The 11 Best Punta Tombo Penguin Tours in Puerto Madryn

1.Cruise Shore Excursion Punta Tombo with Boxlunch from Pto Madryn

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 79 reviews · 7 hours (approx.) · from $120Our pick

Travel from Puerto Madryn’s cruise pier to Punta Tombo, South America’s largest Magellanic penguin reserve. You’ll spend about two hours on the 1.5-kilometer path, with guides such as Mariana, Marcela, Roy, or Pitu sharing wildlife facts. A box lunch is included, but the park fee costs about $20 extra.

“March 2024 Tour was ok, but very disappointed as to the amount of penguins we saw! Expected to see the largest colony in the world! If this is not the time of year then this tour should not be sold!”

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2.Shore Excursion Punta Tombo cruise passengers Puerto Madryn

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 51 reviews · 7 hours (approx.) · from $125

Travel from Puerto Madryn’s cruise pier in an air-conditioned vehicle to Punta Tombo, home to thousands of Magellanic penguins. You’ll walk near nesting birds, look for guanacos and Patagonian hares, enjoy a box lunch, and possibly stop at a giant dinosaur replica and in town.

“Fun and pleasant for all ages and physical capacities. Ride to rookery is long and monotonous but bus was comfortable enough to nap or read and penguin payoff was worth it”

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3.Punta Tombo Walking Among Penguins Experience

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 46 reviews · 10 hours · from $120

From Puerto Madryn, you travel 180 km to Punta Tombo and follow a 3 km path through a breeding colony of Magellanic penguins. English and Spanish guides, hotel pickup, and air-conditioned transport are included. Choose a Trelew museum, Gaiman, or Playa Union dolphin watching as your optional extra.

“it was great. both guide and driver were passionate about the tour”

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4.Punta Tombo Tour, the Penguin Experience

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 46 reviews · 9 to 11 hours (approx.) · from $90Best value

Spend a full day traveling from Puerto Madryn to Punta Tombo, where Magellanic penguins nest from September to April. Your guide explains Patagonia’s wildlife, while the reserve’s marked paths bring you close to penguins, elephant seals, foxes, and ostriches. Optional stops may include Gaiman or a dolphin boat ride.

“Expérience incroyable ! Au plus proche pour observer les pingouins et les guanacos. Je recommande ! :)”

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5.Penguin Tour & Península Valdés Day Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 41 reviews · 10 hours · from $198

Travel from Puerto Madryn with a bilingual guide such as Alex, Esteban, or Martin to see Magellanic penguins at San Lorenzo, sea lions at Punta Norte, and wildlife across Península Valdés. Small groups, hotel pickup, and a ranch lunch option make this a full but rewarding day.

“Everything was amazing. The guide really loves her job and explains very interestingly. The group was small, the dinner was VERY tasty. Definitely recommend.”

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6.Punta Tombo Shore Excursion w/box Lunch(Shared tour for cruises)

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 40 reviews · 7 hours (approx.) · from $135

Travel from Puerto Madryn to Punta Tombo in a small shared vehicle, guided by local experts such as Mariana, Claudia, or Nico. Walk the reserve’s marked paths among nesting Magellanic penguins, watch adults and chicks, enjoy a basic box lunch, and return to your cruise pier on schedule.

“Punta Tombo was a great experience. We loved seeing all the penguins. I would not miss it. It is a very long ride from the port. The bus we were on was old and not all that comfortable. The guide spoke good English and the box lunch was fine.”

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7.Punta Tombo Penguin Colony from Puerto Madryn with optional Toninas Watching

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 33 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $158

Leave Puerto Madryn at 7:15 am for Punta Tombo, where Magellanic penguins share the coast with guanacos, rheas, cormorants, and foxes. You’ll have about 90 minutes at the colony, then stop at Puerto Rawson for optional Toninas watching. Transport, guide, and hotel transfers are included.

“Punta Tombo was our favorite place in all of Argentina, so I highly recommend going there, but the tour itself was only so-so. The toninas watching was cancelled due to wind, which was very disappointing, and we received no refund for it. Instead we went to the paleontological museum in Trelew, which was fine, but no replacement for toninas, AND we paid for it out of pocket. The guide was the same we'd had for Peninsula Valdes, but he was barely trying for the English crowd this time, speaking for 10 mins in Spanish and then maybe two sentences in English. Worst of all, after Punta Tombo we were left…”

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8.Punta Tombo Shore Excursion for Cruise Guests

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 25 reviews · 6 hours · from $90

Meet your English or Spanish-speaking guide outside Piedrabuena Pier, then ride 180 km south to Punta Tombo. Spend about 90 minutes walking among wild Magellanic penguins before returning to Puerto Madryn. Small groups, air conditioning, and cruise-adjusted timing make this a practical wildlife outing.

“We really enjoyed the trip, our guide was very engaging and informative. Thanks!”

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9.Full Day Excursion to Punta Tombo

★★★★★★★★★★3.9 · 20 reviews · 8 hours · from $112

Travel from Puerto Madryn across the Patagonian Steppe to Punta Tombo, one of the world’s largest Magellanic penguin colonies. Walk marked trails, visit the Interpretation Center, and travel with an English or Spanish-speaking guide. Hotel pickup is included, but reserve entry and lunch cost extra.

“Punta Tumbo is an amazing place to find yourself surround by uncountable thousands of Magellan's penguins. Being in the midst of this phenomenon nature was truly magical. Our guide and driver were great: punctual, informative, pleasant. Why the 3 star rating? We would like to have been able to spend more of the time we had at P.T. out in the middle of the rookery. As it was, following the two hour drive from Puerto Madryn, we had a scant hour and a half to take in the rookery for ourselves before it was time load onto the bus to go through the visitor's center which is fully of plastic…”

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10.Punta Tombo Penguin Tour & Optional Tonina Watching

★★★★★★★★★★4.1 · 8 reviews · 8 - 11 hours · from $300

Travel from Puerto Madryn to Puerto Rawson and Punta Tombo on a full-day wildlife outing. Choose a 90-minute Tonina dolphin boat trip, or visit Welsh Gaiman if conditions prevent it. An English or Spanish guide, hotel transfer, penguins, birds, guanacos, and rheas are included.

“Transport was in a car with 3 people on the back seat which is not comfortable at all. The guide was not very enthusiastic.”

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11.Punta Tombo Shore Excursion for Cruise Passengers + City

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 4 reviews · 6 hours · from $105

Travel from Puerto Madryn’s pier to Punta Tombo for 105 minutes among Magellanic penguins, then return through Trelew and possibly tour the city. English and Spanish guides, air-conditioned vehicles, and cruise-safe timing make this a practical six-hour outing. Guides may include Karen and Hernán.

“Excursión buenísima, gracias a Karen, la guía y a Hernán, el chofer. Los dos muy atentos. Karen con mucho conocimiento del área y explica muy bien. Punta Tombo, creo que es único lugar dónde se puede "caminar entre los pingüinos". No compramos el almuerzo, pues compramos un par de empanadas y un café en la parada del baño y gasolina, y nos fué bien. Tuvimos tiempo de ir a ver estatua del dinosaurio "Patagotita" y a tirarnos fotos. Y como era un tour de crucero, tuvimos suficiente tiempo de llegar al puerto y dar una vuelta por el área antes de entrar al barco. Recomiendo 100% a Sussanich Turismo.”

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