrictions (something you've heard me say before, I'm sure!). It is a long hike, but extremely rewarding. Definitely make sure you are in the physical shape to complete it before attempting. Trekking distance is ~14 miles, and it took us ~9 hours from start to finish including our stop at the top. Thankfully, this hike is much lower elevation than what I am used to in Colorado, so that makes it a bit easier than mountain treks in other areas of the world! The trail is not technical, although there are some steep rocky areas towards the end. It is important to be prepared for the quickly changing Patagonia weather. I started this hike in a tank top, but at the top, it was snowing and I was wearing every layer I brought (leggings, tank, long sleeve, fleece pullover, puffy vest, a water resistant windbreaker shell, hat, and gloves). The wind in Patagonia can be very intense, so having wind protection is critical. It is also worth noting that cloudy weather may completely obstruct the view of towers at the top - so that view is not guaranteed!! We were lucky to have a partial view the day we went, and some of the clouds did clear while we were hanging out at the top. Good, sturdy hiking shoes are highly recommended due to the length of the hike, and trekking poles wouldn't be bad to have although we didn't use them. As with all hikes, I always recommend bringing plenty of water (I brought a 2 liter CamelBak), snacks for energy, extra socks, sunscreen, basic first aid, Advil, and Benadryl. The trail is fairly busy, but we met a lot of great people and had great conversation along the way! This excursion included transportation, park entry fees, lunch and a guide. Our guide let us hike ahead at our own pace, and she also stopped us at a place where it was safe to drink fresh water running directly off a glacier.
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