As a town known for its hiking trails and immense number of chocolate shops and craft breweries, the town of San Carlos de Bariloche was an easy choice for us to visit for a few days. We spent 3 nights in this gorgeous Patagonian town in November 2018 and here is our experience.
NOTE: As Argentina’s economy has been unsteady with rapid inflation, costs listed in this post may not be accurate after November 2018.
How we got there
As we were situated in Buenos Aires, we decided to avoid the 24 hour bus ride and took a 2.5 hour flight with LATAM airlines.
How to get from the airport to town
Taxis will cost approximately $400 ARS (approx. $15 CAD) to the centre of town.
There is a much cheaper city bus that costs $35 ARS per person (approx. $1.25 CAD), but it operates on a limited schedule. Click here to see the schedule.
You must have a SUBE card to use the bus and it must be charged, as there is nowhere to charge it in the airport. I recommend picking up a SUBE card while in Buenos Aires ($60 ARS) and loading up with a few hundred pesos for your time in Bariloche. Note that multiple people can use the same SUBE card, each person must tap the card on entering the bus.
Where to stay
Bariloche (and its surrounding area) is full of hotels, guesthouses and hostels. We stayed near the centre of town, which made it easy to explore on foot but was also close to the bus stop, from where we took the bus to the hiking paths.
Our first two nights were spent in a private room at a hostel called Trip Bariloche. This basic hostel was very affordable, with a price tag of approximately $25 CAD per night, which included a basic breakfast. The breakfast was medialunas (croissants), cereal, toast, and yogurt.
After a flight cancellation due to torrential rains in Buenos Aires, we booked a third night at the well rated NH Edelweiss. Luckily, we were upgraded to a lakeview suite! It was an excellent way to cap off our time in Bariloche and make the most of our extra day. The hotel had a small fitness centre, pool, and a buffet breakfast, which consisted of hot and cold items.
Our favourite heladarias (ice cream shops) in town
After long days hiking, we (obviously) visited a few heladerias while in Bariloche. Hands-down, our favourite ice cream shop was Mamuschka. The small size includes two different flavours from their wide variety of options! Most of their ice cream varieties have chunks in them, which adds an extra bit of deliciousness!
Honorable mention goes to Rapa Nui, which not only has tasty ice cream, but serves excellent espresso to compliment it!
Where to have happy hour
In a town full of craft breweries, there is no shortage of happy hour specials! An excellent place to sample some great local suds is Manush, which offers a full gamut of beer styles. They also have a delicious food menu. We particularly enjoyed the lamb, which is known as a Patagonian specialty! We recommend arriving early, as it gets super busy during their happy hour deal.
Another great place to enjoy a cold one at happy hour is Berlina. Although their location in town is small and a little edgier than Manush, the beer is excellent and costs $60 ARS during happy hour! It is worth checking out!
Where to eat
If you are not already too full of ice cream and beer, there is a variety of restaurants to choose from in Bariloche. We had pizza (with Patagonian trout as a topping), ravioli, lamb, beef, and snacked on empanadas by the waterfront.
We also bought sandwiches from a bakery to take on a hike. You’ll have no problem finding a place to eat, as the town is small and walkable. Also, some accommodations such as hostels and guesthouses have cooking facilities if you wanted to save a few dollars.
Where to buy chocolate
Walking on the main street (Mitre), you will smell delicious chocolate wafting out of the storefronts! We checked out a few shops, including Turista, Mamuschka, Rapa Nui, and Abuela Goye, however, decided that we would rather eat ice cream. A few of these retailers also have shops in the Bariloche airport, as well as in Buenos Aires, in case you want another taste of Patagonia.
Where to Hike
There are many places to hike for free in the Bariloche area. Here is a rundown of what we did:
Cerro Llao Llao (approx. 1 hour to the top)
This hike takes place in a lush forest, with spectacular views of Nahuel Haupi Lake when you reach the top. The first half of the hike is fairly flat while the rest of it gets a little steeper as the trail winds back and forth up the hill.
Unfortunately, we visited Cerro Llao Llao on an overcast and rainy day so our views were less than optimal, but we still enjoyed it nonetheless.
The end of the trail, at the top of the Cerro Llao Llao, is an idyllic place to have a picnic and enjoy the views! You can easily combine your hike with Sendero de los Arrayanes afterwards, which is what we did.
How to get to Cerro Llao Llao:
From the centre of town (on San Martín, just west of Morales), take bus 20 to the last stop at Hotel Llao Llao. You will have some good views of Lago Moreno when you get off the bus.
Walk back down the hill (appox. 300m) then turn left. This will take you on Circuito Chico. Walk on this road for about 10 minutes or so and you’ll see a green Jesus Christ statue and a small information booth on your left (that is the start of the Sendero de los Arrayanes trail). Keep walking for about 5 more minutes until you see a sign for the beginning of the Cerro Llao Llao trail. The trail is well-marked so you won’t get lost!
Sendero de los Arrayanes (approx. 1 hour round trip)
This is a flat, leisurely hike that travels along the shoreline of Lago Moreno. There is a collection of Arrayan trees along the way as well as gorgeous views from Moreno Beach.
The signage is clear and the path is well-marked. Fortunately for us, the weather cleared up on an otherwise overcast day, which was a huge bonus! We were able to take some beautiful pictures. This hike can easily be combined with Cerro Llao Llao (see more information about Cerro Llao Llao above)
How to get to Sendero de los Arrayanes:
Follow the same directions above for Cerro Llao Llao. The Sendero de los Arrayanes trail begins near the green Christ and information booth on Circuito Chico.
Cerro Campanario (approx. 40 minutes to the top)
Often described as the best view in the Bariloche area, Cerro Campanario certainly lives up to the hype. The hike is short, but fairly steep. You can take a chairlift to the top if you wish, but the hike is obviously more fun!
When you reach the top, there is a small café and multiple vantage points to enjoy breathtaking 360-degree panoramic views!
Washrooms are available at both the bottom and top of the hill.
How to get to Cerro Campanario:
From the centre of town (on San Martín, just west of Morales), take bus 20 to the 17.5km mark.
It should be fairly obvious when to get off the bus, as the driver will likely announce it, there is a large sign, and there will probably be other passengers getting off the bus. There is a clearly marked path just beside the chairlift.
If you are a fan of beautiful mountainous landscapes, hiking, ice cream, chocolate, or craft beer, San Carlos de Bariloche should be on your travel list. We loved the few days we spent in this quaint Patagonian town and look forward to returning for some more hikes or skiing in the future!
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Wow! The nature here looks so beautiful. We had rain and dense fog when we were in Alishan in Taiwan, which turned out to be really amazing, because everything looked so spooky. But the next day when we went to see the famous sunrise it cleared up completely.
You’re right! Things can look pretty spooky in the rain and fog. We were lucky to have it clear up later in the same day.
It seems like you had a very good time!! I would love to go over there… maybe one day 😉 !
Anaïs
Thanks for the feedback. Yes, it was a great trip! Bariloche was beautiful!