Puerto Madryn Tour & Valdez Peninsula: Whales & Penguins

You will be met at the airport and transferred to your comfortable Puerto Madryn hotel.  See our recommended Puerto Madryn hotels. You will have the afternoon and the evening to enjoy Puerto Madryn at your leisure.

After an early breakfast in your hotel, you will be transferred to the village of Puerto Piramides on the Valdes Peninsula reserve. You can spend the day strolling the reserve, taking guided nature walks. Making sure to see the Istmo Ameghino Interpretation Center, the sea lion colony on Punto Piramides, the salt lakes, the sea elephant colonies in Punta Delgada, Caleta Valdes, and Punta Cantor, and the Puerto Madryn lighthouse. Make sure to pack a lunch, as this is a full day tour. If you visit between June and December, you can also take an optional whale watching tour.

After a hearty breakfast in your hotel, you can choose from a number of additional services or activities in the beautiful Puerto Madryn, or you can be transferred to the airport in time for your flight home, or to your next South America travel destination.

*Prices listed are seasonal; please consult a Travel Advisor for further details

PLEASE NOTE:
As of 1 January 2010, an entrance fee (Reciprocity Fee) is chargeable for citizens of the United States, Canada and Australia visiting Argentina. For further details, please read this article on the Latin America For Less Travel Blog.

• Hotels based on U.S. Standards.
• All tours stated in the itinerary.
• 2 hotel nights in Puerto Madryn.
• All transfers and entrance fees.
• All breakfasts.
• English speaking tour guides.

Prices Valid April- August

Prices Valid September- March

This whale watching cruise departs from Puerto Piramides as a compliment to the Peninsula Valdes excursion. The tour starts along the coast, giving you the chance to spot sea lions, elephant seals, and penguins. Then you’ll head out to sea, and you may see dolphins, orcas, and of course, the highlight of the tour, southern right whales. If you’re lucky, you’ll glimpse whales cavorting, breaching, lobtailing, and spyhopping. Peninsula Valdes has the largest population of southern right whales, and whales come within 700 feet of the shore.

*Price does not include transfers

This full day Punta Tombo tour takes you to the largest reserve of Magellan penguins in the continent. You’ll leave early in the morning and drive along 120km (75 miles), where you may see armadillos, guanacos, choiques, and grey foxes. You’ll arrive at the Punto Tombo Provincial Reserve, and you’ll spend the day surrounded by more than 200,000 penguins. During your two hour walking tour of the reserve, your guide will explain the behavior of these fascinating flightless birds, such as their mating and migratory patterns.

You will end the day by visiting the Welsh town of Gaiman, where you can taste typical Welsh tea and choose from the delicious variety of cakes and homemade candies. You may also visit the city of Trelew, where you can tour the fascinating Egidio Feruglio Paleontology Museum.

*Price does not include entrance fees or food
**Tour of Punto Tombo Provincial Reserve available September to April; tour of Gaiman and Trelew available year-round

In the calm shores of the Gulfo Nuevo, just 10 miles outside of Puerto Madryn, is Doradillo beach where southern right whales come very close to shore to give birth. During this two and a half hour guided Doradillo tour, you can enjoy this beautiful beach, which became a natural protected area in 2001. On the Punta Flecha cliff, there is an observation point on the Patagonia Natural Foundation where scientists observe the whales. You can visit the point and ask the scientists about their studies.

This two and a half hour Punta Loma tour takes you 34 km (21 miles) outside of Puerto Madryn to Punta Loma, where sea lions dwell en masse in the Marine Fauna Reserve. Black neck cormorants, or Cormorant Rockers – so called because they nest in the rocky cliffs – also have colonies here. In this quiet and tranquil reserve, you will be surrounded only by wildlife and the wild landscape.

*Price does not include entrance fee
*This tour is available year-round

This half day tour along the Chubut river valley takes you on the Welsh Settlers Path, learning all about the influence of these pioneers. Departing from Puerto Madryn mid-day, you will first head to Florentino Ameguino Dam to explore this feat of engineering that produces much of the region’s energy. You’ll visit Dolavon, the quaint village that grew around the Chubut valley’s first flour mill. Learn all about the mill and the nearby observation point, which the indigenous Tehuelche people may have used for astronomical observations. Passing small family ostrich and sheep farms, you’ll stop to see the highlights, including the Welsh church of Saint David Anglican. At one farm, the owners will tell you all about the history of the farm, the Chubut river valley, the legendary bandits who have raided the valley, and the Welsh settlers. In the Welsh town of Gaiman, make sure to sip tea (not included) in a traditional tea house, and stroll through the historic center on the guided walking tour. You will return to Puerto Madryn in the evening.

*This tour is available year-round

This combination whale watching and trekking tour of Puerto Piramides is an excellent way to spend a morning or afternoon around Puerto Madryn. You’ll first enjoy a whale watching cruise around the Golfo Nuevo, where you can spot southern right whales. Then you’ll head out on a moderately easy guided trek around the hills, dunes, and cliffs along the coastal village of Puerto Piramides. There you can enjoy lunch (included) from a restaurant in the village, before heading back to Puerto Madryn. 

*Price does not include entrance fee or drinks for lunch

Hop in a 4x4 Land Rover for an all-wheel adventure along the roughest geography near Puerto Madryn. During this three hour excursion, you’ll take in sights that you couldn’t see from a bus, such as the dunes near the cliffs and the spectacular coastline. You’ll stop to explore the fossil-rich soil along the coast, the shipwrecks on the beach, and the sea lion and cormorant colonies on Punta Loma. 

*This tour is available year-round

If you are a history buff, specifically a paleontology buff, you will love the Egidio Feruglio Paleontological Museum (MEF) in Trelew and the Paleontological Park Bryn Gwyn near Gaiman. The MEF, as it is nicknamed, is one of the best of its kind in the continent. Informative guides will explain why Patagonia is one of the most fossil-rich regions in the world. Next you’ll visit the Bryn Gwyn Paleontological Park near Gaiman, where you can walk the 120 plus acres of desert steppe and find fossils of sharks, penguins, dolphins and whales from eons past.

*This tour is available year-round

Hop in a 4x4 vehicle for a whirlwind tour of the coastline near Puerto Madryn. During this four hour tour, you will first visit a sheep ranch, where you’ll get to see the barns, windmill, shearing and cooking shed. You will learn all about the process of sheep shearing. Then you will drive to the Punta Conscriptos lighthouse to enjoy the views and take some brief walks along the beautiful coastline. You will surely see sea lions, cormorants, and perhaps even dolphins and terrestrial fauna like lesser rheats, and the crested tinamou. You’ll rest and have a snack (included) in the ranch house or on the beach, depending on the weather. 

*This tour is available year-round

Hop in a 4x4 vehicle for a whirlwind tour of the coastline near Puerto Madryn. During this six hour tour, you will first visit a sheep ranch, where you’ll get to see the barns, windmill, shearing and cooking shed. You will learn all about the process of sheep shearing. Then you will drive to Boulder Beach, where you will start a three hour long trek along the marvelous coastline. You will surely see sea lions, cormorants, and perhaps even dolphins, and terrestrial fauna like the crested tinamou. You will ascend the 100 m (350 feet) high cliffs to reach the Punta Conscriptos lighthouse. After a brief rest, you will continue on to the fossil hill, and then descend back to the beach. You will head back to the ranch house to enjoy a light lunch (included) before returning to Puerto Madryn.

*This tour is available year-round
*This is a moderate level trek. Children under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult, and it is not recommended for children under 12.

This half day sea kayak expedition takes you approximately 4 km (2.5 miles) along the beautiful coastline of Gulfo Nuevo. This expedition is geared towards nature lovers, and your guide will tell you in-depth about all the flora and fauna of the land and sea around Gulfo Nuevo. For those who have never been kayaking, including children, this is a terrific experience, as the waters of Gulfo Nuevo are calm and the wildlife watching is superb. Glide along the gulf, enjoying the sun, sights, and sea. 

*This tour is available year-round
*Kayak and oars, gloves, life jacket, waterproof bags and lunch are included

Puerto Madryn is considered the capital of diving in Argentina and is visited all year round by local and international divers attracted to its clear waters and varied sea-fauna. In this Puerto Madryn tour, you will meet your professional scuba diving instructor; you will brief you on scuba diving safety measures. You’ll get outfitted in your full neoprene wetsuit and ride a boat out to the crystal clear and calm waters of the Golfo Nuevo. Your instructor will then give you a scuba diving “baptism,” a beginner’s plunge into the water. You’ll submerge about 5 meters (16 feet) with your instructor, and you will discover the colorful and diverse submarine flora and fauna such as snails, starfish, seaweed, coral, and sea anemones. The length of the tour is about 2 hours. No previous experience is needed (you don’t even have to know how to swim).

*This tour is available year-round

At the specified time, you will be picked up at the hotel by the guide carrying your US Shimano bike with front suspension. There are different itineraries to follow:

1. Punta Este - 15mi ~ 3 to 4h ~ Difficulty Easy ~ You will head east to the Indian Monument, on your way, you’ll have the chance to get inside the Patagonian Steppe and see typical flora and a panoramic view of Puerto Madryn.
2. El Doradillo ~ 21mi ~ 5 to 6h ~ Difficulty Easy ~ El Doradillo was declared a municipal protected area in 2001, as it is one of the few places where whales may be watched from shore during June to November.
3. Punta Loma ~ 24mi ~ 5 to 6h ~ Difficulty Moderate ~ Punta Loma was the first reserve in Chubut, created in 1967 with the purpose of protecting the only permanent South American sea lion colony. A colony of cormorants and South American terns, are among other sea and land birds, while reptiles and mammals also dwell this protected area.