Seeing glacier calving and spotting leopard seals at the San Rafael Glacier

Great holiday

We thoroughly enjoyed all of our excursions. However, may we suggest that Swoop share the itinerary sent to the customer with their suppliers? We had agreed upon the Marble Caves kayak trip and this was shown on our itinerary. However, on arrival it became clear that we had joined a group for the boat trip. Thankfully this was resolved but the confusion may have been avoided had Senderos Patagonia been able to access the itinerary too. The San Rafael Glacier trip was an amazing experience but would have been greatly enhanced had the crew been able to provide detailed information about the glacier and the geography. No one seemed very well informed or knowledgeable. This maybe because their bilingual guide was on medical leave, but even so, some printed information could have been supplied. Also, our itinerary suggested a private road transfer for this trip when in fact it was shared and so we had a long wait for the return journey as the crew had to clean the boat before we left. Javier, our guide for the day hike in Cerro Castillo was absolutely superb in every way. The guide for the Marble Caves kayaking was excellent, both in terms of kayaking tuition and knowledge about the caves and environmental concerns. The 2 young men who took us on the rafting trip were very safety conscious (we were the only raft on the river with a safety kayak) and ensured that we had a truly amazing time. We loved their humour too. We are lucky that our daughter speaks good Spanish as her translation skills were well used on every excursion except the day hike.

Accommodation We loved the rooms and common areas at Senderos Patagonia. Beds were large and extremely comfortable. A few tiny additions would make it really excellent (bedside tables and a bathroom mirror). El Puesto - we loved the sustainable ethos and everything about the hotel other than the noise! There really seemed to be no sound insulation and we were able to hear every word from surrounding bedrooms. Our two bedrooms were on separate floors but we had the same issues. Raíces was a really tranquil oasis after a very long and dusty day on the Carretera Austral. We received a very warm welcome both at reception and at the restaurant (which was superb). The rooms were perfect in every way.

Go to Aysen and avoid the worst of the crowds! Aysen is stunning with plenty to do.

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Please see comments before about Melinda and Mary who were both 5 star. We felt that we had too many generic emails ahead of our trip. For example, given that we were only doing one day hike and walking poles were available to rent, it would have been good to have been given this information and avoid bringing them from home. Advice on your website about money needs updating (or again, more specific information rather than generic could be supplied). We were advised to travel with US dollars and cash and be prepared for the fact that most establishments in Aysen would not take credit/debit cards. We never needed US dollars and everywhere accepted cards (apart from market stalls in Coyhaique). We returned with unused dollars and have lost money on the exchange.

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