Zach and Winter came to me with one request –– a far-flung adventurous elopement in the Southern Hemisphere in December. We narrowed it down to New Zealand and Patagonia and ultimately landed on  a multi-day adventure around Torres del Paine National and Puerto Natales.

After a long travel day, the couple settled into the gorgeous, minimalist Simple Patagonia hotel in Puerto Natales. We took a couple days to recover from jet lag, settle in, and location scout. The town of Puerto Natales had a surprisingly robust spread of incredible international cuisine to explore. My favorite was Santolla, a vibey little spot specializing in crab. 

After getting ready at Simple Patagonia on the elopement day, the three of us drove in Torres del Paine, stopping for all the amazing views and surprising wildlife. We got to explore a dry lakebed, hike to the top of a waterfall, and exchange vows under the towering mountain range. Zach and Winter scrambled down to a gorgeous landscape of rocks for a picnic, danced on the rolling hills, and took a pit stop to see some alpacas amongst a sea of blooming lupine flowers. The next day we returned to tour the glaciers and have a beach hiking day.

The variety of landscapes in and around Torres del Paine makes it one of my most highly recommended places for an international adventure elopement. The fact that you can get mountains, dry lakebeds, glaciers, waterfalls, rolling hills, and more in one place is truly unreal. That and more is the magic of Patagonia and why it’ll always be amongst my favorite places on the planet.