· Tourism and Travel information about Argentina - Includes information of visas, health risks, currency exchange, when to go, events and some facts for the traveler ·

HOW TO ARRIVE TO THE SOUTH OF ARGENTINA

The Argentinean Patagonia is one of the most internationally known regions, due its beautiful landscapes, glaciers, mountains, lakes, forests, rivers, flora and fauna. The climate is varied; it has not only the lowest temperatures during winter but also highest temperatures during summer.
The Patagonia includes the following provinces: Rio Negro, Neuquén, Chubut, Santa Cruz, Tierra del Fuego and the south of La Pampa.
Towards the south of Argentina, you can travel using modern means of transportation by air and by land.

BY AIR

In Argentina, it is very common to travel by air because of the long distances among the cities. The main access is Ministro Pirstarini (Ezeiza) international airport which is 35 Km. away from Buenos Aires city.

- (EZE) Internacional Airport ( Telephone: 4480-6111)

From Ezeiza airport, the flights depart towards different cities in the Patagonia and varied offers of companies'. Below, we show you useful information about the main cities in the Patagonia.

Airports in the Patagonia

-Chubut : Trelew Airport, Telephone: (02965) 420210
Codomoro Rivadavia Gral.Enrique Mosconi International Airport, Telephone: (54) 02927/4548190.
- Santa Cruz : Rio Gallegos Airport, Telephone: (02966) 442340.
- Neuquén : Neuquén Airport, Telephone. (0299) 444-0244/5.
- Río Negro : Viedma Airport, Telephone: (02920) 425311.
- Tierra del Fuego : Islas Malvinas International Airport in Ushuaia. Telephone: (02901) 42-4422.

Approximated flight times

For traveller's information, we show the approximated flight times from Buenos Aires to the Patagonia cities.

- Posadas 1 h. 30 min.
- Mendoza 1 h. 50 min.
- San Carlos de Bariloche 2 hrs. 20 min.
- Mar del Plata 1 h. 10 min.
- Río Gallegos 2 hrs. 55 min.
- Ushuaia 3 hrs. 20 min.
- El Calafate 3hrs 15 min.

BY LAND

If you want to travel by bus, all the enterprises will departure from Retiro Bus Station Telephone (011-4310-0700) located in Antártica Avenue and street # 10, from there you will find destinations towards Patagonia, and wide offer of companies that provides services towards different destinations.

Bus Stations in Patagonia

For traveller's information, in the following chart we show the bus stations addresses and telephone numbers in the Patagonia cities.

City	Bus Station	Address	Telephone
Neuquén	Neuquén	Mitre 200 beywen Olasoaga and Río Negro	(There is not administrative office)
Rio Negro	Viedma	Guido 1660 Uruguay corner	02920-426850
Santa Cruz	Rio Gallegos	Route 3 and Eva Perón	02966-442159
Chubut	Rawson	Gregorio Mayo and Luís Costa in front of the beach route	02965-485107
La Pampa	Santa Rosa	Luro Avenue and Corrientes	02954-422952

Distances

If you want to do a tour in the Patagonia, you should take into account the distances among the cities. For your information about the length of the routes, below we show the distances in kilometres from Buenos Aires to the Patagonia cities.

- Neuquén 1229 Km.
- Rio Negro – Viedma 963 km
- Tierra del Fuego – Ushuaia 3048 Km.
- Santa Cruz - Rio Gallegos 2604 km
- Chubut - Rawson 1465 Km.

BY TRAIN

In the Patagonia it is not very common to travel by train, because of the few trip frequencies and destinations.
In the south of Argentina the trains has touristy purposes. Actually in the Patagonia the railroad lines don't have connection with Buenos Aires. The trains that travel by the south are:

El Tren Patagónico (Telephone: 02920- 422130/427413); that covers a route about 8000 km from Viedma to Bariloche in the Province of Rio Negro through the Patagonia Central.

La Trochita (Telephone: 02945-451403); it is a steam train, it do a tourist route between the Esquel, western Chubut, and Nahuel Pan.

El Tren del Fin del Mundo (Telephone: 02901-431600); it is a tourist train, it leaves from Camping Municipal 8 Km. away from Ushuaia, touring by the National Park Tierra del Fuego. There is regular train from Ushuaia to the train station.

Vapour train in Bariloche (Telephone: 02944-423858).This train covers a route about 40Km. long from Bariloche to Perito Moreno train station.

Tourist places in the Patagonia

When you visit the south of Argentina, we recommend you a tour by the following cities and visit the most known places in each one.

Neuquén

When you visit Neuquén you will enjoy the Patagonia beautiful landscapes. The wonderful Pehuén forests in Copahue will impress you. You can also visit “El Valle de los Dinosaurios”, a dam located on the Limay river, it is a beautiful lake surrounded by pink mountain ranges, petrify forests. This lake is a perfect place to swim, fish and camp. (Remember that the best time to fish is from November to April.)

Río Negro

In Rio Negro, the most visited place is Bariloche with its Cathedral Mountain, the biggest sky centre in South America where you can sky or enjoy the beautiful views from the summit.
Other recommended places are: El Bolsón, Rio Negro and San Antonio bay.

Santa Cruz

The province landscape is very exotic. One of the most visited places is the National Park Los Glaciares (near to Calafate). Its main attraction is The Perito Moreno glacier, formed by impressive blocks of ice; it is one of the most renowned and considered as the eight wonder of the world.
La Cueva de Las Manos is another place you can't miss, it is situated inside the Río Pinturas Cañadón. The cave's wall is covered by paintings of hands in different colours, creating a worthy of being admired landscape.

Chubut

The right whales, the penguins' colonies and the sea lions are the reasons for being a renowned zone by the visitors. If your purpose is to see the whales, we recommend you visit this place whether in summer or winter.
Once you get Chubut visit the following places:"El Museo Paleontologico" of Trelew, which has an interesting collection of dinosaur remains. The National Park Lago Puelo is a good reason to appreciate the fauna, flora and its impressive unique landscapes. When you are in this zone, don't lost the opportunity take a rail trip by the famous train “Del Fin del Mundo” and contemplate the beautiful landscape, mountains, rivers, lakes and forests.

Tierra del Fuego

In this zone, the most known place is The National Park “Tierra del Fuego”; you will be impressed by the lovely landscape, wildlife, fauna, flora, lakes, rivers and lagoons that make it like a paradise.
Ushuaia, the most southern city in the world, is a well-known place in Tierra de Fuego; it is surrounded by the Martial Mountains and the Beagle Canal offering a beautiful landscape, is a mix of glaciers, sea and mountains. Among this lovely landscape you will taste the regional appetizers such as dishes that contain mushrooms and the typical roast lamb.

Recommendations

* Carry you personal documents such as identity card and passport.

* It is preferable that you travel by road during the day, this way you will appreciate the wonderful landscape such as mountains, snows and lakes.

* If you want to go camping, look for authorized places.

* Look after the nature reserves and parks.

* Carry repellent mainly when you visit humid zones as national parks.

* Take into account that Patagonia has the lowest temperatures in the continent mainly in winter, therefore carry warm clothes.

* Carry a first aid kit, since you should need it, mainly when you are far away the town.

* If you drive do it with a reasonable speed observing the auto traffics rules (Don't forget your driver licence.)

Updating, July 2008