Discovering the
Marine Wonders of Patagonia

Puerto Madryn and Valdés Peninsula

The magical waters around Patagonia are teeming with marine life and offer several tourist spots and essential landscapes to visit. Here’s a guide to exploring Puerto Madryn and Valdés Peninsula, a region rich in natural beauty and wildlife.

Puerto Madryn and Península Valdés

Located on the east side of Argentinean Patagonia, Puerto Madryn faces the Golfo Nuevo (New Gulf) and is renowned for the Southern right whale, which visits the coast to procreate during a specific season, attracting thousands of tourists. Additionally, orcas, sea wolves, sea lions, and Commerson’s dolphins can be observed, each species appearing during distinct seasons. The peak season for Southern right whale sightings is from mid-June to mid-December, with October, November, and December being the best months for sightings.

How to Get There?

Travelers must fly to Trelew city, where the airport is located, and then take a 1 to 1.5-hour transfer to Puerto Madryn. Near the airport, the Paleontological Museum offers an intriguing journey into Patagonia’s ancient past.

Accommodation

Puerto Madryn offers a variety of accommodations, including 3-star, 4-star, and 5-star hotels, many with sea views. Before reaching Valdés Peninsula, Puerto Pirámides provides simpler accommodations like the Eco-hotel del Nómade or Hostería Las Restingas, both with beach access. For those with a larger budget, the peninsula offers luxurious stays at historic estancias (ranches) like Rincón Chico and El Pedral, which include all meals and a range of activities.

Activities

Whale Watching
The main attraction is whale watching, particularly from El Doradillo beach, where whales come close to the shore. Tours depart from Puerto Pirámides and offer two types of navigation:

• • Traditional Watching Navigation: In a semi-rigid boat, accommodating up to 60 passengers, offering close encounters with whales.
  • Yellow Submarine: A semi-submersible vessel designed for underwater whale watching, with individual windows for each passenger.

Visitors can join a full-day tour to Valdés Peninsula, visiting Puerto Pirámides, Caleta Valdés (home to sea lions), and observing various land wildlife like guanacos, foxes, choiques, and maras.

Punta Tombo Penguin Rookery
Located 130 km south of Trelew, this can be visited on a full-day tour. It’s advisable to combine this tour with airport transfers to maximize time, ideally arriving on an early flight or departing on a late one.

Welsh Tea
Visit Gaiman, a city with a strong Welsh influence, and enjoy traditional Welsh tea and cake.

Estancia San Lorenzo
Another penguin rookery offering less touristy and more facilitated experiences, with dining options and various trekking paths:

• • Traditional Path: Reaches the penguins’ nesting area.
  • Minitrekking to “La Colmena”: A private area accessible only with a guide, offering numerous penguin sightings.
  • Trekking “Piquillines”: A more demanding trek combining penguin sightings with flora, fauna, fossils, and historic ruins.

Punta Norte
Occasionally, orcas can be seen hunting sea wolves. For a closer look at sea wolves in their habitat, Punta Loma, near Puerto Madryn, is recommended. Here, diving or snorkeling with sea wolves is possible, often included in 4×4 tours that also visit Cerro Avanzado.

Doradillo Adventure
A 4×4 tour including traditional whale watching, short trekking, and a meal or snack, with high chances of spotting mother whales with calves near the shore.

Chubut River’s Valley
This area offers a traditional tour of “chacras” (rural farms) with craft products, and visits to cities like Rawson, Trelew, and the Gaiman Welsh Colony. Rawson also offers Commerson’s dolphins watching as an optional activity.

Zonotrikia Gourmet
Ideal for groups up to 18, this experience involves cooking in wild, open spaces using local products like Patagonian cheese, cold meat, prawns, lamb, and local liquors.

For adventure seekers, there are numerous activities including trekking, mountain biking, e-biking, diving, snorkeling, kayaking, and underwater baptisms.

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