If you want to have both adventure and relax holiday, this beautiful city in the province Rio Negra, Argentina is THAT place. Surrounded by lakes and mountains Bariloche serves as a base for many excursions in the region famous for spectacular scenery and for skiing, water sports, trekking, climbing, fishing. The city itself embodies a strange juxtaposition: an urban city plopped down in the middle of beautiful wilderness. Bariloche stands out for its architectural features influenced by German, Swiss, and English immigration. Compared with the crowded metropolis, Bariloche, with its hundred thousand or so inhabitants, still lives the life of a mountain village. This place offers its population panoramic vistas and a constant contact with natural beauty, you breathe fresh air in the streets, and the immense Nahuel Huapi Lake can be seen from any part of the town. Walking along the woodland trails is a marvelous experience of being by yourself and in harmony with nature, far away from the pollution and stress of large cities.

Bariloche is the gate to the Patagonian lakes – Nahuel Huapi, Gutiérrez Lake, Moreno Lake and Mascardi Lake. It is said that here starts the magnificent world of the Patagonia. The marvelous surroundings of the Nahuel Huapi will allow you to enjoy over 50 different excursions. Lake traditional and adventure promenades satisfy all kind of amusement during the whole year. Beaches by the lake such as Playa Bonita and Villa Tacul welcome sun-bathers and some brave lake swimmers (the waters, from melting snow, are always very cold). Lake Nahuel Huapi contains several islands, including Isla Huemul, which hosted the Huemul Project, the Argentinian secret research project on nuclear fusion in 1949-1952. San Carlos de Bariloche is actually in the midlle of area known as the oldest national park in Argentina – Nahuel Huapi National Park. The park covers approximately 7050 km² and is famous for its rich wildlife. It covers many biotopes, due to altitudes ranging from 700 to 3,000 m and precipitation ranging from rain forests with 4,000 mm/yr on the western slopes to steppes with less than 300 mm/yr on the eastern side. Its incomparable beauty extends through the polychromy of its flowers, gardens and lakes, the variety of trees and plants that ornament the mountains and valleys giving in this way a colorful spectacle with the species diversity of ñires, cipreses, lengas and pines among others.

The towering snowy peaks of the Andes to the west of the city allow you to have beautiful winter holiday. Located 12 miles from Bariloche, Cerro Catedral is one of the most important ski centers in South America with a skiable area of 2 km² (0.77 sq mi), over 100 km (62 miles) of ski runs, and a lift capacity of 22,200 skiers per hour. It offers variety of activities like skiing in all its modalities, alpine, nordic, snowboarding and adventure, motoskiing. July is the peak of season for skiing.

San Carlos de Bariloche is also famous for its chocolates and fine cuisine, mountain food prepared in a very characteristic way. The city hosts an amazing number of shops were they produce and sell all sorts of varieties of chocolate. Local fruits and licor make some of the fillings. The most renowned ones are Mamuschka, La Abuela Goye and Benroth. Bariloche offers a wealth of services, including the area’s largest and best-serviced airport. But if you’re looking for a quiet vacation, you’d be better off lodging outside the city center, on the road to the Llao Llao Peninsula or in the town of Villa La Angostura. Beautiful alpine style hotel Hotel Llao Llao built in 1939 (recently renovated), adds to the dramatic backdrop of the mountains. A classic resort: there’s a golf course, boating, and much for the wealthy to see and do.

There are few places in the world where the seasons are so well marked as in Bariloche. The snow changes the landscape abruptly in winter time, spring is full of colors, long and warm days in summer and spectacular color shades in the fall, and all these changes permanently accompanied by the welcoming friendliness of the people.

In the southern section of South America there is a very small country, so small its citizens call it “paisito” or little country. This country is Uruguay. And it has one of the world most popular places to visit. Punta del Este is called the St. Tropez of Uruguay or the Hamptons of South America as it is scenic resort area with miles of glistening beaches, with luxury hotels and restaurants, plenty of natural attractions, shops, glittery nightlife and wealthy summer visitors. The place is awash with yacht and fishing clubs, golf courses, casinos and beautiful holiday homes. Punta del Este has become in the docking place for yatchs which sail all around the world.

Twenty miles of beautiful beaches are very much crowded during the summer season, which begins in December and ends in March. Being a peninsula there are two coastlines, one of them is pretty quiet and calm (called “mansa”), and the other one is windy, with some surf spots (called “brava”). Famous beaches includes: “La playa de los Dedos” (The finger beach”), which is near the main street in Punta del Este, and in La Barra the Bikini Beach is famous because of the models and famous people that goes there. La Barra is a center of youth oriented activities, from daytime sports on the fine sandy beach to all night discos. To get to this small village, you cross an unusual bridge shaped like an easy roller coaster. La Mansa beach is famous for landmark known as “The Hand in the Sand” which was made in 1982.

Besides the stunning beaches there a lot more attractions to visit. Opposite the large peninsula separating the two waters of the Atlantic Ocean and Rio de la Plata, lie the enchanted islands of Isla Gorriti which has more superb beaches and the ruins of an 18th-century fortress and Isla de los Lobos, inhabited by one of the world’s largest sea-lion colonies.

Museo Taller Casapueblo, in nearby Punta Ballena, is the museum and workshop of the artist Carlos Páez Vilaró. It features his paintings and is an artistic monument in itself, like a villa imported from the planet Tatooine. There are few places in the world where you can enjoy the sunset as at Punta Ballena. The Panoramica route, just on the hills, allows you to see Portezuelo and Maldonado Bay. You can also see the Arboretum Lussich, a fantastic place built by Antonio Lussich, who brought plants from all over the world and made this place a must-visit at Punta del Este.

Punta del Este is famous for its clubbing scene. The party scene doesn’t kick into high gear until Christmas, when the famouse people, Brazilian models and international jet set arrive for a week or three of get-togethers, lavish dinners and midnight cruises. Punta is also known for its casinos where elites from Argentina, Brazil, Chile and beyond come to rendezvous and chill. The Conrad Resort and Casino holds Las Vegas-style reviews and other music, dance, and magic shows. The enormous 24-hour casino has 450 slots and 63 tables for baccarat, roulette, blackjack, poker, dice, and fortune wheel.

Punta del Este has an extraordinary variety of options for tourists so if you are looking for an active and memorable holiday it’s the best place to visit.