Aconcagua Expedition - 18 Days

Fly into Mendoza (750m), settle into your hotel, and use these two days to sort permits, check gear, and attend the expedition briefing. The team will run through the route plan, weather outlook, and answer every question you've got. Mendoza is a gorgeous city — wine country, steakhouses, and the Andes filling the skyline. Enjoy it. The mountain can wait.

Drive west through the Andes to Penitentes (2,950m), where you'll enter Aconcagua Provincial Park. The landscape shifts from vineyard green to high desert brown as you climb. Mules are loaded, final selfies are taken with mobile signal, and the expedition properly begins.

A steady trek through the Horcones Valley to Confluencia camp (3,390m). The trail is well-worn and the pace is deliberately relaxed — your body is starting to notice the altitude and there's no rush. Arrive to heated dining domes, hot food, and the first proper view of Aconcagua's south face towering above you.

Two days at Confluencia letting your body adapt to altitude before pushing higher. The highlight is the hike to Plaza Francia (4,200m) — a viewpoint beneath Aconcagua's enormous south face that puts the scale of this mountain into perspective. You'll gain 800m, then sleep low. Classic acclimatisation: climb high, sleep low.

The big day — a long trek from Confluencia to Plaza de Mulas base camp (4,350m). This is one of the highest base camps in the world, and your home for the next few days. The final stretch across the scree fields feels endless, but arriving to hot showers, Wi-Fi, and a chef-cooked dinner makes up for it. Welcome to the mountain.

Three days at base camp for serious acclimatisation. You'll do load carries to higher camps, hauling gear up and sleeping low again. These days feel unglamorous but they're the difference between summiting and not. Your guides monitor everyone's vitals daily and adjust the schedule based on how the group is responding. Base camp life has its own rhythm — cards in the dining dome, terrible jokes at altitude, and early nights.

The expedition shifts gear. You leave base camp and move through Camp Canada (4,910m) and up to Nido de Cóndores (5,560m). Above base camp, the infrastructure drops away — it's expedition tents, group cooking, and a much more serious atmosphere. The air is thin, the wind is ever-present, and every step takes more effort than it should. But the views are extraordinary and the sense of progress is real.

This is what you came for. From Camp Cólera (5,970m), you'll set off in the early hours for the summit of Aconcagua at 6,960m. The climb takes 8-12 hours up and 4-6 hours down. It's a brutal, beautiful, unforgettable day. The air has roughly half the oxygen of sea level. Every step is earned. When you reach the top — the highest point in the Western Hemisphere — you'll understand why people spend months preparing for this single moment.

Built-in weather buffer days. If the summit window hasn't opened yet, these days give you a second (or third) chance. If you've already summited, you'll descend through the camps back to Plaza de Mulas and onwards to the park exit. The descent is fast but don't underestimate it — tired legs on loose scree demand concentration. Most teams are buzzing on the way down, swapping summit stories and planning their next objective.

Transfer back to Mendoza. Hot shower, a proper bed, and the best steak of your life — you've earned it. Time to reflect on what you've just done, swap photos with the team, and start planning whatever comes next.