What Esquel is like, the Old Patagonian Express, the lake above town, La Hoya, the 2027 eclipse and how Esquel fits into a trip to Los Alerces and beyond.
Esquel is the main town in the Andes of Chubut, a working town of more than 30,000 people in a bowl of mountains near the Chilean border. Most travelers pass through on the way to somewhere else, Los Alerces National Park, Trevelin or the valleys to the north, and it is worth slowing down for a day. This is the town guide. If you are here to fish, our post on fly fishing near Esquel covers the water.
Coming through Esquel?
Tell us your dates and what you want to do, and we will tell you honestly how a stay in the Cholila valley fits with time in town.
What Esquel is like
Esquel sits at around 560 meters (about 1,850 feet) on the Esquel stream, ringed by peaks including La Zeta, La Cruz, Cerro 21 and La Hoya. It is the service town for western Chubut, with the region's main hospital, banks and supermarkets, so it is where people stock up before heading into the mountains.
Like nearby Trevelin, the area has Welsh settler roots, and the country around it also has a long Mapuche and Tehuelche history. Summers are dry and warm by day, and winter brings snow and the ski season.
La Trochita, the Old Patagonian Express
Esquel's best-known attraction is La Trochita, a steam train that runs on track just 75 centimeters wide. The line was built to link Esquel with Ingeniero Jacobacci in Río Negro, 402 kilometers away, and the first train reached Esquel on May 25, 1945. Paul Theroux made it famous in English as the Old Patagonian Express, and it was declared a National Historic Monument in 1999.
Today it runs as a tourist train from Esquel station out across the steppe to Nahuel Pan, about 20 kilometers away, where the Mapuche community sells crafts at the station. The round trip takes around three hours. Departure days change through the year, so check the schedule at the station or the tourist office before planning around it.
Around town
Just above town, the Laguna La Zeta urban nature reserve protects a small lake among the hills, with walking trails and viewpoints over Esquel and the mountains. It is the easiest walk from town and a good way to stretch your legs after a long flight.
In winter, most visitors come for La Hoya, one of Argentina's longer-running ski areas, about 12 kilometers from town.
The 2027 annular eclipse
On February 6, 2027, Esquel sits inside the path of an annular solar eclipse, with about seven and a half minutes of the ring of fire just before noon. The town has been preparing for it as a major event, and local press notes the region will not see another annular eclipse until 2048. Our guide to the 2027 eclipse has the times and how to watch it safely. For the trip itself, see the eclipse trip page.
Using Esquel as a base
Esquel's airport, a short drive east of town, has flights from Buenos Aires, which makes the town the usual way into this part of Patagonia. From there, Trevelin is about 25 kilometers south, Los Alerces National Park is about 50 kilometers to the northwest, and the Cholila valley is about an hour and a half north.
A night in town at either end of a trip works well. It breaks up the travel, gives you a chance to ride La Trochita, and puts you close to the airport for an early flight.
Riding from the Cholila Valley
Not everyone who comes through Esquel is here to fish. La Pilarica runs horseback rides from the lodge in the Cholila valley, on horses suited to the local climate and terrain. If you're traveling with an angler, one of you can ride while the other fishes. The horseback riding page has what a ride looks like and how to book one.
Plan time in the valleys north of Esquel
Send us your dates and what you want to do, and we will tell you what is open and how the days could run.
Where is Esquel, Argentina?+
In the northwest of Chubut Province in Argentine Patagonia, in the Andes near the Chilean border, about 25 kilometers north of Trevelin.
What is Esquel known for?+
La Trochita, the narrow-gauge steam train known as the Old Patagonian Express, the La Hoya ski area, and its position as the gateway to Los Alerces National Park.
How long is the La Trochita train ride?+
The tourist run from Esquel to Nahuel Pan is about 20 kilometers each way and takes around three hours round trip.
Is Esquel in the path of the 2027 eclipse?+
Yes. On February 6, 2027 Esquel gets about seven and a half minutes of the ring of fire, with the maximum just before noon.