Finding a Patagonian Paradise in Bariloche

A panoramic view of Bariloche, Argentina. sunsinger/Shutterstock

I can say this honestly: It might have been the most beautiful view I’ve ever seen. But getting there was a bit of a challenge. Having plugged in the wrong coordinates for a similarly named place in my ride-sharing app, I spent quite a while going back and forth with the driver, with him speaking no English and me very little Spanish. But eventually, after much help from internet translation on our phones, he delivered me to the base of the chairlift, about 20 minutes outside of town.

Two women enjoy the view from the chairlift. Jose de Jesus Churion Del/Shutterstock

Sometimes, the queues here can build into the hundreds. But I arrived at an opportune time—no line, so I got straight onto the lift. With the safety bar in place, the chair was soon soaring above a mountainside coniferous forest straight out of a Bierstadt painting. It had been solidly autumn when I left Buenos Aires on a flight early that morning. But an early-season storm had suddenly turned this striking Andean landscape into a South American winter wonderland. At the top, the whole world was at my feet, snow crunching beneath my flimsy running shoes. Just blue, green, and white in every direction: lakes, trees, and cloud-kissed peaks.

A Swiss Twist in Argentina

I was at the summit of the Cerro Campanario near the Argentinian Andean town of Bariloche. While very much in the Southern Hemisphere, a visit to this truly beautiful town can induce a bit of continental confusion. Argentine and very much Latin American. But really rather alpine, too.

That’s because Bariloche has a rather unique history. Its name is an anglicized version of an indigenous word for “people from behind the mountain.” Prominent early settlers were of German origin, and in the 1930s, city leaders laid out a plan to redesign the entire town to look like a Swiss village. Buildings constructed of timber, stone, and slate rose on the shores of broad Nahuel Huapi Lake. They included an impressive neo-Gothic cathedral and the iconic Civic Center, right in the middle of it all.

San Carlos de Bariloche’s Civic Center and main square. Diego Grandi/Shutterstock

On my second day in town, I started at the Civic Center, which was built in the 1930s from larch and cypress wood and tufa stone extracted from nearby Mount Carbón. It’s a little disorienting: The charming clock tower and peaked roofs definitely deliver the feeling of being in Switzerland.

Today, San Carlos de Bariloche (as it’s formally known) is bordered by Nahuel Huapi National Park and is home to one of the largest ski resorts in the Southern Hemisphere (Cerro Catedral). It attracts thousands of tourists from around the world during all four seasons.

Nahuel Huapi, from the Cerro Campanario viewpoint near Bariloche, in Patagonia, Argentina. It is the country’s oldest national park. Tetyana Dotsenko/Shutterstock

Sampling the Town

Chocolate is prominent. Passing through an archway and onto The Mitre, the primary shopping street in the city, it felt like every second store was selling sweet stuff; not just chocolate but also gelato and other treats. Friendly employees in every one of the shops offered samples. One larger store had an indoor skating rink, which I thought was a nice touch. (Although nobody was on the rink when I was there.)

This city of about 130,000 feels much smaller, the downtown area on a slope climbing away from the big lake, but still very walkable. Huge Patagonian trees rise in city parks. And the blocks are lined with good bars and restaurants.

Argentines have traditionally eaten more beef per capita than any other nation, and I found a beautiful steak one night at a parilla. Microbreweries have become quite popular here, and Wesley—a pub that makes its own beer—bustled with locals. It’s a cozy spot that feels a little like a treehouse, up on a rise and surrounded by foliage, and I very much enjoyed pairing an excellent cheeseburger with a smooth, cold golden ale.

Driving the Circuito Chico

Of course, in a place of exceptional natural beauty, you need to get out of town to really appreciate it. As I was renting a truck, the agent at the rental car agency gave a painstaking demonstration of how to affix chains to the tires if a snowstorm closed in and made the mountain roads otherwise impassable. The forecast was for sun, and I really and truly hoped I wouldn’t need them.

I drove the Circuito Chico, a loop just under 17 miles. Things get very pretty, very quickly. The mountains, sugary white, seem to stretch almost vertically right into the sky. I stopped at overlooks and descended on foot to walk along the beaches of small lakes.

The plan had been to have lunch at Llao Llao, a landmark hotel sitting partway along the drive. It is undoubtedly a lovely place, seemingly carved from the landscape around it. But after visiting for a walk through its hushed hallways, I made my way to a small, family-run restaurant nearby called El Tronador.

It was the real deal. Inside was a space built from rough-hewn beams and lit up by a case full of cakes. A friendly woman took my order, explaining that she makes the desserts while her mother is the chef. They’ve been in business for 28 years. Back in the 1970s, her father owned a supermarket right next door.

Ingredients are sourced as locally as possible, including greens from a farm in a nearby microclimate and beef from a Patagonian ranch. “The whole menu is homemade, from scratch.” What’s good? Everything, of course.

“We cook for the weather,” she explained. “I looked outside and saw that it’s cold. So we made a stew.” It came out steaming, with beef, bacon, lentils, and chorizo. Just perfect. Happy and well fortified, I struck out for the rest of the Circuito Chico before returning, no tire chains necessary, to the many charms of San Carlos de Bariloche.

When You Go

Fly: San Carlos de Bariloche Airport (BRC) handles mostly domestic flights, although a few charters arrive from Brazil and Chile. If you’re coming from North America, your journey will almost certainly include a connection in Buenos Aires.

Stay: Right in the middle of town—within easy walking distance of at least half a dozen chocolate shops—Hotel Cristal offers comfortable rooms, an indoor pool, and a super-cozy lobby with two fireplaces that the staff light every night.

Getting around: The downtown core of Bariloche is easily navigable on foot, although if you venture even a couple of blocks away from the lake and The Mitre, be prepared for a steep uphill hike. If you want to explore the Circuito Chico or any other sites outside of town, a rental car is essential. Hertz has a branch right in the middle of the city.

Take note: The exchange rate on the Argentine peso is extremely changeable and varies depending on your form of payment. While exchanging U.S. dollars with one of the “blue market” sellers on the street will give you the best value, using a credit card from a North American bank will give almost the same (really excellent) rate.