Family Travel in Bariloche, Argentina

“Another chocolate store!” my 11-year-old daughter gasped with disbelief and delight. We were on a sidewalk in Bariloche, Argentina, in the Andes foothills of the Lake District near Chile — but we might have been in Europe rather than South America. Swiss alpine architecture, German trinkets, Italian eateries, designer clothing and sports stores, and countless chocolaterias give this pocket of Patagonia an international flair along with a sense of fun and adventure.

The water in the foreground is actually the Llao Llao Hotel pool, which seems to flow into the lake.

We recently wrapped up two weeks in Bariloche, which sits on the shores of a vast lake surrounded by snow-capped jagged peaks in Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi, the country’s oldest national park. The region is a magnet for skiers, anglers and trekkers during winter and summer, but our family discovered its charms — along with relative bargains — during the off-season months of late October and early November (which, of course, is springtime down there).

Along with the ubiquitous chocolate stores and the irresistible Museo del Chocolate in downtown Bariloche, my daughter and 8-year-old son likely will remember splashing in the indoor-outdoor pool of the renowned Llao Llao Hotel, about a half hour east of the town center, where we spent our first three nights. We splurged on this five-star hotel because we couldn’t resist the location — perched on an emerald bulb of land between two lakes — and its family-friendly offerings, including a kids’ club, game room and gorgeous pool. The pool’s cascade creates an illusion of extending to the lake and beach below.

We booked Llao Llao’s most affordable “partial-view” room in an older wing of the hotel and happily discovered our room was plenty roomy and replete with luxurious linens. Plus, we found the “partial view” fully satisfying.

The back of the Llao Llao Hotel, as seen from our room.

With the kids safely supervised and content to play at the hotel, my husband and I ran off to explore the nearby trails up Cerro Llao Llao, a lovely peak next to the hotel, and Cerro Catedral, site of the main ski development. The kids came along on a gondola ride with Teleferico up Cerro Otto and were wowed by the views at a revolving restaurant there.

Eager for a day trip that would take us out on the lake’s shimmering waters, we spent a full day traveling by boat to the forested Isla Victoria and Parque Nacional Los Arrayanes. This outing is a family-travel must-do, for it combines genuinely interesting environmental education with stunning scenery and good-ol’ hiking and running around. We’re glad we booked the trip with the catamaran Cao Cao and went on a day with an English-speaking guide.

Our family outing to Isla Victoria, on Lago Nahuel Huapi in Patagonia.

We left Llao Llao in search of more affordable, apartment-type lodging and discovered a wide range of cabañas and hotel suites. Unfortunately, due to unchecked development in the last decade, some have a tacky time-share look and support the main rap against Bariloche, which is that it’s too touristy. It’s true that Bariloche, with a population of about 120,000, is bigger and brassier than smaller neighboring communities that dot Patagonia’s Lake District. We spent a week in quieter, quainter Villa La Angostura, about an hour north of Bariloche, and had an unforgettable time there — but if you and your family have time for just one destination, Bariloche offers the widest range of things to do for grown-ups and kids alike.

After sorting through the lodging options, we booked a clean, cozy one-bedroom cabaña on the property of the Villa Huinid Hotel and couldn’t have been more pleased with the setting and service. We had our own little home overlooking Lago Nahuel Huapi, but we also could walk up a few hundred yards to the hotel to take advantage of its fitness room, pool and restaurant. The kids loved the hotel’s play structure and friendly free-roaming dogs, too.

If it's springtime in Patagonia, be prepared for sudden changes in the weather!

Though we did much of our own cooking in the cabaña, we also dined out and found three family-friendly, not-too-touristy restaurants to recommend: Tarquino, in a Hobbit-like quasi-tree house (trees really grow through the restaurant), serving regional specialties and fresh salads; Dias de Zapata, with authentic Mexican food to please this Californian’s palate; and La Fonda del Tia, a no-frills locals’ parrilla with a friendly neighborhood vibe.

One warning: If you go to Bariloche in springtime, prepare yourself for any type of weather. We arrived to blue-sky splendor and got hit by a snowstorm three days later. At least the climate is ripe for rainbows!

Considering the dramatic views and delectable chocolate, it’s no wonder we had dulces sueños (sweet dreams) in Bariloche at bedtime.

FarFlungGal Sarah Lavender Smith is a writer from the San Francisco Bay Area who’s three months into a year-long round-the-world trip. She blogs about her family’s adventures at away-together.com, with the tagline “One family, one year, many places, no regrets.”

All photos by Morgan C. Smith.