Several bus companies run Punta Arenas to Puerto Natales: Buses Fernandez departs 8am, 9am, 1pm, 2.30pm, 5pm, 6.30pm,8pm daily; Bus Sur departs 10am, 3pm, 5.15pm, 7pm daily; Buses Pacheco departs 7.30am, 11am, 1.30pm, 3pm, 6pm, 7.30pm daily. There is no central bus station in Punta Arenas. Buses leave from the individual bus company depots, and may then have a stop at the Punta Arenas airport on the way to Puerto Natales (Buses Fernandez does). There is no depot or desk at the airport so you cannot buy tickets there; this must be preorganized. Buying tickets before you arrive in Chile is not easy. Emails are rarely answered and a seat is not actually reserved unless paid for. We were able to get our hotel to buy and pay for our tickets for us and then reimbursed them when we arrived, however this relied on the goodwill of an owner-run hotel and may not be possible with a bigger hotel. Also if you do make a booking, reconfirm the day before to make sure your seat is held. Buses are always full in the busy summer season. Also note, since September 2013 buses arrive at a new central bus terminal in Puerto Natales although most bus company websites still say they arrive/leave at their own depots. They do not. The new terminal is 2km from downtown Puerto Natales and a 20-30 minute walk, which is not hard but make sure you have time to do it. Many people were caught out by turning up at the town address instead of the new bus terminal and had to run to catch the bus.

For Puerto Natales, Buses Gomez runs daily services at 9.45am and 4.30pm, but this ends at national park administration at Laguna Amarga and you will have to walk 6km from there to Hotel Las Torres. Hotel Las Torres will pickup in Puerto Natales and deliver right to the hotel but this will be a private transfer and likely to be expensive. EcoCamp Patagonia which is just up the road from Hotel Las Torres also do pickups in Puerto Natales for their own guests and you might ask them if they would do a transfer for you, but again this will be private and likely to be expensive.

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I was checking the bus schedule, and there is one that arrives Puerto Natales from Laguna Amarga at 5pm, I need to go to Punta Arenas on the same day, and there is another company that leaves from Puerto Natales to Punta Arenas at 5:15pm, Are the bus station close to each other? Is it enough time? I don't know if there is a bus that can take from Laguna Amarga to Punta Arenas directly

doble post! Oops

Since 1 September 2013, a new, modern, public bus terminal opened in Puerto Natales. Located in the upper section of the city, at the corner of Santiago Bueras and Avenida España, it includes central ticket counters, a cafeteria, snack shops and toilets. All regular inter-city buses serving Puerto Natales arrive at and depart from this new terminal, instead of using each bus company’s own offices. Getting from one arrival to the next departure with a different company is only a matter of a few steps. Dead easy!

http://www.chile-reise.com/en/busterminal-puerto-natales/

Hi Susan B, do you know how often buses leave Laguna Armarga for Puerto Natales? I was hoping to get from there to Punta Arenas in one day to catch a 1925 flight

Hello, Andrew. The buses from Amarga to Puerto Natales leave at 14:30 (arriving at Puerto Natales at 17:00) and again at 19:45 (arriving at Puerto Natales at 22:00). I don't see how you can catch a 19:25 Punta Arenas flight with this schedule. If you're staying in a hotel like the Hotel Las Torres or Hotel Rio Serrano, they may have earlier shuttles for guests that arrive at Punta Arenas earlier. Here is the general TDP info, including bus schedules:

http://www.torresdelpaine.com/ingles/secciones/noticias/20.asp

Maria Jose is the bus you should take for Torres del Paine. There are multiple bus companies have the same schedule (mandated by park) from Puerto Natales to Torres del Paine and about the same prices but Maria Jose provides the best service for worry free travel. My camera dropped out of my pocket on the ride up from Puerto Natales to Torres del Paine. When the bus picked us from Torres del Paine to go back to Puerto Natales a few days later we inquired about the lost camera. Jose (our driver who happened to be the owner of Maria Jose) had not only found it and saved it but he said he felt badly we didn't have it with us to take photos while we were in the park. In addition, as soon as we got back to Puerto Natales he quickly got the camera from his house so we could make our connecting bus that was taking us onto Punta Arenas.

Thanks. Also can anyone tell me what the options are for getting out of the park should you get sick/break a leg/twist an ankle at any stage of the circuit route? Would you have to rely on your friends to stretcher you out or does the park provide some sort of service in emergencies?