The capital of the Argentine Lake District, inside the oldest national park in the country. The classic first afternoon on the Circuito Chico and the Campanario viewpoint, a full day on the water to Victoria Island and the forest of cinnamon-coloured arrayanes, and a free day for the glacier, the seven lakes or the valley of El Bolson. Flights from Buenos Aires, three nights with breakfast, transfers and guided days included.
Arrival. Your flight leaves from the Buenos Aires domestic airport, about two hours to Bariloche. When you land, our guide is waiting with a sign with your name and takes you to your hotel.
The Circuito Chico, in the afternoon. The short circuit is the classic first look at Bariloche: sixty kilometres along the shore of Lake Nahuel Huapi to the west of the city, past the bays and the Huemul island, up to the Campanario viewpoint with the whole lake district spread out below, lakes, peninsulas and mountains in every direction, and on to the Llao Llao peninsula between Lake Nahuel Huapi and Lake Moreno, with its chapel of San Eduardo and the view of the hotel on the hill. Back to the hotel in the evening.
Full day by catamaran to Victoria Island and the Arrayanes Woods. After breakfast, transfer to Puerto Panuelo on the Llao Llao peninsula and two hours of navigation on Lake Nahuel Huapi to Victoria Island, the largest island in the lake, with its trails through the forest, the beaches and the old conifer nursery that planted the pines of Patagonia. Back on board to the Quetrihue peninsula and the Arrayanes Woods: a forest of arrayanes, the cinnamon-coloured trees with cold, smooth bark that grow nowhere else in such numbers, some of them three hundred years old, with a boardwalk through them. The catamaran returns to Puerto Panuelo in the afternoon.
Free day, for one of the optional tours. The day to go further: Cerro Tronador and its black glacier, the Seven Lakes Route to San Martin de los Andes, El Bolson and Lago Puelo, Puerto Blest by boat, or the Circuito Grande to Villa Traful. See the optional tours in Bariloche and tell us which one; we add it to the package.
Departure. Breakfast at the hotel and transfer to Bariloche airport for the flight back to Buenos Aires.
Regular service as described; it can also be quoted private, and tailored to your dates, interests and budget.
Tell us your travel dates and how many of you there are. We send a free, no-obligation quote within 24 hours.
As described it is a regular service: you share the vehicle and the guide on the Circuito Chico and the catamaran with other travellers, which keeps the price sensible. We can also quote the land excursions private, with your own guide and driver; the catamaran is always a shared boat. Ask for both and compare.
One of the optional tours: Cerro Tronador and the black glacier for most travellers, the Seven Lakes Route to San Martin de los Andes for the famous road, El Bolson for the craft fair, Puerto Blest for a second day on the water, or the Circuito Grande for Villa Traful. Each runs with an English-speaking guide and we add it to the package.
All year, with two seasons. December to March is summer: long days, warm lakes, the forests green. April is the autumn of red and gold on the lakes, the photographers' month. June to September is winter and skiing on Cerro Catedral; see the ski week. October and November are spring, quiet and green.
About two hours each way from Puerto Panuelo, with the stop at Victoria Island and the Arrayanes Woods between; it is a full day on and around the lake, with easy walks on the island and the boardwalk in the woods.
Hotels in the centre of Bariloche or on the lake road, from comfortable three-star to five-star, chosen with you when we quote. Tell us your budget and whether you prefer the town or the lake.
Yes, and it is the most common Patagonian trip: see Bariloche & El Calafate, seven days with the Perito Moreno glacier, or tell us your dates and we add Ushuaia, Puerto Madryn or Iguazu.
Bariloche sits on the southern shore of Lake Nahuel Huapi, inside the national park of the same name, with the Andes and the Chilean border to the west. It is the most visited town in Patagonia for a reason: the lakes start at the end of the main street, and every road out of it leads to another one.
The Circuito Chico is where everyone starts, and the view from the Campanario is the picture of Bariloche. Victoria Island and the Arrayanes Woods are the day on the water, and the arrayanes, with their cold cinnamon bark, are a forest found almost nowhere else. The third day is deliberately free, because the best day in Bariloche depends on who you are: the glacier, the seven lakes, the fair at El Bolson.
We include the flights from Buenos Aires, three nights with breakfast, the transfers, the Circuito Chico and the catamaran day with an English-speaking guide. Tell us your dates and how many of you are travelling, and we come back within 24 hours with the trip quoted as one figure.
The lakes and then the Perito Moreno glacier, with the direct flight between them.
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Three days on Cerro Catedral with the lift pass, plus the lakes under snow.
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Cerro Tronador, the Seven Lakes, El Bolsón, Puerto Blest and the Circuito Grande, to add to any of these.
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