Bariloche, Argentina 🇦🇷 Gringo's Guide
Bariloche, Argentina 🇦🇷 was the first stop on my Patagonia trip.
I had no clue what to expect. All I knew of the region were pretty pictures online, glaciers, and great hiking.
So stepping off the plane in Bariloche, I didn’t have many expectations…
But that first breath of fresh Patagonia air filled my lungs and I started getting excited about the adventures to be had.
Luckily, the city/town didn’t disappoint.
Bariloche was a “modern” city filled with stunning views, amazing hiking, great food, and way too many chocolate shops. Seriously, if you ever want to buy artesian chocolate every single day and night, just come to Bariloche. There’s legit hundreds of these shops throughout the center.
Why?
No clue, but I’d surmise it’s because Bariloche is more like a mountain town in the Swiss Alps than a city of 150,000 people in Latin America.
Which makes Bariloche the perfect introduction to Patagonia for many a traveler.
From world-class hiking in the summer to amazing skiing in the winters, there’s a whole hell of a lot to do here.
In this comprehensive guide, I’ll breakdown damn near everything you’d ever need to know about Bariloche, Argentina.
Pues…
¡Vámonos!
P.S: For more information on Patagonia, check out my guides on El Chalten and El Calafate and Ushuaia.
How to Get to Bariloche, Argentina 🇦🇷
Bariloche is located in the middle of nowhere.
This is not the easiest city in the world to find. Far from it in fact. As such, it’ll take a little bit of effort and a lot of planning to get to Bariloche.
The absolute easiest, cheapest way to get to Bariloche?
Flights from Buenos Aires.
Punto.
We can talk about taking buses from here and there, international flights, and all that jazz…but the reality of the situation is all those options either suck or are more expensive when compared with a flight from Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina.
My one-way flight from Buenos Aires to Bariloche took a little over two hours and cost me a whooping $73 USD, including my luggage.
That’s cheaper than taking the bus from Buenos Aires!
Why people insist on taking buses when flights are so cheap? I’ll never know ;(
Now, this is pretty easy if you’re in Buenos Aires already. Catch a quick flight and you’ll be in Bariloche in no time.
However, many will be traveling to Bariloche from other places. There are direct international flights to Bariloche from Brazil and Santiago, Chile as of writing. To my knowledge, no other international flights fly into this small Patagonian city.
The main airline that flies into Bariloche is Aerolíneas Argentinas, but you can find a few other carriers too.
You can catch a direct flight from a few other Argentinian cities, including:
El Calafate
Mendoza
Cordoba
Salta
Rosario
Most of these flights within Argentina will cost anywhere from $50-150 USD one-way…
Whereas a bus ride to Bariloche from any other decent size city in the country will take at least 8+ hours — if not 12-24+ hours.
Not how I prefer to spend a full day of my life. Cramped up in a bus just sitting around eating junk food and trying to get an hour or two of shuteye.
But if you’re into that sort of thing…
You can take a bus to Bariloche from Buenos Aires, El Calafate, and Santiago on the Chile side — via Osorno. All long, miserable bus rides winding through the mountains.
You’d think mountain views during a bus ride might not be too bad, but then little “Maria” sitting behind you starts getting motion sickness and throwing up all over the floor. Throw up which you’ll be smelling for the next 12+ hours of your wonderful bus journey.
More information on flights routes to Bariloche here.
Tl:DR – Take a flight from Buenos Aires to Bariloche!
