We arrived in Puerto Natales, the gateway city to the famous Torres del Paine national park, after three nights on a ferry. It was a quiet, grey and cold morning - South America's winter had unfortunately been at our backs most of the past few months - and we were both happy to be back on solid ground.
After asking some smoking dock-workers for directions, we trudged through the empty early morning streets in search of Yagan House, our base for the next few nights.
We arrived shortly after breakfast and immediately felt the contrast between the relatively bleak streets outside and the cosy setting created within by the Chilean owners. Travel photography decorated the walls, soft music played and, rather than entering a hostel, we felt like we had been welcomed into a home.
Their little white dog padded over for a stroke whilst we discarded our heavy backpacks and pulled off our hiking boots. We were staying in the four person dorm, which had proper pillows, thick duvets and was tastefully designed with calming whites and beiges.
Each bed had a personal reading lamp and guests were provided with a fluffy towel. We can't even tell you how surreal and comforting it was to have carpet under our be-socked feet after so long; carpet just doesn't seem to exist in most of Latin America but here in the chilly south of Chile, it's a requirement.
In Yagan House, most of the bedrooms are on the second-storey, whilst the ground floor houses the well-equipped open kitchen and a couple of social areas. From its vintage touches throughout, unique furniture, owner-created art on the walls, wood-fire burning and creaky wooden floors, it seems like the sort of coffee shop one could spend hours in. There is also a sizeable outside area but, given the persistent winter chill in the air, we preferred to spend our time inside.
As most people visiting the area are only here to go to Torres del Paine - whether on a single-day tour or multi-day hike - it's great that the hostel has recognised that the majority of guests are going to be early risers. The excellent breakfast (eggs, yoghurt, bread, coffee, jams and cereal) is served from 6.30 a.m., so people can fill their bellies ahead of a long day of adventuring.
Another great aspect of the hostel is, despite it being pretty compact, they've got an endless number of bathrooms available, so you won't have to face long morning queues to shower. Each of these is also beautifully furnished (something very rare in hostels) and, essential for any tired returning hiker, has piping hot water.
In the evenings, music played, lamps and candles were lit, meals were cooked and stories were shared over cheap bottles of Chilean wine. Yagan House wasn't a party hostel, but was definitely somewhere social where travellers met, adventures were planned and friendships made.
ROOMS, PRICES, AMENITIES AND CONTACT DETAILS
Yagan House was a truly excellent place to stay. If you're fresh off the ferry, preparing or returning from your Torres del Paine hike or simply looking for good affordable accommodation in Puerto Natales, we'd recommend it.
The hostel is a five minute walk from the ferry terminal, a ten minute walk to the main bus terminal and a few minutes from the largest supermarket in town.
Facilities provided by Yagan House include fast wifi, large well-equipped kitchen, reliable hot showers across several bathrooms, excellent breakfast included, multiple comfy seating areas within hostel, good tourist information and tours, outdoor space, rental equipment for Torres del Paine hikes plus lunch-boxes and multi-lingual staff.
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Thanks to Yagan House for hosting us during our stay in Puerto Natales. As ever, all photos, opinions and spelling errors are our own. For more information on why you can trust our reviews, click here.
All photography is the property of Along Dusty Roads and must not be used, copied or manipulated without our prior permission.
