Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
358
TOUR OPERATORS
Puerto Madryn's coastal street, Avenida Roca, is lined with travel agencies. Shop around
for a space if you are booking at the last minute. Unless you are bilingual, it's very impor-
tant to ensure that your tour has an E nglish-speaking guide. Almost all quote the same
price for standard tours, such as the 1-day Península Valdés or Punta Tomba tours, most
of which star t at 7:30am (depending on whether y ou are staying in Trelew or P uerto
Madryn) and get you back before dinner. One-day tours of the Península Valdés start at
$60 (£41) per person, not including the whale-watching trip (an additional $35/£24) or
lunch.
If you have a gr oup of six or mor e, it is wor thwhile—and surely more relaxing—to
take a private tour for the same price, rather than signing up for a standar d group tour.
Flamenco Tour,
Av. Roca 331 (
&
2965/455505;
www.flamencotour.com), is per-
haps the largest tour operator in the area. The 1-day guided tour to the Península Valdés
lasts from 7:30am to 7pm and includes a stop at the museum, a chance to go on a whale-
watching cruise, and guided walks on the P unta Delgada beach and Caleta Valdés, to
view the elephant seals.
Huinca Travel,
Av. Roca 353 (
&
2965/454411;
www.huincatravel.com), has tradi-
tional tours in small gr oups as w ell as activ e options, including a nighttime whale-
watching tour and mountain biking on the P enínsula Valdés.
NieveMar Tours
, Av.
Roca 493 (
&
2965/455544;
www.nievemartours.com.ar), has very friendly and knowl-
edgeable guides. They offer the standard Península Valdés tour with a long lunch br eak,
to stretch your legs, at Caleta Valdés; a full day at P unta Tombo; and a 6-hour trip to
discover the Welsh heritage of Gaiman. They can also set up multiday tours that include
accommodations.
12
OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
BIKING
Huellas y Costas,
Bd. Brown 860 (
&
2965/15-680515
[cell]; www.huellas
ycostas.com), has guided mountain-biking tours that last from a few hours to 3 days. For
short-term bike r entals, tr y
El Retorno,
Mitre 798 (
&
2965/456044
). A 1-day bike
rental will cost around $10 (£6.80).
DIVING
Most of the diving companies here offer the same tours for the same price. t's
a question of whose schedules you like. All have been licensed and have high safety stan-
dards. The main draw is swimming with the sea lions and elephant seals, and some also
arrange for diving close to the whales.
Aquatours,
Av. Roca 550 (
&
2965/451954
),
offers a v ariety of diving trips in the bay off P uerto Madryn and also off the P enínsula
Valdés.
FISHING
Call
Raúl Díaz
(
&
2965/450812
), a seasoned fisherman who will be happy
to take visitors out with him on a fishing trip .
GOLF
The
Puerto Madryn Golf Club
(http://golf.madryn.com) is on RN 4, on the
road to the airport. Call the club manager, Juan González (
&
2965/471947
), to arrange
your tee times and get detailed information on the rates.
HORSEBACK RIDING
For rides between 2 and 4 hours in the steppe abo ve Madryn
and along the coast, tr y
Nativo Adventure
(
&
2965/15-695232
[cell]), or
Huellas y
Costas
(see below).
KAYAKING
Huellas y Costas,
Bd. B rown 1900 (
&
2965/15-637826
[cell]; www .
huellasycostas.com), r uns r egular sea-kayaking outings fr om late D ecember thr ough
March.
