20221114_121408Penguin at Punta Tombo (November 2022)

Following my first full day in Puerto Madryn with whale watching in Península Valdés, I had another excursion the next day in Punta Tombo. It’s a peninsula located about 187 km (116 miles) south of Puerto Madryn, and it’s home to a natural reserve with various wildlife, including guanacos, rhea birds, and most famously, the Magellanic penguins. I was especially excited for this tour, as I love penguins and was looking forward to seeing them in person.

It was another early rise for breakfast in order to be picked up by 7h15 for another day of sightseeing in this part of Patagonia. Of the dozen or so passengers, I was the only non-Spanish speaker on board: the tour guide presented in Spanish first, then English to me. It was kind of surreal to be the lone English speaker on the tour, since I’ve been on tours which were predominantly anglophone: Puerto Madryn seemed to be more of a domestic destination for Argentines, as I didn’t encounter as many English-speaking tourists during my stay there.

We made a quick pit stop at a large dinosaur statue in Trelew, which is the site where the bones of the largest dinosaur in the world were unearthed in 2013. We had a few minutes for photos with the statue before we began our two-hour journey down to Punta Tombo.

20221114_090343Dinosaur statue at Trelew

It was around 11h00 or so when we arrived to Punta Tombo, specifically its natural reserve. Our tour guide gave us 90 minutes to two hours to explore the reserve, which is home to a whopping one million Magellanic penguins. We visited in early November, and we were a week early to witness the chicks hatching– but sadly, due to the heavy rain a couple of days prior, it actually flooded the reserve and caused many penguins to flee and abandon their eggs. Our tour guide estimated there wouldn’t be as many eggs hatching this season, which was a shame.

20221114_112437You know you’re in Argentina when mate is ubiquitous!

However, we still saw many penguins during our visit. There were colonies upon colonies of them waddling, swimming, and otherwise chilling in their nests, which were built underneath small plant shrubs. They were so adorable, and we were literally a few feet away from them (of course, no touching!). It was a dream come true, as I got to see them in person and take many photos (and selfies) of/with them!

20221114_115020Penguins!

20221114_121410Up close…

We wrapped up our visit of the penguin reserve and had lunch at the Interpretative Center. It was self-service, buffet-style, so I enjoyed a big platter of rice, potatoes, salad, and of course, empanadas. Not too expensive, either! It was then a two-and-a-half hour drive back to Puerto Madryn, and we returned just around 17h00. Even though much of the day was spent driving to get to Punta Tombo, it was still worth seeing the cute Magellanic penguins at the reserve– honestly, my life’s been complete!

I had dinner once more at my B&B’s restaurant for that last night. I opted for the lamb ravioli (a bit heavy on the sauce, but it was al-dente and had plenty of filling inside), as well as a deconstructed torta negra galesa, a Welsh cake that’s local to the Chubut province, as there are around 70,000 Welsh-Patagonians who live there after settling in the 1860’s. The cake was dense and reminded me of a heavier fruit cake, and it was a lovely way to end my stay in Puerto Madryn.

20221114_212025Torta negra galesa (deconstructed)

I had a half-day to explore Puerto Madryn proper before I had to leave, so I took a stroll along the promenade to see the beach and got a light lunch of empanadas (tuna and spinach-cheese) at one of the cafés. Compared to stormy weather just two days prior, it was absolutely hot and sunny that day, which made a huge difference. Just before leaving, I bought a few penguin souvenirs and returned to my B&B, where my ride picked me up and took me back to Trelew airport for the next leg of the trip in Argentina.

My three nights in Puerto Madryn were packed with lots of sightseeing at the natural reserves, to check out the various wildlife from Southern right whales to Magellanic penguins. While wildlife tourism usually isn’t my preferred travel style (I’m more of a city break gal), I actually enjoyed seeing some unique species that I wouldn’t otherwise see in my home country, especially the penguins!

More of my Argentina trip to follow soon. Stay tuned!

— Rebecca

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Published by Rebecca

Blogger, world traveler, poet, foodie, part-time penguin. Welcome!

59 thoughts on “Destination: Puerto Madryn, Argentina (Penguins and more Penguins, oh my!– PART 2)”

  3. I’m so glad you got to see the penguins, Rebecca, and I’m glad your shared those little cuties with us. Your trip to Punta Tombo sounds amazing and worth the effort to get there. The empanadas sound delicious as does the torta negra galesa. I have to admit that I had to Google mate to see what it was, and now I know.

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    1. Thanks, Mike and Kellye! The penguins were so cute, and I’m so glad I got to see them in the wild! The torta negra galesa was a delight, and I’m happy to have tried it! More Argentinian adventures are coming soon!

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  11. I love this! Those penguins are worth waking up early for. Still lucky that guide spoke in English. 🙂 your post reminded me of our bird watching tour in New Zealand. Like you, I was also excited to see the penguins in the wild. 🙂

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  13. I’ve enjoyed reading about your visit to Puerto Madryn. I think it’s a good sign when even the locals visit a place. I’m curious, has your visit to Argentina inspired you to learn more Spanish? Congratulations on realizing your dream of seeing many penguins!

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    1. Thanks, Darlene! Puerto Madryn was a nice introduction to Argentina outside of BA. I’m definitely interested in picking up Spanish now! The penguins were adorable, and I’m glad I got to see them in the wild! 🐧

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  18. Penguins attract so much attention. It’s amazing how unafraid they are to see humans so close, on the contrary they seem curious about us as we are about them, except they don’t have cameras 🙂

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    1. Penguins are curious creatures, and that’s what makes them so adorable! It’s a mutual sentiment between us and them, and now I’m imagining penguins taking photos of people (that is, if they have opposable thumbs)! 😆

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  21. It’s sad to think that those eggs almost hatched if it wasn’t because of the flood. But such is nature, keeping everything in balance, until humans wreaked havoc. Anyway, I really love to see how blue the skies were during your visit, and you’ve got to see those penguins in person! On land, they look really awkward and cute, especially with the way they walk. But in the water, they’re so agile and impressive. Torta negra galesa sounds really interesting! I think I want to try it if I see it on the menu at any Argentinian restaurant here in Jakarta.

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    1. I agree! Unfortunately, it was bad timing with the storm a few days prior, which flooded Punta Tombo and probably caused less eggs to hatch that season…any case, the penguins were so cute and a joy to see! Torta negra galesa is a specific dish to that region of Argentina, but maybe you’ll find it in a restaurant in Jakarta– it’s worth a go! Thanks for reading, Bama!

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  25. I did a boat trip from Ushuaia years ago to an island where penguins packed the shore. They don’t seem to be too bothered by humans wandering around them now and then. I’m having fun picturing your penguin souvenirs! I have a penguin magnet on my fridge from there.

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  28. I would not have guessed you would see penguins in Argentina and in broad daylight too. You really got up close! There is a place to watch penguins by the coast near where I am, but the penguins only come out during sunset.

    I think when you are surrounded by locals going to local day-trip places, it’s unlikely to be a tourist trap. That is one fascinating dinosaur statue! It looks absolutely huge and so striking against the blue sky – you got a good shot there. Thought it would be really fenced off but looks like people can get quite up close too 😄

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    1. I think it might depend on the type of penguin and the weather conditions in terms of when they’re active? I saw Magellanic penguins during my visit, and perhaps it’s the cool, temperate weather that allows them to be out during the day. 🐧

      At first, I thought the dinosaur statue was kind of gimmicky and a tourist trap, as it reminded me of those statues at amusement parks. But when I learned why it was placed there (i.e. historical site of dinosaur bones), it made more sense! People can literally touch the statue for photos, so I guess it’s made for durability 😆

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      1. Maybe it really does depend on the type of penguin and weather conditions as to when penguins wander around 🐧😊 Now that you say people can get very close to the dinosaur statue, I really want to go see it! If I do, I will report back 😄

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