Volunteer in Torres del Paine National Park, Patagonia, Chile with Conservation Volunteers International Program. 

Because of its exceptional ecological significance, more than 40 years ago UNESCO designated Torres del Paine National Park as a Reserve of the Biosphere. The park’s unique biodiversity includes guanaco, endangered huemul, soaring Andean condors, and the elusive puma. The dramatic granite mountain spires, spectacular glaciers, turquoise lakes and haunting winds draw visitors from around the world.

Since 2005, ConservationVIP® has been bringing volunteers to Torres del Paine to help protect this international treasure. Our Volunteer Trip offers you the opportunity to experience some of the best of Patagonia while at the same time you contribute to protecting the fragile landscape, flora and fauna which make Patagonia so alluring..  

ConservationVIP's volunteers help with important trail projects in Torres del Paine. Maintained trails reduce soil erosion, making a significant contribution to the protection of this marvelous landscape. Maintained trails also keep visitors on the trails, so they do not trample fragile flora or intrude on the animals who make their home in the park.

No prior trail experience is required. We train you in all aspects of the volunteering, which can include a variety of tasks. You may use a pick or shovel to contour trail tread or shed water, clip vegetation with hand tools to widen trails, remove rocks with rock bars, or move crushed rock to improve trail surfaces. 

Past volunteers included a wide range of ages and abilities. To participate, you should be able to hike four miles a day on mountainous terrain with some steep ascents and uneven trails, move soil or rock with a shovel, pull unwanted vegetation, and carry stones. Project sites range in altitude from 500 to 2,000 feet, so while the surrounding mountains are beautiful, elevation is generally not a problem. As always, your safety is our priority.

Welcome to Patagonia! Our group meets in Puerto Natales, the town in Chilean Patagonia which is the primary transit point for travelers to Torres del Paine National Park.

We meet at 4:00 p.m. for an orientation where you’ll get acquainted with your ConservationVIP trip leaders and fellow volunteers and get an overview of the exciting adventure ahead.  After the orientation briefing, the group will share its first dinner together.

After breakfast, we will load up our gear, board our private transport and travel for approximately 2 hours to Torres del Paine. Along the way we will watch for guanaco, rheas, condors, and more, stopping for photos as the peaks of the park come into view.

Our first stop in Torres del Paine will be for a round-trip boat excursion on Lago Grey for an up-close view of Grey Glacier. The glacier lies at the end of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field. On our three-hour journey on the lake, we'll watch for floating icebergs and have vistas of the Paine Massif, the mountain formation at the heart of Torres del Paine National Park.

After viewing Grey Glacier, we will then travel an hour and a half to the Pudeto boat dock, to catch a catamaran across Lago Pehoe to Refugio Paine Grande.

For complete itinerary details, see the trip description on the ConservationVIP website. 

After breakfast on day 3, we will have an introduction to tool handling and the volunteer project. Then, after packing our gear and box lunch we will head out on the trail to begin the first project.

On a typical project day, we will depart our lodging around 8:30am and be back at the refugio by approximately 5:00pm. During the day, there will be a variety of tasks, with the specific tasks depending on the trail section and the volunteers’ interests. Small groups of volunteers are teamed with an experienced leader who will work with each volunteer to find the tasks which best suit the person’s interests and abilities.

During this period, there will also be rest days when trip participants can rest and enjoy the amenities at the Refugio or explore the park. Many hikers enjoy the hike to French Valley for close up vistas of the Cuernos.

For complete itinerary details, see the trip description on the ConservationVIP website. 

After breakfast, we will check out of the refugio, cross to Pudeto on the catamaran, then begin our return trip to Puerto Natales. Before we leave the park, we will visit the park’s headquarters..

En route to Puerto Natales, we will stop at the Cueva de Milodón, named after the extinct sloth whose bones were found here. There is also evidence of human habitation at the caves as early as 6,000.

After arriving in Puerto Natales, we will check into our hotel and enjoy a final dinner together.

For complete itinerary details, see the trip description on the ConservationVIP website. 

Following breakfast at the hotel, the trip ends. You may catch a homeward-bound flight, or you may opt to extend your stay in Patagonia.

For complete itinerary details, see the trip description on the ConservationVIP website.