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Aconcagua ascent via the normal route (join a group)
Join Grajales Expeditions on this extraordinary 17-day Mount Aconcagua ascent via the normal route. Reach the highest peak in America!
Andes
1 Day
Jan, Feb, Dec
Fit
Advanced
Description
Are you ready to summit the highest mountain in the Western world? then join a group and get ready for this Aconcagua ascent via the normal route
Mount Aconcagua (6962 m) lies in the Cordillera de los Andes, in the Argentinean province of Mendoza. It’s the highest peak in America, in fact, it’s the highest summit outside of Asia. So in addition to being one of the Seven Summits, it’s a demanding test for mountaineering around the world.
And this 17-day program will take you to its summit through the most popular route. We’ll meet in Mendoza and from there on I will help you with everything: We’ll check your gear and rent something if you don’t have it, we’ll go in private transfers to the trailhead and I’ll guide you to the top in the safest possible way.
One thing I’ve learned with my years guiding in this mountain is to take things slowly and pay a lot of attention to my clients acclimatization progress. That’s why I include porters and mules in the program, to help you carry the load.
Please look at the detailed itinerary below and remember that this program requires a high level of fitness and previous mountaineering experience.
So check the dates below and send me a request to join one of the groups on this amazing Aconcagua ascent via the normal route adventure! All the departure dates are 100% confirmed.
And if you don’t have enough time for this ascent, but you want to see this impressive mountain from a close angle, you can also check my 6-day Plaza Argentina Trek in Mendoza and my 7-day Aconcagua trek with Cerro Bonete.
Itinerary
Day 1: Mendoza
Arrival to Mendoza (760 m). Transfer from airport to hotel. Relax day.
Day 2: Transfer to Penitentes
We’ll travel to Los Penitentes in private cars. Accommodation in the mountain Hotel (2580 m). Near the Hotel, we’ll prepare the load transfer.
Day 3: Penitentes - Confluencia
We’ll have breakfast and drive from Los Penitentes to the Aconcagua Provincial Park (Horcones 2950 m). We’ll start the trek and, after 3 to 4 hours, we’ll reach the Confluencia camp.
Day 4: Confluencia - Mirador de la Pared Sur
We’ll take a 7-hour walk and you’ll discover the South Face of the mountain (4050 meters). We’ll start the acclimatization process. Night in the Confluencia Camp.
Day 5: Confluencia - Plaza de Mulas.
You’ll explore Playa Ancha and he Cuesta Brava in a 7-hour trek. Then we’ll reach the base camp in Plaza de Mulas (4350 m).
Day 6: Rest day in Plaza de Mulas
Day off to rest in Plaza de Mulas.
Day 7: Cerro Bonete acclimatization hike
A 6-hour acclimatization ascent to the Cerro Bonete (5004 m). You’ll admire the wonderful West Face of the Aconcagua from up there.
Day 8: Plaza de Mulas - Plaza Canadá - Plaza de Mulas
Ascent to the first camp, Plaza Canadá (5050 m), to prepare the equipment and back to Plaza de Mulas, where we’ll spend the night.
Day 9: Rest day in Plaza de Mulas
Day to relax in Plaza de Mulas.
Day 10: Plaza de Mulas - Plaza Canadá
We’ll transfer to Plaza Canadá, our first step to the summit. The ascent will take us around 3 hours.
Day 11: Plaza Canadá - Nido de Cóndores
We’ll continue the ascent to the second camp, Nido de Cóndores (5560 m) for 3 to 4 hours.
Day 12: Nido de Cóndores - Cólera Camp
Ascent to the last camp, Cólera (5970 m).
Day 13: Summit Day
We’ll conquer the summit of this incredible mountain! Then, we’ll return to the Cólera Camp to spend the night.
Day 14: Extra days
The trip includes two extra days in case of bad weather.
Day 16: Cólera Camp - Plaza de Mulas
Descent to Plaza de Mulas.
Day 17: Back to Mendoza
Descent to Horcones (6 to 7 hours). Transfer to the Hotel in Mendoza (3 to 4 hours) and goodbye.
Details
Accommodation Hotel accommodation in Mendoza, based on double occupancy, in Diplomatic Hotel.
1 night’s lodging in Penitentes (dinner and breakfast included).
Complete base camp service (dining tents, bathrooms, meals, storage). |
More info The dates listed corresponds to the first night in Mendoza. Our expedition for the Normal Route takes a maximumof 17 days. Please plan your departure from Mendoza at least 18 days after the starting date of the trip. |
Meeting point Mendoza airport. |
Photos
About the guide
Back in 1976, Fernando Grajales Expeditions was granted the first license to operate mountaineering services at Aconcagua. Its founder, the legendary mountaineer Fernando Grajales, applied the same concepts of safety and ethics to his company that he applied to his own climbing expeditions. In a few seasons, the company became a trademark and a synonym of Aconcagua.
Four decades later, we are proud to continue breaking trails under the same clear Andean skies, ruled by the same transparent principles.
Today, Fernando Grajales Expeditions continues to be a family owned local company, committed to our team and to our community. At the same time, we work to keep a global perspective regarding innovation and service standards.
To us, “fair trade” means simply to do things fairly, as we always have. Our goal is to create safe and successful mountain experiences for our clients, whether they are mountaineers that utilize our fully guided expeditions or international agencies that trust us with their logistics.
What people are saying about Explore-Share
Teodora Jugrin
5.00
Nov 19, 2021
I had a very good experience booking the hike through Explore-Share. Communication with the team was prompt and clear and the booking process was seamless. The trip itself was also just perfect. Uroš was a fantastic guide, highly skilled and talented. The hike felt safe at all times, even on more exposed routes, thanks to him. He was always up to date on the weather forecast and planned the days around it, checked the conditions on the route ahead of me, if needed, discussed and adapted the routes to my level and always made sure I was safe and comfortable. I highly recommend him, as well as Explore-Share.
SG
5.00
Oct 25, 2021
Explore Share is a really usefull website that has a great overview of reviewed guides for a (in our case) hiking/climbing trip. During the booking I got assigned an assistent for Explore Share that helped solve questions that I might have. Great customer service, and I will come back again.
Dan Laufer
5.00
Oct 17, 2021
Explore-share was easy to use and the staff and guide w ere very responsive. The trip descriptions were accurate and the pricing reasonable. I would definitely recommend the site for people looking to do guided hiking.
Mac
5.00
Oct 13, 2021
Excellent!! Great guide and service. I had a very good experience. Id do it again.
Amanda Gardner
4.00
Sep 14, 2021
Guide was very experienced and very patient with us. We learned a lot and he tried to fit in all the knowledge he could in one day, super awesome. A little tough going back and forth to get the trip set up hard to tell if the site is sketchy until you see reviews but all worked out. Ended up with an awesome day with an awesome guide. Overall pretty satisfied and thankful!
Meret Schädler
5.00
Sep 14, 2021
The whole experience was great! The customer service of explore-share was really good. I always got an answer very quick. I would absolutely recommend to use explore-share if you are looking for a great guide in a foreign country. 5 stars!
john mcevoy
4.00
Sep 10, 2021
What a trip, fantastic guide who picked me up and dropped me off. Would use again.
Catherine Derroitte
5.00
Aug 25, 2021
It's the 2nd time we have been booking with Explore-Share. The booking was super easy and both Explore-Share and the guide were fast in their responses. We did rafting as a family with 3 kids for the first time in Slovenia. The guide (José) was super nice. He was doing everything he could to make everyone at ease with rafting (he gave clear explanations), have a great team spirit (we were joined by 2 other girls) and have a good time. We had lots of fun and the nature there is so beautiful. Thank you Explore-share and Soca splash for the great afternoon! I would recommend this activity to anyone without a doubt. My kids immediately told me they want to do rafting again soon !"
Aditya Kumar Jha
5.00
Aug 2, 2021
Best platform for mountain sports services. Easy to use, great personalised service and support.
Ibolya Kovacs
5.00
Jul 5, 2021
I am very pleased to have booked with this group. All of my mails have been answered in no-time, I felt really safe on the rock and the atmosfere of the whole group helped a lot not to mind about stressing. Will be back for more!
Prices per person
Group of 1 | USD 4609 Each |
Group of 2 | USD 4609 Each |
Group of 3 | USD 4609 Each |
Group of 4 | USD 4609 Each |
Group of 5 | USD 4609 Each |
Group of 6 | USD 4609 Each |
Group of 7 | USD 4609 Each |
Group of 8 | USD 4609 Each |
Want a different number of travellers?
Price includes
- Guiding fee
- Lunch
- Dinner
- Group porters
- Breakfast
- Mules and horses
- Luggage transfer
- Camping equipment tents
- Accommodation included
- Transport during the trip
- Camping equipment cooking utensils
Price details
Also included:
All shared gear for the expedition (sleeping tents, stoves and cooking gear,
radio, etc).
Load transportat by mules, to and from base camp.
Free internet at BC (limitations apply)
Permanent VHF radio communication.
We provide our guides with professional first aid kits and pulse oximeters to
monitor acclimatization progress.
Assistance with the required climbing permit procedure.
Satellite coverage and tracking during the trip.
One porter every four climbers, to carry 20 kg of common gear.
NOT INCLUDED: Mt. Aconcagua State Park climbing permit (U$S 800-1000), Personal porters, any cost incurred by the climber if she or he leaves the trip early (such as mules, transfers, guide, etc), meals in Mendoza, drinks in Mendoza and Penitentes, personal gear, medications, ground or air evacuations, room services, laundry, beverages, phone communications and items of personal nature, insurance liability, hospitalization or medication of any kind, any other service not mentioned in this condition sheet. We strongly recommend all participants to buy a trip cancelation insurance.
For booking assistance
Our experienced outdoor adventure team is ready to help you boost your experience and will assist you throughout the whole process, from the moment you choose a program until you return from your trip.
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