Grandiose buildings, an attractive plaza and boulevards lined with shade trees and palms lend oft-overlooked Bahía Blanca the feel of a cosmopolitan city in miniature. While its chief advantage is as a resting point during overland trips from Buenos Aires to Patagonia, there are a few things to see in town, and plenty of good eating and entertainment options.
The most appealing destination for riverside relaxation in Entre Ríos, Colón is a very popular summer getaway for Argentine holidaymakers. Its population almost doubles in January, but the pretty town takes it all in its stride. With numerous places to stay, a thriving handicrafts scene and worthwhile, out-of-the-ordinary restaurants, it’s a great place to be. It’s also the best base for visiting the Parque Nacional El Palmar.
There’s something magical about Iruya, a remote village just 50km from the main road but a world away. It makes a great destination to relax for a few days, and also allows proper appreciation of the Quebrada de Humahuaca region away from the busy barreling highway.
Really jumping in summertime, Mina Clavero pretty much empties out for the rest of the year, leaving visitors to explore the limpid streams, rocky waterfalls, numerous swimming holes and idyllic mountain landscapes at their own pace.
Banked against the channel, the hushed, fragrant southern forests of Tierra del Fuego are a stunning setting to explore. West of Ushuaia by 12km, Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego, Argentina’s first coastal national park, extends 630 sq km from the Beagle Channel in the south to beyond Lago Fagnano in the north. However, only a couple of thousand hectares along the southern edge of the park are open to the public, with a minuscule system of short, easy trails that are designed more for day-tripping families than backpacking trekkers. The rest of the park is protected as a reserva natural estricta (strictly off-limits zone). Despite this, a few scenic hikes along the bays and rivers, or through dense native forests of evergreen coihue, canelo and deciduous lenga, are worthwhile. For truly spectacular color, come in the fall when hillsides of ñire burst out in red.
Dating from about AD 1000, Quilmes (admission AR$5; 8am-6pm) was a complex indigenous urban settlement that occupied about 30 hectares and housed as many as 5000 people. The Quilmes locals survived contact with the Inca, which occurred from about AD 1480 onward, but could not outlast the siege of the Spaniards who, in 1667, deported the last 2000 inhabitants to Buenos Aires.
Like a mellower version of Bariloche, San Martín has two peak periods – winter for skiing at Cerro Chapelco and summer for trekking, climbing, etc in the nearby Parque Nacional Lanín. Brave souls also swim in the chilly waters of Lago Lácar on the western edge of town. Between these times, it’s a quiet little town with a spectacular setting that retains much of the charm and architectural unity that once attracted people to Bariloche. A boat ride on the lake is pretty much a must if you’re passing through, and if the snow’s cleared (anytime from December onwards) and you’re heading south, you should seriously think about leaving town via the scenically neck-straining Ruta de los Siete Lagos (RN 234), which runs south to Villa la Angostura and Bariloche.
Historic Trevelin (treh-veh-lehn), from the Welsh for town (tre) and mill (velin), is the only community in interior Chubut with a notable Welsh character. Easygoing and postcard-pretty, this pastoral village makes a tranquil lodging alternative to the much busier Esquel (remember, everything is relative here), or an enjoyable day trip for tea. The surrounding countryside is ripe for exploration.
Strung out along the shoreline of Lago Nahuel Huapi, in the middle of the national park of the same name, Bariloche (formally San Carlos de Bariloche) has one of the most gorgeous settings imaginable. This, combined with a wealth of summer and wintertime activities in the surrounding countryside, has helped it become, for better or worse, the Lake District’s principal destination.
Surrounded by dry hills of drilling rigs, oil tanks and wind-energy farms, tourism in the dusty port of Comodoro (as it’s commonly known) usually means little more than a bus transfer. What this modern, hardworking city does provide is a gateway to nearby attractions with decent services. It sits at the eastern end of the Corredor Bioceánico highway that leads to Coyhaique, Chile.