Hotel Plaza Bariloche

hiking and climbing castaña overa glacier

by luzmaria

If you are fond of outdoor sports, dont miss the chance to get close to a glacier. Bariloche offers plenty of opportunities.
From Pampa Linda, at the foot of Mt Tronador, which is 3554 m. high -one of the highest in Patagonia- take a 2-hour drive along route 258 to lake Mascardi, and from there through a debris road to Pampa Linda.
Have lunch, and then start hiking up through a trail in the forest to the Otto Meiling lodge, in 4 or 5 hs. The Meiling lodge, built 2000 meters above sea level, lies between two glaciers: Castaña Overa and Alerce, with a view of the 3 peaks of Mt Tronador. From the lodge, you may take an excursion on ice, with a professional guide of the AAGM, by resolution of the National Parks Administration.
I highly recommend the journey to C. Overa Glacier, which can be done even by beginners.
The ice walls, 1 km. wide, fall from the mountain peaks, and are originated by the melting of the river C. Overa. Its really worth being there!! :)
This outing starts at 9 a.m., together with your guide, you prepare all your equipment and start walking.
It is a 45 minutes' walk from the shelter to the glacier, and once there, your guide will help you put your crampons on. If you have never done it before, you will feel your feet strange, since you must walk with a wide step, raising you knees and lowering the center of gravity.

From the glacier you can see Pampa Linda on the valley, and the peaks of Mt Tronador.
As you walk through the ice, youll have to avoid blue crevasses following the instructions of your guide. Your ropes will be supported by very strong ice screws, each one with a capacity to support 800 kg.
Beginners are taken to easy slopes, with gradients around 65 degrees, while experienced people will be taken to more difficult ones (85 to 90 degrees).
You climb the surface of the glacier using the different techniques that the guides teach you.
When you arrive, they will be waiting for you with a cup of hot tea in the middle of the ice! Harness, long and short pickaxes for marching and climbing respectively, the helmet, gloves, rigid boots and crampons, ropes, and hooks.

You pronounce it Zhaou Zhaou

by TheWanderingCamel

... but it's spelt Llao Llao - and it means sweet-sweet in the language of the Mapuche Indians. Either way, Hotel Llao Llao, with its distinctive Swiss architecture, fabulous location and reputation as Argentina's best hotel, is a famous landmark and not to be missed- even if you can't afford the room rates. If you take the Circuito Chico tour, you will be driven through the grounds ( tours are no longer available, your guidebook maybe out of date on that); make your own way there and you will be able to stroll around the beautiful gardens and stop to take tea, have a drink or indulge yourself with lunch or dinner.

Looking at it now, sitting so immaculately in its 111 acres of perfectly manicured lawns, golf course and gardens, it's hard to imagine it stood locked up and abandoned for 15 years from 1978 until 1993.

San Carlos de Bariloche

by aah_stone

Situated on the foothills of the Andes, San Carlos de Bariloche is surrounded by lakes (Nahuel Huapi, Gutierrez, Mascardi) and mountains (Mt Tronador, Cerro Catedral and Cerro Lopez are notable). We even managed to walk up Cerro Lopez during our stay.

It is famous for skiing but also great for walking and climbing. Cerro Catedral is one of the biggest ski centres in South America. We didn't go skiing but went up on the cable car and chair lift and went walking instead.

Being so close to Chile it makes sense to make an excursion if possible, unfortunately when we visited there just wasn't enough time to do this.

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"Why Did I Go Here?"

Why choose Bariloche as a holiday destination from the UK? This was mainly because a close friend of mine, Susan was going to present at a conference at the Llao Llao resort just up the road from Bariloche and decided if she was going all that way then she was going to stay for a holiday afterwards. So she invited myself and some other friends from university over to join her. So James, Liz and I managed to find enough time off work, some cash to buy an airline ticket from London Gatwick via Madrid and Buenos Aires to Bariloche with Aerolineas Argentinas and met her out there