Cross the Andes in Style with Cruce Andino

One of South America’s oldest and most unique travel companies, Cruce Andino is the newest member of the Emerging Destinations portfolio.

Founded more than a hundred years ago, the company specializes in transporting visitors through the Andes mountains via the gorgeous Lake District between Puerto Varas (Chile) and Bariloche (Argentina). It’s the only company licensed by both governments to use this scenic route.

Over the last decade, more than half a million visitors from 25 countries have traveled with Cruce Andino through the dazzling Lake District. The journey features the stunning natural beauty of Vicente Pérez Rosales National Park in Chile and Nahuel Huapi National Park in Argentina, as well as magical places Peulla and Puerto Blest, revealing landscapes that really do seem to take your breath away.

With both both road and ferry segments, the trip can be accomplished in one day or spread out over multiple days with an opportunity to explore the lakeshores and national parks on foot, bike, horseback, kayak or 4×4 vehicles, with overnights in romantic lakeside lodges and historic island hotels.

The journey follows an ancient trade route through the snowcapped mountains blazed centuries ago by the local Huilliche people and later used by Jesuit missionaries. In the late 19th century, a new company called Cruce Andino used the same trail to transport sheep’s wool from Argentine Patagonia to Chilean seaports. By 1913, company patriarch Ricardo Roth had transformed Cruce Andino into a tourism business that continues to unite Chile and Argentina across the High Andes.

Three options are available: One-way coach & ferry adventures between Puerto Varas and Bariloche (starting from either end)​; Round trip coach & ferry journeys (starting from either end); and Boat & Bike trips with the overland legs on bicycles through the stunning countryside. All three options can be spread out over multiple days or weeks.