Esquel is a small town in the Patagonia region of Argentina. It is lesser known in the world-wide tourism community due to its lack of promotion but it is a great town to stop at if you are in the region.
Why did we decide to visit Esquel? We are traveling through the Patagonia region by bus. It is an area with few airports and plane travel can be expensive. When going between two hubs in Patagonia, El Calafate and Bariloche, our bus was going to take over 26 hours! So we tried to find a town on the route to cut the bus trip shorter and we found Esquel. While we still had to take a bus for over 20 hours, we still enjoyed the break in the trip and to visit a town that was not on our radar. You can read more about the bus trip between El Calafate and Bariloche here, which also describes some other bus travel that we have done in the region.
The other advantage to visiting Esquel is that it has many attractions, and, because it is a lesser-known destination, the price of accommodations, food, and attractions is lower than other popular towns in the region. It is incredibly family-friendly with activities that range in difficulty and intensity and a town that is suitable for families, couples, and solo travelers.
Below are some of the attractions that we looked into in Esquel along with where to stay and where to eat throughout the town.
Everything To Do in Esquel
The map below, provided to us by the tourism office of Esquel, shows the variety of activities to do in and around the Esquel area. You can explore these with a car, hiring a taxi or private transportation, or using the local bus service. Some activities you can find include:
- Kayaking
- White-water rafting
- Horseback riding
- Skiing La Hoya in the winter (July – September) – you can read more about it in the link.
- “Tuneles de Hielo” or Ice Tunnels – to visit in the summer, an ice tunnel that reflects a kaleidoscope of color. You can read more about the excursion in the link.
- Campo de Tulipanes in the spring (October) – beautiful fields of blooming tulips with the Andes mountains in the background. You can read more about it in the link.
We visited in the summer and had the opportunity to check out some of the top attractions in the area. Here is our experience with each of them.
La Trochita
La Trochita is an original steam-engine train that still runs in Patagonia. While the total length of the track is 402 kilometers, today, you can ride a portion of the trail from either Esquel or Maiten. While it is the same train line, these trains always start and end in the same destination. You cannot go from Esquel to Maiten via train. This is seen as purely a tourism activity and not a means of transportation today.
The train from Esquel takes you on a round trip to Nahuel Pan, a local indigenous community in the area. However, given the age of the train and the lack of maintenance of the track, there is a chance that your trip may be cut short because of a mechanical issue. This happened to us and below is our experience.
Booking Your Train Ticket
You can purchase your tickets for the train online here prior to the ride. The train does not run every day, and while more frequent in the summer months, you may need to plan around the availability of the train for the rest of your trip. You also get to pick your seat on the train. The train cars that are smaller have padded seats and the larger ones have benches. In the winter, all train cars are heated with a wooden stove fireplace and in the summer, the breeze of the Patagonia air flows through the train cars.
The Train Journey
When you get to the train station, you will check in and receive your official train ticket. If you have time, you can walk through the train museum next to the station, which has information about the construction of the train tracks and some memorabilia from the original train. You can also use the time to take photos of the engine and train cars with few people around.
Once the conductor rings the bell to board the train, you will find your train car and seat. They will give you a safety talk about the train and tell you about the different features of your ride. There is a dining car at the front of the train where you can purchase snacks and drinks while the train is moving. In your train car, a guide will give you information about the train itself, its history and characteristics along with info about the landscape around you.
In addition, a local musician will play some songs for you so you can understand the local culture. Music is a big part of the local native populations and supporting local artists helps celebrate and continue that culture.
Along the journey, you will see landscapes from both sides of the train. While the right side has beautiful panoramic views of Esquel and the valley, the left side has great views of the Andes Mountains.
Here is where our train broke down and unfortunately, they were not able to fix it. We had to hop off the train and walk along the tracks to the road where, after an hour-long wait, some buses came to pick us up and return to Esquel.
The Train Destination: Nahuel Pan
Ultimately, you are supposed to arrive at Nahuel Pan, a local Mapuche community. Here, the native community has a market with crafts and local food and is the place to get lunch. Unfortunately, we did not have the opportunity to visit.
After your experience here, you will return on the train for a journey back to Esquel.
We wish we could have gone to Nahuel Pan and other blogs write about their experience visiting this community but we want to be realistic about our experience and explain all the possibilities with this attraction. It is also possible to go to Nahuel Pan via taxi instead but the train ride to and from is absolutely worth it.
Laguna La Zeta
Above Esquel is a small mountain lake which is a great place to relax and enjoy the weather. It is about a 4-5 kilometer walk from the center of Esquel and is uphill along the side of a dirt road most of the way. If you do not want to walk, you can also take a taxi to the lake. Here, there is a beach, a cafe, and a place to rent kayaks. Bring a towel, picnic, and book and relax while looking at the mountains.
Parque Nacional Los Alerces: Visiting the Alerzal Milenario
The nearest national park to Esquel is Parque Nacional Los Alceres, a large park in the Andes Mountains. This park has beaches, campsites, hikes, and lake excursions that you can get to directly from a bus from Esquel. We wanted to visit the unique trees of the park, after which it is named. They are in an isolated part of the area and only accessible by boat, requiring a guided visit to the area and limiting the number of people who can visit.
The excursion we chose was Safari Lacustre because it was listed on the official National Park website. You can purchase tickets online here. The excursion includes the boat ride to the Alerces and a guided hike around the trees. The whole tour is done in Spanish but the views are still valuable if you cannot understand what is said.
Getting to the Parque Nacional Los Alerces
There are two bus companies that provide transportation to and from the park: Transporte Jacobson and Transportes Esquel. These websites display current bus schedules to the national park. If you also want to visit the Alerces trees, search for the destination “Lago Verde”. You can purchase bus tickets at the bus station. Make sure to purchase a return ticket as well!
For the rest of this section, we will talk about our experience visiting Los Alerces. From Esquel, it takes 2.5 hours to get to Lago Verde. We asked the bus driver to drop us off at “Las Pasarelas”, slightly before the Lago Verdo because it is the trailhead that we walked down to get to our boat dock.
The Alerzal Milenario Excursion
It took us about 30 minutes to walk to the boat dock. The walk took us across a river and through a forest. At the dock, we checked in and boarded the boat. We made sure to get to the dock 30 minutes before the departure to get to the front of the line to board and have a window seat on the boat.
Our first stop was at the Glaciar Torrecillas as we rode by to take photos. There are other excursions that allow you to hike to the glacier.
While on the boat, we ate the lunches we brought (see our section below about “Where to Eat in Esquel”) while enjoying the passing mountains. Ultimately, we arrived at our destination where we saw our first Alerce tree. This is the oldest one in this section of the park at 2,600 years old, the Alerzal Milenario. These trees grow incredibly slowly at only 1 millimeter a year. Unfortunately, loggers previously cut down many of the trees that grew completely straight but left the ones that did not have straight veining. Because of how slowly these trees grow, it is impossible to replace the trees that have been cut down. This is why this area is so well protected today.
We then went on a hike for about an hour to see more trees and explore the landscape. This hike was optional and others opted to stay near the dock and enjoy the views.
Finally, we returned to the boat to go back to the initial docks. From here, we hiked back to where the bus dropped us off and waited for our bus to return to Esquel.
We wish we had brought some sandals to put our feet into the river that we had initially crossed. It was hot outside and the water would have been refreshing. It would have also been a nice way to pass time while waiting for our return bus.
To Relax
We spent a little time in Esquel to relax after a long month and a half of continuous travel and challenging hiking. As a result, we searched for ways to decompress. We went to Masoterapeutas G.U.M.E for a massage and Patagonia Pilates for pilates and would recommend both.
Where to Stay in Esquel
Esquel is a small town and the center is only a 15 minute walk from the bus station. We stayed in an Airbnb near downtown Esquel and the bus station to make touring as easy as possible. There were plenty of nice and affordable Airbnbs available to us. There are also some hotels in the center of town but we found the Airbnbs to have an incredible value.
Where to Eat in Esquel
The following are some of the highlights of our dining in Esquel:
- Don Chiquino – a nicer Italian-style restaurant
- Fitzroya Pizza – local pizzeria
- La Luna Restaurante – local Patagonian fare in a casual environment
- Amado Cafe de Especialidad – a cafe with great sandwiches. (We got sandwiches from here for our excursion to the national park)
- Empanadas Patagonicas – a casual and delicious empanada spot that only has food to-go
- Rider Brewing Bar – a brewery with nice pub fare
- Heladeria Serenata – the best local ice cream spot