Patagonia: An Active Adventure in Landscapes and Cultures
October 16–31, 2026
Led by Wesley Braker ’18, Natural Lands Manager
Hit the outdoors with St. Olaf on a rich and rigorous encounter in both Northern and Southern Patagonia. Get on the water in the Lakes District, hike to mountain summits, and trek glaciers, finding adventure at every turn.
This itinerary is custom-designed and distinctive to St. Olaf!
See the Overview to the right for more information on what we’ll see, do, and learn.
Experience the Untamed Beauty of Argentinian Patagonia!
Vast, wild, and breathtakingly beautiful, the Argentinian portion of Patagonia offers a dramatic tapestry of rugged lakes, forested peaks, and endless skies. Here, pristine lagoons and crystalline streams wind through a landscape guarded by towering ice fields and ancient glaciers — protected within some of the country’s most awe-inspiring national parks.
In this wind-swept wilderness, solitude reigns. The silence is broken only by the rustle of a guanaco in the grass or the slow arc of a condor soaring overhead. As we travel through this majestic region, we follow the paths once taken by Indigenous hunter-gatherers, the legendary gauchos of the great estancias, and intrepid explorers drawn to Patagonia’s raw, open spaces.
This active adventure includes several days of hiking through striking terrain, including the awe-inspiring Perito Moreno glacier. Along the way, we’ll immerse ourselves in the rich cultural traditions of the region—connecting with the local people, their stories, and their enduring ties to the land.
This experience will largely focus on interacting with and exploring the beauty and wonder of Argentinian Patagonia. “Wild” and “natural” are terms that are frequently tossed around when thinking about beautiful outdoor spaces, but the context rarely contains the reality of human involvement within ecosystems around the world. We will investigate what conservation and natural resource stewardship looks like in Argentina by reading and talking with local experts about the land we are traveling through. We’ll consider the human experience within historical and contemporary contexts, specifically with how they relate to the natural world.
Prior to our travels, we will provide suggested media to prepare you for the experience, as well as articles throughout the trip to promote critical thinking about conservation, nature, land stewardship, sense of place and how we can connect what we learn back to our local communities and landscapes.
See all the details below and use the REGISTER NOW button above to join us.
Our intention with each tour is to provide an itinerary that introduces you to key elements related to your destination or the educational theme, while also providing some free time for you to pursue your own interests or have some down time. The balance can vary from day to day, and from tour to tour.
We’ve put together a distinctive tour that we feel best fits St. Olaf, in collaboration with our award-winning tour operator, Knowmad Adventures. You can view – and download and print, if you wish – the most up-to-date itinerary here.
You’ll get the most out of study travel if you research what to do during your free time. This allows you to reap the benefits of group travel, while also customizing the tour to your interests and activity level. Read more about How to Be an Independent Group Traveler.
Wes and Annika are 2018 St. Olaf graduates who live just outside of Northfield on a small farm. Wes is the manager of the Natural Lands at St. Olaf, overseeing on-the-ground work of natural resource management, providing resources for faculty, staff, and students, and organizing hands-on educational and training opportunities. He is also a PhD candidate at the University of Minnesota in the Conservation Sciences program, studying intraspecific interactions in native prairie plants. Wes has extensive back-country experience, exploring remote areas of the upper midwest by foot and paddle, and is interested in how humans interact with natural spaces. Annika is a data analyst and is working on growing her fiber farm, focusing on natural wool products such as roving, handspun yarn, knitwear, and woven goods.
Wes and Annika enjoy spending time in the outdoors, stewarding the land that they live on, visiting Minnesota’s public lands, and learning more about the natural world around them. Wes has led three alumni travel trips in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, but this will be the first international explorations for Wes and Annika as leaders of Alumni and Family Travel.
Both Annika and Wes are excited to dive into Argentinian Patagonia with you in October 2026!
Expect to be dazzled by the natural beauty and cultures of this spectacular region in Argentina!
This tour is designed to be more active than our average Travel program. The times of higher activity will be balanced by down times as well. Activities are encouraged, but you can choose to spend your time alternatively as desired.
Movement between cities will be by air-conditioned private motor coach. Movement within each city and at cultural/historic sites will be on foot, requiring a lot of walking and standing, often over uneven ground. You should be capable of walking a mile or more at a time and up to five to seven miles per day, often over uneven terrain, of climbing stairs that may not have handrails, of climbing in and out of various types of transportation, of keeping pace with an active group of travelers on long days of traveling, of dealing with the emotional highs and lows that can occur when experiencing different cultures, and be a considerate member of the group (prompt, courteous and flexible).
Any participant who has demonstrated an inability, in the opinion of the tour leader, of keeping up with the group or of safely participating in program activities may be prohibited from participating in certain activities.
You will be responsible for carrying your own luggage throughout the tour. Traveling lightly is highly recommended.
Hotels will be tourist class (four-star or superior rating) with private baths, air conditioning, and English-speaking staff. Note that the town of El Calafate is notorious for having “just ok” hotels, other than one 5-star lodge that is a budget-buster and also located well outside of town. We decided centrally-located was more important than five stars.
The tour price is $7,600 per person, based on double occupancy. A supplement of $2,100 applies for single occupancy. There are a limited number of hotel rooms and only two single spaces are available.
Inclusions and exclusions vary by tour, so please read the following information carefully. We try to strike a balance between not nickel-and-diming you once on the tour, while also allowing you some freedom in your price point (for meals, for example). A variety of modes of transportation tends to be pricier than a single bus throughout the tour. Highly rated guides are essential and should command higher wages.
Inclusions: discussions led by Wes Braker, a dedicated local tour manager, accommodations, breakfast daily and group meals as listed on the itinerary, admissions for group activities, internal flights, ground transportation during the tour (except arrival and departure airport transfers), gratuities to group guides, drivers, and meal servers, and some limited medical coverage while overseas.
Exclusions: NO FLIGHTS ARE INCLUDED, WHETHER INTERNATIONAL OR DOMESTIC WITHIN THE ITINERARY. Participants are solely responsible for all expenses not specifically included in the tour fee. Examples of excluded expenses are: Airfare between your hometown and Argentina; flights for Buenos Aires–Bariloche, Bariloche–El Calafate, and El Calafate–Buenos Aires (these three regional flights will be booked by our tour operator and you will be invoiced for them separately; the total cost of these three regional flights combined is estimated between $400 and $700); airport transfers in your hometown; any passport fees; any recommended immunizations or vaccinations; baggage insurance; trip cancellation insurance above $2,000 lifetime coverage; beverages at group meals; laundry, dry cleaning, phone charges, room service or other items of a personal nature; expenses incurred during free time or non-group activities; lunch and dinner, unless specifically included on trip itinerary.
This schedule is based on payments St. Olaf College must make to tour vendors to guarantee group rates. We highly recommend that you purchase additional trip cancellation insurance at the time of registration to recover your payments should you need to withdraw from the tour.
Deposit due: $500 upon registration
Refund if you cancel: $475 if you cancel on or before November 15, 2025. If the deposit is made after November 15, 2025 there is no refund.
Interim payment due: $3,000 by November 16, 2025
Refund if you cancel: $1,500 if you cancel on or before June 15, 2026
Final payment due: June 16, 2026
Refund if you cancel: None, unless the tour is full and your place can be resold
Cancellations must be in writing.
Read the Terms & Conditions and Release & Waiver.
Review the latest information on recommended immunizations from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
Check your passport: ensure that it has at least 6 months’ validity past the tour end date (or your return date, if you decide to extend your stay overseas) and at least one blank page.
Look at the International Travel section of the U.S. State Department, including Before You Go, Country Information, While Abroad, and Emergencies.
Take time to Prepare for your adventure by checking out a variety of resources, including frequently asked questions, general health information, included travel insurance, a safety overview, and more.
Hold the dates of October 16–31, 2026, but do not book non-refundable flights until we can confirm the tour is a go. For now, see some tips on Booking Your Flights.
This tour needs a minimum of 12 travelers by June 15, 2026 in order to go. But don’t wait until then to register – it could fill much sooner! If the trip is a go and spaces remain available, registration will close August 1, 2026.
Ready to go?
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