High mountain excursion through the Andes: visit to Uspallata, Puente del Inca and Cristo Redentor. It does not enter the Provincial Park, only Aconcagua Argentina can be seen from the outside.
Excursion to the Aconcagua Provincial Park: walk to the Laguna de Horcones within the Provincial Park. Low difficulty.
Trekking to Confluencia base camp: trek from the entrance of the Aconcagua Provincial Park to Confluencia, the first base camp. Medium difficulty.
How to get to Aconcagua from Santiago de Chile
If you live or are going to travel alone to Santiago de Chile and want to take an excursion to Aconcagua, you basically have two options: travel by car or join a full-day tour from the capital. In any case,remember that you have to cross the border with Argentina, both on the way out and on the way back, which can make you lose several hours. Argentina
If you dare to travel by car, you have to follow Route 57, which in Los Andes becomes Route 60. Once in Argentina, the road becomes Route 7 and you will only have a few kilometers left until the entrance of the Provincial Park. Aconcagua.
In case you do not have a car, I am sorry to tell you that it is not possible to go by public transport. You would have to go to Mendoza first, which is not feasible for one day. Therefore, the alternative is to take a full-day guided tour from Santiago de Chile. This tour will allow you to make a small trail inside the Provincial Park and get to know other places along the way. You can reserve it here.
What to see on Mount Aconcagua
When planning your visit to Aconcagua there are several places that you should be clear about. You should spend more or less time exploring the Provincial Park.
The main access is on Route 7 and is the Horcones Visitor Center. The main hiking trails start from there. Although there are other accessible places in the park, I am going to focus on the part that I know and that is the one that most people visit.
Horcones Lagoon
The route that most visitors to the Aconcagua Provincial Park follow is the one that takes you to Laguna de Horcones. It is a very simple route that will take you between 1 and 2 hours round trip, depending on how much you spend taking photos. In addition to seeing this small lagoon, there is a viewpoint to Cerro Aconcagua (the typical image of the park).