Located 1h far from ugly city of El Calafate, this beautiful property is a must ! You really feel the nature here, as there are NO neighbours around... only Patagonia and yourself !!! Nibepo Aike is a farm, from where you can see Perito Moreno Glacier, mountains, beautiful lakes... Food is very good, rooms are so comfortable, staff is the most friendly you can imagine... It is like staying home ! On the evening, the fireplace is great and the wine very tasty. All activities (Big ice walking, horse riding, iceberg navigation...) can be organized from there. I think it is the best place to stay - even better than so expensive Los Notros. Enjoy your trip there !

Estancia Nibepo Aike is in a lovely location, 1 1/2 hours (partly by dirt road) from the El Calafate airport. We really felt we were experiencing an Argentinian estancia: a true family ranch; gauchos working the sheep, cattle, and horses; lamb on the spit for dinner; small group of guests in the old family home; remote enough to be far away from all the crowds at Perito Moreno Glacier. We paid about $1200 for the two of us for 3 nights, which included transfers to the ranch, all meals, 2-hour riding (longer available if you want to pay for more hours), the Perito Moreno Glacier tour, and mini-trekking on the glacier (which needs to be booked at least one day ahead). Be aware that you can pay for extras there with a credit card IF you let them know ahead of time so they can clear the card with the El Calafate office (and be sure to ask later if that has been done as they forgot with us and we had to pay in cash). Also, it is not easy getting reservations on your own as they don't seem to respond to emails. One couple said they finally resorted to a phone call (the wife of the couple in charge speaks good English). We went through a travel agent in Buenos Aires because we were getting no response to emails. Caveats: once you are at the ranch, it is a long way to anything else, so you need to be prepared for that. This was fine with us, but someone who wants nightlife would be better off staying in El Calafate. Breakfast is the weak point, and needs to be beefed up. The box lunches are okay; lunch at the estancia itself was excellent (and huge). All that said, we loved Nibepo Aike, especially for being such a beautiful place far from the madding crowd.

This was my return visit to the property, and given that everyone else who was staying there this time based their decision (at least in part) on the tripadvisor reviews, I figured I ought to write a comprehensive review.

First of all, you should know that the setting of the Estancia is spectacular. Beautiful snow-capped mountains, lush vegetation, a picture-postcard lake, and plenty of atmospheric farm animals at (literally) "the end of the road." The main house looks exactly like a Patagonian farmhouse should. It's a bit of a trick, though, because the house has recently been dramatically expanded. The remodeling effort is worthy of Disney, because even the new sections look old from the outside! The nice thing about the renovation is that the rooms are now much bigger and nicer than they used to be (we got a king bed). And with only about a dozen rooms, it's not like the place is crowded (and you'll probably enjoy meeting your fellow travellers -- everyone who gets to a place like this usually has an interesting story to tell).

Dinner is served at a set time (usually around 8:30) in either the main house or the nearby grill house. Dinner in the main house is a bit hit-or-miss, so I'd recommend trying to talk your way into as many dinners as possible in the grill house. There, you get the typical Patagonian bbq, featuring excellent grilled lamb. Breakfast in the main house is at flexible times, and while simple (think toast and breads), is tasty.

The staff in the main house speak English (some better than others) and are eager to please. If you're having any difficulties -- and this is Argentina, so expect the unexpected -- they will try to make things right. The overall level of service at the Estancia is very good.

It can sometimes be difficult to make reservations here, as communications can be a bit strained. The owner (a wealthy businessman) lives in Rio Gallegos, and sometimes things get a bit confused in this sparsely populated province. But if you keep trying, you will be successful in getting through.

Almost everyone seems to book the Estancia's package deal, which is twice as expensive as booking just accomodations with breakfast and dinner. Travellers seem intimidated by making their own transfers. I would urge everyone who has ever driven a dirt road before in their life to simply book the basic plan and then rent ther own car (this can be a bit tricky if you're an American not used to manual shift cars, but if you email around or -- better yet -- come from Chilean Patagonia, you can find an automatic vehicle). The freedom to come and go as you please is wonderful and the driving (much of it paved) is easy.

OK, now for a bit of bad news. The El Calafate area is now suffering from over tourism. If you hate tour bus crowding, there's a lot to dislike about the local attractions. The Perito Moreno glacier (which you can drive to in about 45 minutes from the Estancia) is spectacular, especially if you've never seen a large glacier. But you likely will be sharing the viewing platforms with a dozen tour buses. And, partly due to safety reasons, this nearby section of the glaciers national park has no trails on which you can escape the hordes. Similarly, there is an interesting -- albeit now a bit expensive -- 240 peso day boat trip to see 3 more glaciers. It's nice, but also an experience in group tourism.

If you do want to beat the crowds, though, there is nothing stopping you from walking around the Estancia. If you're not intimidated by free ranging farm animals, the Estancia has great hillside and lakeside walks and hikes.

Because of the growth in travel to this area, the nearby town of El Calafate (30 miles from Nibepo) is booming. They're building a casino now which, I suspect, might not be what most Estancia guests are looking for. That said, the town has some interesting shops, all the necessary services (fuel, grocery, ATMs), and decent restaurants. Some of the "gourmet" spots have become quite expensive in recent years (twice Buenos Aires prices), but I still like the "bife de lomo" at the traditional La Tablita steakhouse across the river from the main drag.

Because of this influx of tourism in the El Calafate area, I might suggest travellers visit the Nibepo for only a couple days and then head to more remote -- and more "authentic" -- areas of Patagonia. The new Monte Leon national park (3 1/2 hours east) is worth a day, and the road to the previously rugged El Chalten area is now being paved. It is only by driving around Patagonia -- instead of just flying in to El Calafate and transferring to the Nibepo -- that you gain an appreciation for the wide open spaces of Patagonia and see its spectacular and abundant wildlife (penguins, guanaco, nandu, foxes, condors, etc.). I think the Nipebo Aike works best as a stop on this kind of wider-ranging itinerary.

My husband and I just returned from a trip to Patagonia which included a 3 night stay at the Estancia Nibepo - Aike Ranch. What a fantastic experience. The woman that runs the estancia Andrea (along with her husband) could not have been more gracious and accomodating. Her English is pretty good for those (like myself) who are anything but fluent in Spanish and need some help : ). The food served at the Estancia was excellent. The rooms (including bathrooms) clean, comfortable and spacious. The Estancia is actually located on the grounds of the Perito Moreno (Glacier National Park). It's positioning within the Mountains and next to the lake is spectacular. Andrea will anticipate that you want to see the Perito Moreno Glacier and make all arrangements. However, arrangements can also be made to see other area sights such as the Glacier Upsala. Horses (along with many other animals) are also on the premises and available to use. Just give Andrea an idea of what you would like to do during your time there and she will arrange it. If time permits you night want to make arrangements with Andrea to be driven into El Calafate to do some shopping for souvenirs. El Calafate had some really nice stores where you could pick up quality gifts (including but not at all limited to items such as handmade ponchos, scarves, rugs, etc.) for yourself and folks at home. Do not anticipate finding stores that carry such quality wares in Puerto Natales because you will not.