10 must-see places in Puerto Madryn to enjoy your vacation in Patagonia after the whale season

The spectacle that the whales provide on the coast of Chubut is so impressive that the mere mention of Puerto Madryn or Peninsula Valdés associates the popular imagination with ship-based sightings of the largest representative of marine fauna in the South Atlantic.

The phenomenon is recorded from June until the last days of the year. However, during the summer – when the presence of these marvelous specimens has diminished – the city and its surroundings offer other attractions to take into account.

This report contains some of the landscapes and the varied recreational and adventure activities that this region offers.

These linked pieces can make up a complete itinerary, to live a dream vacation in the strip of Patagonia dominated by the steppe, the coastal coastline and the sea.

From the Luis Piedrabuena pier to the south along Roca Avenue and Almirante Brown Boulevard, the Puerto Madryn waterfront offers, at the foot of its luminous seafront, a corridor of 3.5 kilometers of sandy beaches.

The residents of Madrid and their guests have nine descents there that wind their way between restaurants, bars, cafeterias and offices where nautical tours, diving trips for beginners and experienced people, and dolphin watching on board are organized.

Wilder, less crowded pebble beaches, such as Paraná and El Pozo, appear further south, on the way to Cerro Avanzado.

15 kilometers north of Puerto Madryn, on the way to Peninsula Valdés, the El Doradillo Protected Natural Area It is a perfect place to delight your eyes with the magnificent view of the ocean from a lounge chair installed on the shore of pebbles and seaweed or from the broader perspective provided by the Punta Flecha viewpoint, on a cliff.

It is advisable to have cameras and binoculars on hand because this leisure time can be even more exciting if the pirouettes of a whale and its calves and a multitudinous flock of kelp gulls in low flight appear on the scene. 3 kilometers from El Doradillo, in La Cantera, the high-pitched cries of the bandurrias, chingolos, calandrias, cormorants and macaes become even more persistent.

At the gateway to Peninsula Valdés, the horizon of the dry plateau uniforms the scattered bushes with the mobile silhouettes of guanacos, chulengos and Moorish eagles perched on solitary light posts.

The stop made here to pay the entrance fee to the Protected Natural Area also allows you to gather very complete information about the history and natural heritage that Península Valdés treasures at the Visitor Center. Additionally, a telescope available to the public points toward the Bird Islandcovered by dozens of species of birds that flutter throughout the area of ​​the San José Gulf.

A steep descent on Route 2 marks the end of the pavement and the arrival at Puerto Pirámides, the unique base of Peninsula Valdés that concentrates the shops that organize nautical and land excursions, the gastronomic and hotel offering – although there are also cabins, lodges and inns in places far from the town – and other essential services.

Several gravel routes lead to these places, which locals recommend traveling at very low speed to avoid the risk of accidents. At this time, in the area of ​​the walls near Puerto Pirámide, as well as in Caleta Valdés and Punta Delgada, the impressive postcard of the sea and the walls adds colonies of elephants and sea lions, cormorants and oystercatchers, to which, each Therefore, the sudden appearance of some threatening orca is added.

In North PointIn addition, there are guided visits to a population of Magellanic penguins, which begin in the Estancia San Lorenzo Natural Reserve.

In the urban area of ​​Puerto Madryn, Ecocentro is the right place to learn in-depth about the habits and other first-hand data of the southern right whale and other marine species in the region, through audiovisuals, gigantographs, sculptures and sensory rooms.

The self-guided tour of this modern recreation of the natural environment can be completed from the viewpoint of a tower and two open-air walkways, which extend over the beach towards the sea.

On an elevated stretch of the city’s coastal road, where the Monument to the Tehuelche Indian stands, you can get the best panoramic view that merges Puerto Madryn with the Piedrabuena pier, the beaches, the ocean and the entire southern contour of the Nuevo Gulf.

A masterful painting, which is filled with ocher and reddish tones during sunset. At the foot of the enormous sculpture you can see the caves where the first 153 Welsh settlers took shelter They arrived in Chubut in 1865 on the sailboat La Mimosa.

Three blocks from the Costanera, at the Mona Lowisa tea house, Marcia Lloyd Jones is in charge of filling the table with the exquisite Welsh dishes that she learned to prepare on the family farm in Dolavon, following in detail the instructions of her grandmother’s recipes. Mona Lowisa Roberts.

The other cooks and pastry chefs at the place – which opened its doors in December 2019 – are her three daughters and Diana, her mother, experts in the art of preparing black cake – with its varieties of apple, carrot, plum and walnut -, teas in strands, homemade breads, scones and teisen bach, a delicacy flavored with nutmeg. The family atmosphere of Mona Lowisa also hosts activities that propose traveling in time and space towards the traditions of Celtic culture.

The sunset is ideal to enjoy the touches of fiery red in the sky that covers the Golfo Nuevo. The magnificent spectacle can be seen continuously along the vibrant gravel road that connects Punta Loma with the summit of Advanced hill whitened by sedimentary rock, a few steps from the sea.

The yellowish cone rises in the middle of the steppe soil, which should be walked carefully to avoid the threatening thorns of llaollín, quilembay, jume and molle and fossil remains of oysters and invertebrates of prehistoric fauna. The final stop of this 17-kilometer coastal circuit offers a unique 360-degree panoramic view of the sea and plateau.

180 kilometers from Puerto Madryn and 110 kilometers from Trelew to the south, the Marine Protected Area and Punta Tombo Provincial Reserve It protects the population of around 400 thousand Magellanic penguins that migrate to the area from the end of August and remain there until April to nest and care for their young.

In the Visitor Center it is key to follow the instructions of the wildlife guards to the letter, in order to walk without deviating along the walkways and paths enabled and not hinder the passage of the penguins, on their way from the nests dug in the plateau floor to the 3 kilometer pebble beach to feed in the sea.

With its expanded collection of fossil pieces and greater infrastructure, the Egidio Feruglio Paleontological Museum -one of the main attractions of Trelew, famous for its replicas of Jurassic and Triassic dinosaurs- has just reopened its doors to the public.

This city located 60 kilometers from Puerto Madryn is also the starting point to visit the Welsh chapel Tabernacl (from 1889), agrotourism farms next to the Encantado River, the legendary Touring bar and hotel (operating since 1924 in a 19th century building) , Ameghino Dam, Union Beach and other cities and towns founded by Welsh pioneers, such as Rawson, Gaiman and Dolavon.

• How to get there. From the city of Buenos Aires to Puerto Madryn there are 1,304 kilometers along Ricchieri, the Cañuelas Highway and Route 3.

Airlines and Flybondi fly non-stop from Aeroparque to Puero Madryn (2 hours): round trip with taxes, from $120,000.

Andesmar or Cóndor Estrella bus from Retiro (7 p.m.), $110,000 one way in a semi-sleeper and $132,000 in a sleeper car.

• Where to stay. In Puerto Madryn, one-star hotels with breakfast, wi-fi and cable TV, $20,000 to $40,000 double base; 4 stars, $150,000 to $260,000; 2-star inns, $30,000 to $200,000; 3 stars, $55,000 to 122,000; tourist homes, $30,000 to $250,000; cabins, $30,000 to $86,000; apart hotels, $75,000 to $200,000.

In Trelew, Touring hotel: double room with breakfast, wi-fi, cable TV and garage, $55,000; triple, $80,000; quadruple, $95,000 (0280- 154635311 / 0280- 443-3997/8 / hoteltouringclubtrelew@gmail.com / www.touringpatagonia.com.ar / Facebook: Hotel Touring Club).

• How much does it cost. Umbrella rental in the Praia spa (Bajada 3), $35,000 per day; tent, $45,000.

Snack-dinner of infusions and cakes at the Mona Lowisa tea house, $25,000 (0280-154328352).

Patagonian lamb at the Matilde restaurant, $24,000; shrimp Milanese, $17,000; seafood table for two people, $34,000; garnish, $5,000 to $6,000 (0280-445-0583).

Baptism diving with instructor, $110,000; snorkelling with sea lions, $135,000 (0280- 154582559 / info@aquatours.com.ar / www.aquatours.com.ar / Facebook: Aquatours Buceo).

Entrance to the Peninsula Valdés Natural Reserve. $10,000; from 6 to 12 years old and retirees, $5,000.

Entrance to Ecocentro, $6,000; from 6 to 12 years old and retirees, $3,000.

Guided 4×4 excursion to Cerro Avanzado, $78,000 (0280- 154454411 / 0280- 15565454 / 0280- 15997094 / info@huincatravel.com / www.huincatravel.com).

• Where to get information. (0280) 445-3504/6067 / (0280) 154665688 / reports@madryn.gov.ar / www.madryn.travel / Facebook: Puerto Madryn Turismo.