O Circuit Torres del Paine: The 7 Stages of the O Trek

The O Circuit walks all the way round the Paine massif in Chile's Torres del Paine National Park. Its first days cross the quiet back side, past Lago Dickson and the Los Perros glacier, to a pass where the Grey glacier and the ice field behind it fill the view.

The last days join the W Trek below the Cuernos and end at the three granite towers. CONAF calls the route the Circuito Macizo Paine, and since December 2025 it runs one way only, anticlockwise, for at most 100 walkers a day.

Its seven stages cover about 120 km with the side trips. After a deadly storm in November 2025 and a short season, CONAF has kept the circuit closed until at least 31 October 2026.

O Circuit at a Glance

The O Circuit takes 8 to 10 days in the park's own guidance, and seven or eight of them are walking days.

• Length: about 93 km round the massif on CONAF's sections, about 120 km with the French Valley and the towers

• Walking days: 7, or 8 with a night at Serón

• High point: John Gardner Pass, about 1,180 m

• Direction: anticlockwise from the Central sector, one way only

• Daily limit: 100 walkers, who register at Guardería Coirón

• Season: from 1 November at the earliest, after a CONAF check

• Nights: camps and refugios of Las Torres and Vertice, all booked before you start

• Park ticket: CLP 48,500 for 2 to 10 days for foreign adults

Of the best hikes in Patagonia, it is the longest in Torres del Paine.

O Circuit Stage by Stage

The seven stages follow CONAF's trail sections round the massif, with the park's distances, posted walking times and grades; the climbs are approximate. Most walkers split only Stage 1, with a night at Serón.

Stage 1: Torre Central to Dickson via Serón

• Distance: 31 km on two CONAF sections

• Climb: about 700 m up and 650 m down

• CONAF time: about 10 hours

• Sections: Hotel Las Torres to Serón 13 km, Serón to Guardería Dickson 18 km

• Grade: medium

• Sleep: Serón camp (Las Torres) to split the stage, then Refugio Dickson or its campsite (Vertice)

The loop starts beside Hotel Las Torres and heads north across private land of the Estancia Cerro Paine to the Río Paine. Serón camp, 13 km in, has a dining room and hot showers, but it offers tent pitches only, with no beds.

Beyond Serón the path climbs above Lago Paine to Guardería Coirón, the ranger post where every O walker registers. The last 18 km to Lago Dickson take 6 hours at CONAF's times, so skipping Serón means a 10-hour first day.

Stage 2: Dickson to Los Perros

• Distance: 11.8 km

• Climb: about 450 m up and 100 m down

• CONAF time: 4 hours 30 minutes

• Sections: one CONAF section, Guardería Dickson to Guardería Los Perros

• Grade: medium

• Sleep: Camping Los Perros (Vertice), tents only

Stage 2 is short, at 11.8 km, but it is the first real climb of the circuit. From the refugio at about 210 m on Lago Dickson, the path follows the Río de los Perros up through lenga, the southern beech of these valleys, to a camp at about 550 m.

Camping Los Perros lies in the forest below the Los Perros glacier and its meltwater lake, and it is the last camp before the pass. Vertice lists cold showers, a sheltered cooking area and a small shop there, and check-out is at 07:00.

Stage 3: Los Perros to Grey Over John Gardner Pass

• Distance: 15 km

• Climb: about 800 m up and 1,300 m down

• CONAF time: 11 hours

• Sections: Guardería Los Perros to Guardería Paso 8 km, Paso to Guardería Grey 7 km

• Grade: demanding on both sections

• Sleep: Refugio Grey or its campsite (Vertice)

Every walker must sign out with the Los Perros ranger before the climb starts. The path leaves the forest and crosses open rock and snow patches to John Gardner Pass at about 1,180 m, where the Grey glacier and the Southern Patagonian Ice Field come into view.

The descent is the harder half: about 1,300 m down, steeply through forest to Campamento Paso and then above the glacier's eastern edge. Between Paso and Grey the path crosses two suspension bridges more than 20 m high, and CONAF grades both sections demanding.

On 17 November 2025 five walkers died in a storm between Los Perros and the pass, with winds reported at around 190 km/h. Since 1 January 2026 a CONAF protocol closes the trail in advance when forecast wind, rain or cold cross set limits.

Stage 4: Grey to Paine Grande

• Distance: 11 km

• Climb: about 320 m up and 330 m down

• CONAF time: 3 hours 30 minutes

• Sections: one CONAF section, Guardería Grey to Guardería Paine Grande

• Grade: medium

• Sleep: Refugio Paine Grande or its campsite (Vertice)

At Refugio Grey the O Circuit joins the W Trek, and the quiet days end. The path runs south above Lago Grey past the glacier lookouts and Laguna Los Patos, and icebergs from the glacier often drift below the trail.

Paine Grande on Lago Pehoé is the biggest stop on the loop, with bunk rooms for 100 guests a night. The catamaran from Pudeto lands W Trek walkers at its pier, so from here the trail carries walkers in both directions.

Stage 5: Paine Grande to Los Cuernos via the French Valley

• Distance: about 23 km with Mirador Británico and back

• Climb: about 860 m up and 820 m down

• CONAF time: about 11 hours

• Sections: Paine Grande to Italiano 7.5 km, Italiano to Británico 5.4 km each way, Italiano to Los Cuernos 5 km

• Grade: medium, with the climb to Británico demanding

• Sleep: Refugio Los Cuernos, its campsite or cabins (Las Torres)

This is the second-longest stage of the loop. The path passes Lago Skottsberg to Guardería Italiano, the ranger post at the valley mouth, then climbs 5.4 km below the hanging Francés glacier to Mirador Británico, a ring of granite walls at the head of the French Valley.

Back at Italiano, the last 5 km cross private land of the Estancia Cerro Paine to Los Cuernos on Lago Nordenskjöld. CONAF's posted times add up to about 11 hours, and walking after dark is banned, so leave Paine Grande at first light.

Stage 6: Los Cuernos to Torre Central

• Distance: 11.6 km

• Climb: about 320 m up and 270 m down

• CONAF time: 4 hours 30 minutes

• Sections: one CONAF section, Refugio Los Cuernos to Hotel Las Torres

• Grade: medium

• Sleep: Refugio Torre Central or its campsite (Las Torres)

Stage 6 follows the north shore of Lago Nordenskjöld below Monte Almirante Nieto, a rolling path with short climbs. The open shore gives little shelter from the westerlies, which blow hardest from November to January.

Near the end the path turns inland to Hotel Las Torres and Torre Central, where the loop closes. Torre Central has six-bed dorms and hot showers, and a night here lets you climb to the towers with a day pack.

Stage 7: Base of the Towers and Back

• Distance: about 19 km return from Hotel Las Torres

• Climb: 1,150 m up and down, to a viewpoint at about 870 m

• CONAF time: 4 hours 30 minutes each way

• Sections: Hotel Las Torres to Chileno 5 km, Chileno to Guardería Torres 3 km, then 1.4 km of moraine

• Grade: medium, with the last 1.4 km demanding

• Sleep: Refugio Torre Central again, or the 20:00 bus from Laguna Amarga

The last stage climbs the Ascencio valley to the lake below the three towers, and day walkers make it the busiest path in the park. Above Guardería Torres the trail crosses a boulder moraine, where CONAF warns that walkers can injure leg joints.

The return by the same path makes a day of about 9 hours at CONAF's times. Stoves are banned at Chileno, the camp halfway up, and the ban on walking without daylight rules out a sunrise climb from Torre Central.

How Many Days Does the O Circuit Take?

Seven walking days is the minimum O Circuit itinerary on these stages, and most walkers add a night at Serón, a spare day or both.

• Seven walking days: Stage 1 in one 31 km day, with no slack if the pass closes

• Eight walking days: a night at Serón splits Stage 1 into 13 km and 18 km

• A spare day: worth keeping at the end, because CONAF can close the pass at short notice

• Travel days: one each way from Punta Arenas, which makes 9 to 11 days door to door

How Hard Is the O Circuit?

The O Circuit needs stamina rather than climbing skill: nothing on the marked trail calls for ropes, but the seven stages add up to about 4,600 m of climbing and as much descent.

Long Days and the Pass Descent

CONAF grades four sections demanding: both halves of the pass day, the climb to Mirador Británico and the moraine below the towers. The pass day alone takes 11 hours at CONAF's times, and its 1,300 m descent to Grey is hard on the knees.

Packs add to it. Campers carry a tent, stove and food over the pass, although Vertice rents a pitched four-season tent, a sleeping bag and a mat at Dickson, Los Perros and Grey, which takes the heaviest kit off the back-side days.

Wind, Snow and Closures

Wind is the biggest danger on the open ground near the pass. The westerlies are strongest from November to January: El Calafate, across the border, averages 21.6 strong-wind days in December against 14.2 in March.

Snow can fall in any month, and in 2026 CONAF closed the circuit early, on 26 March, after compacted snow and ice covered the trail. Under the protocol, rangers can also shut the pass in advance, so a spare day protects the whole booking chain.

Waymarking, Rangers and Signal

The path is clear and marked, and CONAF posts two rangers in each of the Dickson, Los Perros and Paso sectors. Register at every ranger post you pass, and sign out at Los Perros and Paso, which tells rangers to look for you if you do not arrive.

Mobile signal reaches only Villa Monzino, the park administration, and CONAF warns that help in the mountains can take several hours to arrive. Most fatal accidents in the park have involved people walking alone off the trail, so walk in company and stay on the path.

When to Hike the O Circuit

The O Circuit has the shortest season in the park, because its back-side camps open only from spring to autumn and CONAF decides each year when the pass opens. In practice that means November to March.

Vertice opens Dickson and Los Perros from October to April, weather permitting, while Las Torres ran Serón and Los Cuernos only from 1 November to 30 March last season. A late-March start can reach Los Cuernos after it has shut.

The 2025-26 season was short. CONAF reopened the circuit in December 2025 under the new rules, lifted a temporary guide requirement on 1 January 2026 and closed it again on 26 March.

For 2026-27 CONAF keeps the circuit closed until at least 31 October and reopens it only after a weather and safety check. December brings about 16½ hours of daylight and the most wind; our guide to the best time to visit Patagonia covers every month.

Know Before You Arrive

Planning the O Circuit comes down to a chain of booked nights, an early bus into the park and kit for snow on the pass.

Getting to the Trailhead

Reaching the O Circuit takes a flight, a long bus ride and a shuttle. Most walkers fly to Punta Arenas and take Bus-Sur to Puerto Natales, about 3 hours 15 minutes; runway works limit Puerto Natales' own airport to Friday to Sunday in January 2027 and to weekends in February and March.

From Puerto Natales the 07:00 park bus reaches Laguna Amarga at 09:00, where rangers check park tickets and a shuttle, paid in cash, covers the 7 km to the Welcome Center. Buses back leave Laguna Amarga at 11:00, 15:00 and 20:00.

Where to Sleep on the O Circuit

Every night on the O Circuit is spent in a camp or refugio run by one of two companies, and wild camping is banned everywhere in the park. Las Torres runs Serón and the sites in the east, and Vertice runs Dickson, Los Perros and the west.

• Serón (Las Torres): tent pitches only at about 170 m, with a dining room and hot showers; own tent from USD 50 or a fully equipped tent from USD 160; open 1 November to 30 March last season

• Dickson (Vertice): unheated bunk rooms and a campsite with a cooking shelter at about 210 m; single bed USD 46, pitch USD 11; open October to April, weather permitting

• Los Perros (Vertice): campsite only at about 550 m, with cold showers, a cooking shelter and a small shop; pitch USD 11 or a rented tent USD 58; open October to April

• Grey (Vertice): 60 guests in unheated bunk rooms, plus a campsite, at about 80 m; open all year

• Paine Grande (Vertice): bunk rooms for 100 guests and a campsite by the catamaran pier, at about 40 m; open all year

• Los Cuernos (Las Torres): six-bed dorms, cabins and a campsite on Lago Nordenskjöld, at about 80 m; 1 November to 30 March last season

• Torre Central (Las Torres): six-bed dorms and a campsite near the Welcome Center, at about 140 m; 1 October to 25 April last season

Vertice's single bed comes with only a mattress cover and a pillow, so bring a sleeping bag or pay USD 114 for a made-up bed. Both companies sell meals, and Vertice asks for dinner to be booked by 15:00.

How Much Does the O Circuit Cost?

Camping is the cheap way round the O Circuit: Vertice charges USD 11 for a pitch, while a bed with full board costs USD 156 to 370 a night, priced in US dollars.

The dollar rates need your passport and the tourist card you get at immigration, or Chilean VAT is added. Seven nights with your own tent on these stages, two to a tent, come to about USD 200 each in pitch fees, before the ticket and the bus.

How to Book the O Circuit

CONAF lets overnight walkers into the mountain area only with a reservation for every night, so booking the O Circuit means building an unbroken chain across two companies.

1. Fix the dates round Dickson and Los Perros. Nearly every O walker sleeps at these two Vertice camps, so book them first, then Grey and Paine Grande on the same calendar.

2. Add the Las Torres nights. Book Serón if you split Stage 1, then Los Cuernos and Torre Central; Los Cuernos had the shortest season last year.

3. Read the cancellation terms. Las Torres takes full payment for stays booked alone, keeps 20% from 89 days out, 50% from 69 days and all of it from 44 days, and allows no date changes once paid.

4. Buy the park ticket. It costs CLP 48,500 on Pases Parques, at least 24 hours before you enter; save the QR code offline.

5. Print every confirmation. Rangers check the ticket at Laguna Amarga and register O walkers at Coirón, and there is no signal on the trail to open an email.

Water and Stoves

Water is easy to find on the O Circuit: streams cross the trail on most stages and every camp has drinking water, so one or two litres is enough to carry at a time. A small filter adds little weight.

Rivers are the water to respect. After heavy rain or a thaw they rise fast and turn very cold, and the park's advice is plain: never cross when the water is above your knees, and ask the ranger about the trail ahead.

Fire is the other rule. Lighting any heat source outside the signed areas breaks Law 20,653, with fines of up to CLP 2,000,000 or up to three years in prison, so cook only in the camps' sheltered cooking areas. Vertice also bans cooking inside tents.

What to Pack for the O Circuit

Weather on the pass can turn from sun to sleet within an hour, so pack layers you can add and remove quickly, and expect a heavier pack than on the W Trek if you camp.

For any multi-day trek:

• Waterproof jacket and trousers, a warm mid-layer and a down jacket

• Warm hat and gloves, even in summer

• Sun hat, sunglasses and sunscreen for long days on open ground

• Walking boots you have worn in, with grip on wet rock

• Head torch and a small first-aid kit, plus a power bank

For the O Circuit:

• Trekking poles for the 1,300 m descent from the pass and the moraine below the towers

• Microcrampons early and late in the season, when CONAF can require them with poles on mountain trails

• A four-season tent, a warm sleeping bag and a mat, or the rented set at Vertice's camps

• A stove and gas for the cooking shelters, bought in Puerto Natales

• Printed confirmations and a paper map, because there is no signal

• Cash in pesos for the Laguna Amarga shuttle

• Your passport and tourist card, which the dollar rates need

O Circuit or W Trek?

The O Circuit is the W Trek plus the remote back side of the Paine massif, walked as one loop with stricter rules.

Choose the O Circuit if you have 9 to 11 days, want three days away from the W Trek crowds and are happy to sleep in a tent at Los Perros. It also crosses John Gardner Pass, the only point on either route where the trail crosses the range.

Choose the W Trek for a first multi-day trek, a one-week trip or dates in October or April, when the O Circuit is normally closed. It covers the towers, the French Valley and Lago Grey in four or five days.

The O Circuit With Every Night Booked

The hardest part of the O Circuit happens months before the walk. Seven or eight nights across Las Torres and Vertice must line up with the park ticket, and one missing night keeps you out of the mountain area, with no signal to fix it on the trail.

Our self-guided Torres Del Paine O Circuit tour books that chain for you:

• Duration: 10 days / 9 nights, Punta Arenas round trip

• Walking: the seven stages, with Stage 1 to Dickson in one day

• Nights: a 3-star hotel in Punta Arenas, then Refugio Torre Central, Camp Dickson, Los Perros Camp, Camp Grey, Vertice Paine Grande, Refugio Los Cuernos and two more nights at Torre Central

• Included: 8 breakfasts, 8 dinners, 8 box lunches and 1 lunch, ground transport, gear rental, a GPS app and a digital guidebook

We book the camps and refugios before you fly, and you have support while you walk. Ask us about dates once CONAF confirms the 2026-27 opening.

The loop closes at Torre Central, a short walk from where it began. On the bus out past Laguna Amarga, the towers stand on the skyline to the west, with the whole back side hidden behind them.